TORONTO MARKET REMAINS IMMUNE TO WINTER BLUES
Even though the weather outside was frightful, Toronto’s
residential Real Estate market remained red-hot throughout the holiday
season. TREB reported 4,078
transactions in the month of December, a 14% increase over the same period
during the previous year.
Despite a slow start in 2013, the Toronto market saw an
overall increase of 2% in transactions compared to 2012, reporting 87, 111
sales. That increase in activity
is expected to continue into the New Year, as conditions will remain favourable
in the foreseeable future.
“The average selling price will be up again in 2014 and by
more than the rate of inflation.
The seller’s market conditions that drove price growth in the second
half of 2013 will remain in place in many parts of the GTA. Some neighbourhoods, especially those
characterized by low-rise home types like singles, semis and townhomes, will
continue to have less than two months of inventory,” said Jason Mercer, TREB’s
Senior Manager of Market Analysis.
The second-half of 2013 was characterized by the high
average-price of sales as much by the sheer volume of transactions. The month of December saw an increase
of 8.9% over that month in 2012, rising from $477, 756 to $520,398, due in part
to the renewed confidence of buyers and the shortage of inventory, a trend that
could very well continue into 2014.
“After a slow start to the year, sales growth accelerated to
a brisk pace in the second half of 2013. Despite the inclement weather in
December, we finished the year with a respectable gain in transactions compared
to 2012. Looking forward, I believe that home ownership in the GTA will
remain affordable as borrowing costs stay low. The result could be a
further increase in sales in 2014,” said Toronto Real Estate Board President
Dianne Usher.
