Toronto real estate market news & info
Prices for all property types continued the typical summer pattern in August, with prices for both freehold homes and condominiums lower than in July. Compared with last year, there are some definite positive signs: Prices were higher than last August for both freehold and condo properties. In fact, for the first time this year, prices… Read More
Following the normal seasonal trend, prices and sales in June were lower than in May, beginning the slowdown that typically begins in mid June and continues until late August. Because of our short summer season, many buyers and sellers decide to take a break until after labour day, and the market therefore tends to ‘thin… Read More
As previously reported here, the B-20 ‘stress test’ mortgage qualification rules (requiring buyers to qualify ‘as if’ the mortgage rate were 2 points higher than it actually is) has resulted in a significant reduction in the number of real estate sales across the country. In turn, this caused an unintended knock-on impact on economic activity… Read More
The latest data from Statistics Canada shows that GDP has actually fallen in four of the past six months, suggesting that, after the longest (if one of the weakest) recoveries ever, we are heading toward a recession within the next year or so. Click to view monthly GDP chart This is why the Bank of… Read More
The federal budget included a proposed measure that would see the federal government take on part of the costs of buying a home. The basic elements of the plan are: It will be available only to first-time homebuyers; It will be administered by CMHC and will only be available for CMHC-insured mortgages; Buyers must have… Read More
Toronto area condominium apartment prices continued to move upward last month, with average prices 6% higher than February, 2018. Almost certainly we will see another all-time high for condominium prices before the spring is over. Under-pricing and bidding wars are rampant and buyers are eager (even desperate) to buy condos now before prices go even… Read More
It’s a common story. A retired couple living in Toronto has a home that they purchased in 1985 and paid off years ago. Their home is worth about $1.5 million, but they have only a modest pension, they have been dipping into their meager savings to pay the monthly bills and maintain the house, and… Read More
Toronto area prices were slightly (1.6%) higher in January than last January, while the total number of homes sold was almost exactly the same. The inventory of homes for sale was the same as last year, as well as last month, and right on the 3 months’ supply level that is regarded as ‘balanced’, that… Read More
When the federal government introduced ‘stress test’ rules in early 2018, the intention was to make sure that buyers would be able to afford their mortgage payments should interest rates increase by the time they need to renew. Basically, the new rules require that buyers prove that they could afford to buy their home if… Read More
The Economist magazine has published a very cool interactive chart that allows you to see at a glance how home prices in major cities around the world compare to each other over the past 20 years, and how ‘overvalued’ they are in terms of the ratio of price to household income. As you can see… Read More
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