■This Month in Real Estate | January 2016

■Real Estate Investment Seminar

Add real estate as an asset class to diversify your portfolio and earn 8% fixed interest with your principal secured against real estate! We invite you and your guests to join us on Tuesday February 16^th to learn more about opportunities to invest directly in the Canadian real estate market.

Date:
February 16th, 2016

Time:
6:30p.m. Hors d’oeuvres
7:00p.m. Presentation

Location:
Keller Williams Advantage Realty (1238 Queen St E. Toronto ON M4L 1C3)

Hosted by: Colleen MacKay (Mortgage Agent #M14001027)

RSVP:
Nat@NatSmilis.ca

The deadline of RRSP contribution is rapidly approaching. All of her investments are RSP and TFSA eligible. See you all there!

Presented by: FMP Mortgage Investments Inc.

FMP Mortgage Investments Inc. (FSCO Licence #12373) offers consumers the opportunity to invest in syndicate mortgages by becoming a lender in Fortress Real Developments projects. All syndicate mortgage transactions are closed by Centro Mortgage Inc. (FSCO Lic #10102) unless specifically noted otherwise. Please speak with a licensed mortgage agent/broker for more details.

■Market Watch-January, 2016

Record TREB MLS® Home Sales in 2015

January 6, 2016 -- The second best sales result on record for December capped off a record year for TREB MLS® home sales in the GTA. Toronto Real Estate Board President Mark McLean announced that there were 4,945 sales reported in December bringing the 2015 calendar year total to 101,299 – a substantial 9.2 per cent increase compared to 2014 as a whole. Strong annual sales increases were experienced for all major home types last year.

"Home ownership is a quality long-term investment that families can live in while the value increases over time. A relatively strong regional economy in the GTA coupled with low borrowing costs kept a record number of households – first-time buyers and existing homeowners alike – confident in their ability to purchase and pay for a home over the long term," said Mr. McLean.

"If the market had benefitted from more listings, the 2015 sales total would have been greater. As it stands, we begin 2016 with a substantial amount of pent-up demand," continued Mr. McLean.

The average selling price for 2015 as a whole was $622,217 – up 9.8 per cent compared to $566,624 in 2014. The MLS® HPI Composite Benchmark Price was up by a similar annual rate of 10 per cent in December. GTA home price growth was driven by the low-rise segments of the market, but condominium apartment price growth was generally well-above the rate of inflation as well through 2015.

"TREB will release its official 2016 outlook later in January, but suffice to say that the demand for ownership housing is expected to remain very strong in 2016. Despite stricter mortgage lending guidelines and the possibility of slightly higher borrowing costs, on average, there will be many buyers who remain upbeat on the purchase of ownership housing," said Jason Mercer, TREB's Director of Market Analysis.

■This Month in Real Estate | December 2015

■Market Watch-December, 2015

Record Sales in November 2015

December 3, 2015 -- Toronto Real Estate Board President Mark McLean announced that Greater Toronto Area REALTORS® reported 7,385 home sales through TREB's MLS® System in November 2015 – up by 14 per cent compared to November 2014. This result also represented the best result on record for the month of November. Sales through the first eleven months of 2015 amounted to 96,401.

"Not only did we see a record sales result for November, but with one month left to go in 2015, we have already set a new calendar year record for home sales in the TREB market area, eclipsing the previous record set in 2007. Sales were up on a year-over-year basis for all major home types, both in the City of Toronto and surrounding regions. This suggests that the demand for ownership housing is widespread, from first-time buyers to long-time homeowners across the GTA," said Mr. McLean.

The MLS® Home Price Index (HPI) Composite Benchmark was up by 10.3 per cent year over year in November. The average selling price for all transactions was also up by a similar annual rate of 9.6 per cent to $632,685. Annual rates of average price growth for November and the first eleven months of 2015 were similar, with the strongest rates of increase being reported for low-rise home types, including detached and semi-detached houses and townhouses.

"Demand for ownership housing has remained strong in the GTA throughout 2015, with sales generally increasing at a greater annual rate compared to new listings. This means that competition between buyers has strengthened in many neighbourhoods in the City of Toronto and surrounding regions. The end result has been upward pressure on home prices well above the rate of inflation in most cases," said Jason Mercer, TREB's Director of Market Analysis.

■This Month in Real Estate | November 2015

■Market Watch-November, 2015

Record Home Sales for October

November 5, 2015 -- Toronto Real Estate Board President Mark McLean announced that Greater Toronto Area REALTORS® reported 8,804 home sales through TREB's MLS® System in October 2015. This is the best result on record for the month of October.

"It is clear that many GTA households remain upbeat about home ownership because owning a home represents a high quality, long-term investment. We will see a big, new record this year for home sales reported through TREB's MLS® System," said Mr. McLean.

"Despite the record October result, I must point out that the Government of Ontario could hamper home sales in the near future. The Wynne government is seriously considering allowing municipalities throughout Ontario to institute a second land transfer tax on top of the existing provincial tax. Recent polling has shown that the great majority of Ontarians oppose this tax and would consider delaying a move if they were forced to bear the additional upfront cost," added Mr. McLean.

The MLS® Home Price Index (HPI) Composite Benchmark was up by 10.3 per cent year over year in October. Over the same period, the average selling price for all home types combined was up by 7.3 per cent to $630,876. Price growth continued to be driven by the low-rise market segments.

"Record sales coupled with a constrained supply of listings in many GTA neighbourhoods has underpinned very strong price growth throughout 2015. Even if we do see a greater supply of low-rise listings in the marketplace over the next year, market conditions will remain tight enough to see continued price growth well-above the rate of inflation," said Jason Mercer, TREB's Director of Market Analysis.