Just yesterday we published a post showing how Toronto’s housing starts had been down in May, whether this meant a slowdown in the market, and what that potential slowdown could mean. But stats on sales show that starts alone do not a housing market make – and it’s also very hard to dictate what the market is doing based solely on starts. This is evident with just one quick look at the amount of people obtaining Toronto mortgages, and the amount of people buying the hottest homes in the country.
While it may not seem like it, the Toronto market was somewhat slow in the beginning of 2011, even though home sales levels were slightly elevated. However, it was nothing compared to April of 2012 when the number of sales totaled to more than 100,000 units. This was more than the 96,000 units sold in September, and only 86,000 in the first quarter of last year. These numbers are high, even for Toronto, and they’re just further proof that Toronto is quickly becoming the hottest market in Canada; but that it’s still also nothing to worry about. The stats actually fall right in line with pre-2007 values – the measuring stick all markets are holding themselves up to. The numbers for Vancouver, Calgary, and Edmonton mortgages and homes were well below this, and well below pre-recession levels.
The upswing trend wasn’t only felt in Toronto however. Price and sales gains were seen all over the province of Ontario, suggesting that the strong economy in this area is helping to fuel all of its housing markets. Real estate agents are suggesting that the early spring and the unseasonably warm weather had buyers coming out earlier than they did in past years; but they also expect activity to slow later on this year.
That may be true, if housing prices remain where they currently are. The stats also show that the average price of a single-family home in Toronto now sits at $650,000 – just $100,000 below where they were in Vancouver when panic erupted out West. Those looking for something a little lower may find it in a condominium apartment building, for which the average price on a unit is currently $340,000; or a townhouse, which in Toronto are now seeing average prices of $380,000.
Toronto’s housing market has come back, and it’s one of the first in the country to do it! While prices may be high, and people may be scooping up more Toronto homes and mortgages today, we really can’t complain too much if the levels are just now normalizing with what they were before the recession hit. That is after all, the whole goal, isn’t it?
