■This Month in Real Estate | December 2016

■Market Watch-December, 2016

Tight Market Conditions in November

December 2, 2016 -- Toronto Real Estate Board President Larry Cerqua announced that Greater Toronto Area REALTORS® reported 8,547 home sales through TREB's MLS® System in November 2016. This result represented a 16.5 per cent increase compared to November 2015.

For the TREB market area as a whole, sales were up on a year-over-year basis for all major home types. The strongest annual rates of sales growth were experienced for the townhouse and condominium apartment segments.

"Home buying activity remained strong across all market segments in November. However, many would-be home buyers continued to be frustrated by the lack of listings, as annual sales growth once again outstripped growth in new listings. Seller's market conditions translated into robust rates of price growth," said Mr. Cerqua.

The MLS® Home Price Index (HPI) Composite Benchmark was up by 20.3 per cent compared to November 2015. The average selling price at $776,684 was up by 22.7 per cent on a year-over-year basis.

"Recent policy initiatives seeking to address strong home price growth have focused on demand. Going forward, more emphasis needs to be placed on solutions to alleviate the lack of inventory for all home types, especially in the low-rise market segments," said Jason Mercer, TREB's Director of Market Analysis.

■This Month in Real Estate | November 2016

■Market Watch-November, 2016

October Home Sales Up Year-Over-Year

November 3, 2016 -- Toronto Real Estate Board President Larry Cerqua announced that Greater Toronto Area REALTORS® reported a record 9,768 sales through TREB's MLS® System in October 2016 – up by 11.5 per cent compared to October 2015. For the TREB market area as a whole, the largest annual rate of sales growth was in the condominium apartment market segment. Detached home sales were up by 10 per cent year-over-year, driven predominantly by transactions in the regions surrounding Toronto.

"The record pace of GTA home sales continued in October, with strong growth observed throughout the month. As we move through November and December, we will be watching the sales and listings trends closely, in light of the recent policy changes announced by the Federal Minister of Finance. TREB will once again be conducting consumer survey work, in order to report on home buying intentions for 2017," said Mr. Cerqua.

The MLS® Home Price Index Composite Benchmark was up by 19.7 per cent on a yearover- yeaThe MLS® Home Price Index Composite Benchmark was up by 19.7 per cent on a year-over-year basis in October 2016. Similarly, the average selling price for all home types combined was $762,975 – up 21.1 per cent over the same time period. Double-digit increases were experienced for all major home types for the TREB Market Area as a whole.

"New listings were up slightly in October compared to last year, but not nearly enough to offset the strong sales growth. This meant that seller's market conditions continued to prevail as buyers of all home types experienced intense competition in the marketplace. Until we experience sustained relief in the supply of listings, the potential for strong annual rates of price growth will persist, especially in the low-rise market segments," said Jason Mercer, TREB's Director of Market Analysis.

■Condo & Rental Market Report | Q3 2016

Condo Sales and Average Price Up in Q3 2016

TORONTO, October 24, 2016 – Toronto Real Estate Board President Larry Cerqua announced that condominium apartment sales reported through TREB’s MLS® System in the third quarter of 2016 were up by 22.1 per cent on a year-over-year basis to 8,014. Over the same period, new listings for condominium apartments were down by 13.3 per cent. “While the low-rise market has been top-of-mind in the supply discussion, it is very important to note that supply pressures have also been experienced in the condominium apartment market segment over the past year. The completion of new units was down substantially during the first three quarters of 2016 compared to the same period in 2015. This arguably played a role in the decline in new condominium apartment listings on TREB’s MLS® System,” said Mr. Cerqua. The average price of a condominium apartment in the Q3 2016 was $415,643 – up 9.6 per cent compared to Q3 2015. The MLS® Home Price Index (HPI) apartment benchmark price was up by a similar amount on an annual basis throughout the third quarter. “The annual rate of condominium apartment price growth has accelerated over the past year as the supply of units available for sale became more constrained while demand remained strong. With this said, however, annual rates of price growth remain well-below those for low-rise home types. Condo apartments continue to be an affordable entry point into home ownership for first-time buyers,” said Jason Mercer, TREB’s Director of Market Analysis.

Rental Market Tightened in Q3 2016

TORONTO, October 24, 2016 – Toronto Real Estate Board President Larry Cerqua announced that the number of lease agreements signed for condominium apartments listed on TREB’s MLS® System was down by 4.8 per cent on a year-over-year basis to 9,164 in the third quarter of 2016 compared to 9,629 a year earlier. Over the same period, the number of condominium apartments listed for rent was down by a greater annual rate of 17.3 per cent. “Demand remains very strong for condominium apartments in the Greater Toronto Area. The key issue in the third quarter was the fact that there was a pronounced decline in the number of units available for rent. The dip in the supply of available rental units can be attributed, at least in part, to fewer condominium project completions during the first three quarters of 2016 compared to last year. This suggests that there were fewer newly completed investor-held units available for rent,” said Mr. Cerqua. Average one-bedroom and two-bedroom condominium apartment rents were up substantially in the third quarter compared to 2015. The average one-bedroom rent was up by 7.2 per cent to $1,777. The average two-bedroom rent was up by 7.9 per cent to $2,419. “Conditions in the condominium apartment rental market tightened substantially in the third quarter, with listings down on a much greater basis relative to rental transactions. This means that competition between renters was enhanced, which fed through into average rent increases well-above the rate of inflation,” said Jason Mercer, the TREB’s Director of Market Analysis.

■This Month in Real Estate | October 2016

■Market Watch-October, 2016

Sales Growth Continues in September

October 5, 2016 -- Toronto Real Estate Board President Larry Cerqua announced that Greater Toronto Area REALTORS® reported 9,902 sales through TREB's MLS® System in September 2016. This result was up by 21.5 per cent compared to September 2015.

For the region as a whole, strong annual rates of sales growth were experienced for all major home types. The pace of detached sales growth was slower in the City of Toronto and the number of semi-detached sales was down compared to last year. In both cases, the year-over year dip in new listings was likely the issue.

"We continued to see strong demand for ownership housing up against a short supply of listings in the Greater Toronto Area in September. The sustained lack of inventory in many neighbourhoods across the GTA continued to underpin high rates of price growth for all home types," said Mr. Cerqua.

Both the MLS® Home Price Index (HPI) Composite Benchmark and the average selling price for all home types combined were up strongly on a year-over-year basis in September. The MLS® HPI Composite Benchmark grew by 18 per cent compared to September 2015. The average selling price was up by 20.4 per cent to $755,755. It is important to remember that the MLS® HPI provides a price growth measure for a benchmark home, thereby allowing for an apples-to apples comparison from one year to the next. The average selling price can be influenced by changes in both market conditions and the mix of homes sold.

"The Toronto Real Estate Board will be closely monitoring how the recent changes to Federal mortgage lending guidelines and capital gains tax exemption rules impact the housing market in the Greater Toronto Area. While these changes are pointed at the demand for ownership housing, it is important to note that much of the upward pressure on home prices in the GTA has been based on the declining inventory of homes available for sale," said Jason Mercer, TREB's Director of Market Analysis.