The impact of high borrowing costs, high inflation, uncertainty surrounding future Bank of Canada decisions and slower economic growth continued to weigh on GTA home sales in September. However, despite the market being better-supplied with listings, the average selling price was up year-over-year. “The short and medium-term outlooks for the GTA housing market are very different. In the short term, the consensus view is that borrowing costs will remain elevated until mid-2024, after which they will start to trend lower. This suggests that we should start to see a marked uptick in demand for ownership housing in the second half of next year, as lower rates and record population growth spur an increase in buyers.We did experience a more balanced market in the summer and early fall, with listings increasing noticeably relative to sales. This suggests that some buyers may benefit from more negotiating power, at least in the short term. This could help offset the impact of high borrowing costs. TRREB’s annual consumer polling has shown that half of intending home buyers in Toronto will be first-time buyers in any given year.The average price of a condo apartment in Toronto is over $700,000. Yet, the first-time buyer exemption threshold for the City’s upfront land transfer tax has remained at $400,000 for a decade-and-a-half. With this in mind, TRREB applauds Toronto City Council for asking City staff to provide a report on a more appropriate exemption level moving forward. Many housing and taxation policies are currently set in opposition and we need all levels of government to align policies and work together to solve this housing crisis.Here is an overview of the September market: |
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