Toronto & GTA MLS® Home Sales - December, 2016: Inventory & Price Trends Intact; Bungalows Very Popular

Toronto, Ontario, January 5, 2017 - The Toronto Real Estate Board today released it’s monthly MarketWatch statistical report showing that Toronto and GTA / Greater Toronto Area Realtors® reported 5,338 sales of residential properties through TREB’s MLS® system in December, 2016, up 8.6% versus December, 2015. Chart - Toronto & GTA Home Sales & Average Price by Major Home Type 2016-12

That December total pushed 2016’s overall sales to a new record - the second year in a row for record TREB MLS® home sales in Toronto and the GTA. 2016’s total number of sales came in at 113,133, up 11.8% compared to 2015’s record number.

Other than Condo Apartments, sales in Metro Toronto actually fell - though, yet again, there’s little doubt that the decline had more to do with a lack of available inventory combined with higher prices in Toronto - “the 416” area code. Total Active Listings were down 48.1% compared to the same time last year. Not surprisingly, price growth remained robust across the board.

In Metro Toronto, 526 Detached homes changed hands, down 7.6%, at an average sale price of $1,286,605, up 23.7%. All figures quoted are year-over-year comparisons unless otherwise noted. 138 Semi-Detached homes changed hands in Toronto, down 11.5%, an average sale price of $808,920, up 8.4%.

In the balance of the Greater Toronto Area - “the 905" - 1,733 detached homes changed hands, up 12%, at an average sale price of $934,055, up 25.1%. 319 “Semis” changed hands in the 905, up .6%, at an average price of $630,053, up 27.1%. Chart - Toronto & GTA Home Sales Year-Over-Year Summary @ 2016-12.png

Of the Freehold [as opposed to Condominium] type, Bungalows remained a very popular option with home buyers - for a variety of reasons: Matures & Seniors looking to downsize and have all or most of their living space on a single level while, at the same time, not giving up their yards, gardens, etc.; contractors and “flippers” like Bungalows because they’re often ripe for a relatively quick update / re-sale; lots of other “mainstream” buyers love the larger, more mature yards that Bungalows often offer - not to mention the potential for adding a second storey down the road as their families grow, for example.

Sales of Condo Apartments also continued their robust pace right across TREB’s market area: 1,238 Condo Apartments changed hands in Metro Toronto, up 19.5%, at an average sale price of $466,592, up 16.6%. In the balance of the Greater Toronto Area, 493 condo apartments sold through the Toronto MLS, up 16%, at an average price of $375,572, up 15.5%.

Said Toronto Real Estate Board President Larry Cerqua in the report, “A relatively strong regional economy, low unemployment and very low borrowing costs kept the demand for ownership housing strong in the GTA, as the region’s population continued to grow in 2016.”

As noted above, available listing inventory remained extremely tight: As of the end of December, the Chart - Toronto & GTA Home Sales Historic Annual Stats to 2016-12.png total active listings figure stood at 4,746. That's an incredible drop of 48.1% from last December. At that time we quoted then-TREB-President Mark MacLean as saying, “If the market had benefited from more listings, the 2015 sales total would've been greater." We also noted at that time that the “Indicated Forward Inventory" - calculated by dividing the Total Active Listings figure by the total monthly sales figure - was "relatively low by historical standards, and extremely low for the time of year" at 1.85 months. With the further drop in available inventory, the Indicated Forward Inventory now stands at just .89 - or about 27 days. Crazy.

The Toronto Real Estate Board's Director of Market Analysis, Jason Mercer, said, “Price growth accelerated throughout 2016 as the supply of listings remained very constrained. Active listings at the end of December were at their lowest point in a decade-and-a-half. Total new listings for 2016 were down by almost four per cent. In 2016, we saw policy changes and policy debates pointed at the demand side of the market. If we want to see a sustained moderation in the pace of price growth, what we really need is more policy focus on issues impacting the lack of homes available for sale.”

Again not surprisingly, homes sold "31% faster" this December versus last averaging just 20 days on the market [versus 29 "DOM" last December].

We do live in interesting times.

Oh, yeah...speaking of "interesting"...click this link if you'd like an update on the Vancouver market...

Here's wishing “You & Yours” a most happy and prosperous 2017 ...and beyond… Thank-you for reading.

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