The old adage says that if March comes in like a lion it leaves like a lamb.  If we consider the real estate market in the same vein, since March started with a roar we should have had a nice quiet end to the month. Alas, the real estate market respects no old wives tales as it wends its way through the spring. The last week of March capped off a month that saw prices jump an average 33% over March 2016.  Through the year, the talk has been the lack of listings, and we are happy to say that March seems to have bucked this trend.  The number of new listings in March 2017 is virtually identical for both the freehold and condo market as the number of new listings in March of 2016.  Of course we complained about not enough listings last year too so we expect to see high demand pushing prices in an upward direction for the foreseeable future.

The number of new listings in the freehold sector continued to increase over the previous week, jumping a significant 25% to 307.  Sales also saw a significant increase, up nearly 50% over the previous week.  The truly astounding number is that 90% of all freehold sales last week sold over their list price, including 100% of all properties listed under $700,000. As we enter April and May, the busiest months for real estate transactions, we expect more of the same.

The resale condo market seems to have settled into a nice groove.  New listings were virtually unchanged from the previous week at 321. What is interesting to note is that 75% of all new resale listings are in the downtown core, south of Bloor and between Dufferin and Yonge. Sales did ease off last week to 172 but the competition was as fierce as it has ever been with 80% of condos selling above their list price.