August sales in the GTA rose 40 per cent from last year!

The heatwave in the Toronto-area real estate market in July and August may give way to a slightly cooler September, but Buyers and Sellers who haven’t secured a deal yet are still active!

In August, (see charts below) sales in the Greater Toronto Area soared 40 per cent from the same month last year, according to the Toronto Regional Real Estate Board. The average price jumped to a record $951,404 last month to mark a 20.1-per-cent gain from August, 2019. New listings, meanwhile, swelled 57 per cent in August compared with August of last year. The 18,491 new listings in August were also slightly higher than the 17,956 new listings in July.

Demand is still strong and there still is very little supply - which drives the prices higher too. Buyers are moving for man reasons - upsizing with the need for more space, downsizing from larger homes to smaller ones or to condos, and even moving outside of the City limits but still wanting to keep a smaller residence here. There is so much pent-up demand, Sellers need to list as soon as possible, but this also comes with the critical question: Where am I going to move to? So many of my Sellers are actually buying first because they know their current homes will sell quickly once they're in showcase condition.  

Our normal 'spring market' didn't materialize because of COVID, so everything is happening now in our fall market. This could slow down to a variety of factors and while I'm not an alarmist we have to see if a second COVID wave affects us and what that could mean for the late fall market. The freehold market is selling aggressively, with many Buyers bidding on set offer dates. Some condo market segments are strong, however,  others are in a holding pattern and sitting.