Corinne McCabe , Broker

Here we go. The Santa Claus Parade is the definitive Toronto tradition and if that didn`t signal the start of winter then this week`s little blast of cold air sure did. Despite the temperature drop there is no sign that the real estate market is slipping into hibernation just yet. We know there are many frustrated buyers out there but we would encourage them all to keep looking. If you are contemplating putting your buying intentions on hold you will pay the ultimate price when prices escalate in the Spring...just like they did last year.

The number of new listings in the freehold sector dropped by 9% last week to 220 units. Sales jumped by 15.2% in the 416 and activity was higher with 65.3% of homes trading at or above the list price. Surprisingly the number of sales is nearly identical to the same period last year however competition amongst buyers was not as fierce as only 49% of homes traded at or above the list price.

The resale condo market continues with its torrid pace. Listings last week increased by 3.4% and sales decreased by 3.1%. Despite a slight widening in the listing to sales gap competition for suites increased as nearly 50% of sold condos traded at or above the list price. One thing we have been noticing is the number of offers on larger suites has increased dramatically. While this piece of data is not generally reported, our company sells enough condos to have anecdotal data which shows that some condos are receiving as many as 6 offers and it is not surprising to see a suite sell above 110% of list price. 

Did you survive Trumpaggedon? Withstand Trumpocolypse? Whatever the side of the fence you stand on, at least on this side of the border, life as we know it hasn’t changed much over the last few weeks. And while we don’t yet know what a Trump presidency is going to look like yet, or how it will affect us here in the north, our hope is that reason and calm markets will prevail. So far so good.

The freehold sector did not see much change in the number of new listings last week; however sales dipped by about 38% from 173 the previous week to 125. This drop is consistent with declines in sales over previous years and is more a statement of the approaching winter market than uneasiness in the US federal election outcome and continued adapting of the new Canadian mortgage rules which are likely only playing a small role. Still, sentiment for home ownership remains strong as nearly 65% of home transactions in the 416 sold at or above the asking price.

If you thought living in a condo was just a passing fancy...you were wrong. The condominium market is having a hard time keeping up to demand. Compared to last year at this time new condo listings are down 20% while sales are up 30%. If you think those numbers are exciting, consider that nearly 45% of transactions are happening at or above the list price compared to a mere 20% last year.

Bosley Real Estate Ltd. is a full service boutique brokerage operating in Toronto, Niagara-on-the-Lake, Jordan and Port Hope, Ontario since 1928. We have four centrally located offices and over 250 sales representatives selling and leasing homes and condominiums in all the vibrant communities we work in. Our brand is well recognized internationally thanks to our unique affiliation with Leading Real Estate Companies of the World. Our sales teams meet weekly to discuss market conditions, trending topics, and anecdotes that more accurately reflect the true temperature of the real estate market.

Inquiring minds want to know if the new mortgage rules are having an impact on housing activity in Toronto. Frankly we are as curious as the next guy but as it stands now we have not seen much change. Overall activity in the 416 continues to be strong as demonstrated by rising prices across every category of shelter. For the first time, affordability in the rental sector is raising concerns as the average price of a one bedroom condo increased by over 7% in the 3rd quarter of 2016.

Tight supply in the freehold market has been the ongoing story for the last few years. Consider that we have 63% fewer listings than the same period last year yet only 15% fewer sales. The net result is more sales happening above the list price (66.5% in 2016 compared to 55% in 2015). We will certainly witness a decline in resale listings over the next 2 months as we cruise into the winter season but it remains unclear if sales will drop in a corresponding fashion. The east core was the hot spot last week as 84% of all homes sold above the list price compared to 62% in the west core and 58% in the central core.

The condo sector held steady in terms of new resale listings as the number of available suites dropped a marginal 3.5% to 384 units. Sales were virtually unchanged from the previous week however there seems to be a slight uptick in demand as the number of units sold at or above the list price hit 49.8%, a new record for Toronto. Last week the hot spot of the market was reserved for the entry level segment ($200k-$400k) where a remarkable 66% of all condos sold at or above the list price.

This Fall has not been kind to our city. First, the Blue Jays got knocked out of the playoffs, then the Federal Government introduced tighter mortgage regulations. It was nothing more than a one-two punch to the stomach. But hey, we’ve been down this road before and if any place can be resilient in the face of adversity you know it’s Toronto. We just get back up, dust ourselves off and get back to business.

Clearly, homeowners aren’t terribly concerned about the market these days. Yes, listings went up last week by 26.5% and while sales remained consistent with the previous week, activity was much stronger as nearly 78% of homes sold at or above the list price. That is the highest level of activity since the Spring market of 2016. Still, the sweet spot for downtown Toronto remains as single-family homes in the $700k-$1.5M range. The notable slow spot last week was the ultra, high-end home ($3+m) that only recorded 8 sales last week compared to 18 the previous week.

The condo market had another stellar week with a modest 8.1% increase in the number of new listings to just shy of 400 units. While sales tapered off by a negligible 3.5% excitement in the condo market reached a new record with 47.1% of all sales last week trading at or above the list price. Nowhere is competition more fierce than in the east core where 14 out of the 16 sales that took place received multiple offers. 

Bosley Real Estate Ltd. is a full-service boutique brokerage operating in Toronto, Niagara-on-the-Lake, Jordan and Port Hope, Ontario since 1928. We have four centrally located offices and over 250 sales representatives selling and leasing homes and condominiums in all the vibrant communities we work in. Our brand is well recognized internationally thanks to our unique affiliation with Leading Real Estate Companies of the World. Our sales teams meet weekly to discuss market conditions, trending topics, and anecdotes that more accurately reflect the true temperature of the real estate market.

Ah September. Our favourite month. It’s not just the hot days and cool nights, or the pennant race or even the fact that pro football is back. For us, September means more listing and sales activity and after a traditionally slower August, it’s time to open the floodgates of new property inventory. It’s not a minute too soon either. August inventory levels were challenging at best.

Have you ever turned on a hose and put your thumb on the end? As the pressure builds up it gets more difficult to contain the water. When you finally let go, the initial blast is really strong. That pretty much sums up the market this month. Listings have slowly been increasing, including a 16.8% increase last week. This was hot on the heels of a 41% increase in listings the week before thereby causing a significant rise in reported sales. More choice generally means the number of multiple offers decreases, however pent up demand has counteracted that theory and as a result we saw a 10% increase in sales at or above the list price (to 72.8%).

After a brief spike a few weeks ago, it seems that listings have tailed off a bit last week, decreasing by 15.8%. It is interesting to note that in the central core, listings are decreasing in the $400-$700k category while increasing in the $1.5- $3M range. Overall, demand is still very high across the 416 however and as a result of fewer listings we saw a 61% increase in sales over the same period with a record setting 44% of condos being traded at or above the list price.  

Parents Unite. We made it through the first week of school. Granted it was a short week but still... And while our minds shift from lazy days at the cottage sipping frosty beverages by the dock to the daily grind of school drop offs, after school programs and homework, one thing is for sure...the real estate market never sleeps. Sure it ebbs and flows but it is alive and well in the 416.

The freehold sector witnessed a 41% increase in new listings last week which clearly signaled the start of the fall market. As we have seen time and time again, there is a week long lag in sales as holdbacks to offer night afford ample opportunity to view homes. Last week was no surprise. Sales were lower than the previous week (mostly due to one less day of trading) even though almost 62% of the homes that did sell sold at or above the list price. The problem of low inventory becomes more recognizable when you consider that a year ago we had over twice as many listings and three times as many sales.

The condominium sector remains strong last week with a more modest 22.5% increase in new listings and while sales backed off by 68% (due mostly to the holiday Monday), we still recorded a healthy percentage of properties trading at or above the list price (35.6%). It was last year at this time that we started to see a noticeable shift in competition for condos when the percentage of sales at or above the list price started to trend above 20%. 

Bosley Real Estate Ltd. is a full service boutique brokerage operating in Toronto, Niagara-on-the-Lake, Jordan and Port Hope, Ontario since 1928. We have four centrally located offices and over 250 sales representatives selling and leasing homes and condominiums in all the vibrant communities we work in. Our brand is well recognized internationally thanks to our unique affiliation with Leading Real Estate Companies of the World. Our sales teams meet weekly to discuss market conditions, trending topics, and anecdotes that more accurately reflect the true temperature of the real estate market.

Webster's Dictionary has two definitions for the word “drought”. The first is a long period of time during which there is very little or no rain and the second is a prolonged or chronic  shortage or lack of something expected or desired. Toronto, it seems suffers both. Not only has it been the driest summer in recent memory, we are also suffering through the longest listing drought on record. Maybe there is some good news on the horizon; It is bound to rain eventually and the fall market is closing in. The question is... will it be enough to quench our housing desires? 

The freehold sector reversed an earlier trend of increased listings by re - cording a slight 13.7% drop in available homes while also recording a 6% increase in sales. This was slightly lower that the sales target we predicted last week however competition for those homes was up.  Last  week  almost 67% of home transactions were at or above the list price. That number is 15% higher than for the same period last year despite having virtually the same number of sales. 

We love witnessing the condo market’ s continued success. Listings remain unchanged from the prior week yet sales backed off marginally (3.6%). Despite the slight reduction in the number of sales, over 40% of suites traded at or above the list price. If you really want to get a true picture of today’ s condo market in the 416 consider that one year ago there were 220 more listings than there were last week, 100 fewer sales and less than 17% of suites sold at or above the list price.