The Toronto Star is reporting that Toronto home prices are steadying with the Toronto Real Estate Board predicting increases over the coming months.
While figures have been down overall, “preliminary seasonally adjusted prices from the Toronto Real Estate Board (TREB) show prices down only 0.2 per cent from March with 1.6 per cent fewer sales month over month, about the same as February to March,” which is an improvement from 2017.
The bright side of the market is in condo sales, which up a 3.2% over last year, with an average sale price of $559,343.
The differences in sales year-over-year “mask the fact that market conditions should support moderate increases in home prices as we move through the second half of the year, particularly for condominium apartments and higher density lowrise home types,” said Jason Mercer, TREB director of market analysis.
“The year-over-year change in the overall average selling price has been impacted by both changes in market conditions as well as changes in the type and price point of homes being purchased,” said a TREB release. TREB is also urging the provincial parties to focus on housing in the upcoming Ontario election, with a push for buyer tax relief, including the provincial land transfer tax and Toronto’s municipal land transfer fee.
“We believe that any attempt to increase the Toronto land transfer tax should require approval from the provincial government given the significance of Toronto’s economy to the province, and the connections between the Toronto real estate market and that of the broader GTA,” said TREB president Tim Syrianos in their press release.