Toronto condo prices drop year-over-year, but market expected to tighten in 2024: report
If you’re looking to buy a condominium in the Greater Toronto Area, now might be the time, according to newly released data.
In a report published Thursday, the Toronto Regional Real Estate Board (TRREB) said although condo sales were up year-over-year, that increase was “far outstripped” by a growth in the number of units listed.
- Download our app to get local alerts on your device
- Get the latest local updates right to your inbox
According to the data, 4,415 condo sales were processed in Q3 of this year, up 6.2 per cent from 2022.
During the same period of time, TRREB said, new listings for condos were up 28.8 per cent.
That increased supply also meant lower prices, which is good news for buyers looking to break into the market, TRREB said.
In the GTA, the average selling price for a condo in the third quarter of 2022 was $720,628. In 2023, the average price was $716,145.
Price drops were more evident in Toronto proper, where TRREB said the average price for a condo was $736,566 – down from 750,087 a year earlier.
“The condominium apartment market is an important entry point into home ownership for first-time buyers. A better-supplied market has led to more choice for these buyers, resulting in more negotiation power and lower selling prices on average,” TRREB President Paul Baron said in a news release.
Baron went on to say that the “pause in price growth” has helped to ease the pain of higher monthly mortgage payments – which remain stubbornly high as the Bank of Canada aims to tamp down inflation.
On Wednesday, the central bank held its key interest rate at five per cent, the highest level seen since 2001. The rate has remained at five per cent since July 12 as the Banks of Canada’s tries to slow the economy and bring the inflation rate down to its goal of two per cent.
But the relief felt from a marginal drop in prices will likely be short-lived, according to TRREB’s chief market analyst Jason Mercer.
“While condo market conditions have become more balanced over the past year-and-a-half, we will likely start to see a tightening in the market in the second half of 2024,” Mercer said.
However, Mercer said it is the “consensus view” that borrowing costs will see “some relief” at the start of that year and “even more so” in 2025, assuming the Bank of Canada’s targets are met.
CTVNews.ca Top Stories
'2032 is not good enough': Kelly Craft says Canada has to spend faster on defence if Trump wins
A former U.S. ambassador says Canada needs to spend more on defence, and do so faster than the federal government's currently planning to, to meet the expectations of its NATO allies.
Flood survivors pelt Spain's royals with mud and premier is evacuated during a visit
Spain's King Felipe VI and top government officials were pelted with mud by a crowd of enraged flood survivors during the first visit by the country's leaders Sunday to the centre of the suffering.
She got on a plane to find the guy she fell for at Oktoberfest. ‘I’m going to go and find my ginger’
Mandy Suess was so certain the red-haired man she met at Oktoberfest was special that she got on a plane to go and find him
What European housing models could do for Canada’s affordability problems
Housing experts argue widespread adoption of government-supported affordable housing, the growth of alternative models like co-operatives and co-housing, and the increased use of advanced building techniques could all play a role in improving Canada's housing system.
Most Americans believe abortion should be legal, at least in most circumstances, but it's still a flashpoint issue in JD Vance's home state
Abortion is a flashpoint in the upcoming American election, even as polls in the U.S. show most people support reproductive freedom. Abortion rights advocates tell CTV News that when candidates take a stance on that, it could influence a decision at the polling station– especially for women on who they want elected.
Weekend warriors have the same risk of mild dementia as more frequent exercisers, study suggests
People who only exercise on weekends have a similar risk of developing mild dementia to those who work out more frequently, a new study has found.
Harris appears on 'Saturday Night Live' as mirror image of Maya Rudolph with election looming
U.S. Vice-President Kamala Harris made a surprise appearance on 'Saturday Night Live' in the final days before the election, playing herself as the mirror-image double of Maya Rudolph’s version of her in the show's cold open.
Guelph, Ont. woman says she was pushed to homelessness and 'thrown on the street'
For people living on the fringe of society, the line between the safety and security of a home and homelessness is very thin.
Clocks fall back an hour as daylight time ends for much of Canada
Clocks turned back one hour across most of Canada this morning as daylight time came to an end.