April Toronto Real Estate Market Update
April in Toronto usually means two things: Leaf fans nervously awaiting the playoffs and the arrival of the Spring Real Estate Market, but this year, just like the Leafs, the results were, to put it politely, slightly underwhelming…
I will spare you my analysis of why I think the Leafs lost (again!), but for the real estate market, the reason is slightly more straightforward: Interest Rates.
“Listings were up markedly in April in comparison to last year and last month. Many homeowners are anticipating an increase in demand for ownership housing as we move through the spring. While sales are expected to pick up, many would-be home buyers are likely waiting for the Bank of Canada to actually begin cutting its policy rate before purchasing a home,” said TRREB President Jennifer Pearce.
I have a few buyer clients doing precisely this: waiting and saving. However, they are not entirely out. They are still watching and monitoring homes and prices. With interest rates hovering well above 5%, the cost of home ownership is still very high for many potential buyers, but that doesn’t mean that all the buyers have disappeared and that homes are not selling. No, not at all. The media loves extremes, not rational or logic. Doom and gloom sells. Maybe some areas in the GTA are dipping, but the core and city of Toronto are still chugging along fine.
Despite the massive increase in new listings in the freehold markets (detached, semi, townhome), the demand was there, and all three increased in total sales and took less time to sell (DOM). The average price even increased for Detached and Semis. The key is that homes priced appropriately are still extremely popular and sell within two weeks, usually with multiple offers.
And it's not exclusively limited to the under-1.2 crowd; even the high rollers (up to $5M) are finding new owners in record time. With interest rates still high, buyers are, in turn, more budget—and value-conscious.
While the freehold market is still relatively strong, the condo scene could be more stable.
Why? Supply vs. Demand. April saw another surge of new listings, bringing the total of available condos in Toronto to a staggering 4,926, a 21.7% jump from last month.
However, sales and average prices did increase.
Condos usually attract first-time buyers who are naturally a little more financially conscious and working on a budget, so it’s not surprising that with all the selection available, they are taking a little longer to sell. Patience and fair pricing are the keys right now.
In conclusion, interest rates are continuing to affect the market in April. Properties in popular and well-maintained locations are still incredibly in demand (they always will be), but other areas are returning to earth. And this was always the plan. After a couple of years of adjustments, we are finally starting to see more of what the government was trying to accomplish: a balanced market for both buyers and sellers.
Let's take a closer look at the numbers with the charts and breakdown below ⤵️
TOTAL # OF NEW LISTINGS
Most property types had a big surge in new listings hitting the market in April. The most active were detached homes, with a 49% jump compared to last month (1147-1709)
The others were,
Freehold Townhomes by +15.83%
Condo Townhomes by +14%
Condo Apartments by +34%
Only Semi-Detached did not hit double digits (+4.97%)
TOTAL # OF ACTIVE LISTINGS
With April’s surge, the number of active listings exploded.
The freehold market, in particular, saw a huge jump, Detached homes went from 832 listings to 1600, a 92% increase.
Semi-Detached went from 157 to 310, a 97% increase.
Freehold Townhomes went from 87-148, a 70% increase.
Albeit not as large, the condo market also had an increase in the total # of active listings,
Condo Townhomes went from 413 listings to 465, a 12.59% increase.
Condo Apartments went from 4047 to 4925, a 21.7% increase.
TOTAL # OF SALES
Only Freehold Townhomes' sales dipped compared to last month, and literally only by one single sale (79/80).
Every other property type had a very healthy jump in sales.
From March to April, we saw Detached homes increase by +15.92%,
Semi-Detached by +8.1%,
Condo Townhomes by +16.67%
Condo Apartments by +10.37%
AVG PRICE
Compared to last month, only Freehold Townhomes decreased in price, falling from an average of $1,272,681 to $1,254,042 (-1.25%)
All other properties had a positive increase,
From March to April, we saw Detached homes increase by +6.66%,
Semi-Detached by +4.97,
Condo Townhomes by +5.25%
Condo Apartments by +5.15%
AVG DAYS ON MARKET (DOM)
Despite the increase in listings across the board, most properties actually took less time to sell in April.
Condo apartments provided us with the most pleasant surprise dropping 2 days, from 27 to 25 days, to sell (-7.4%)
Detached went from 16 to 15 days to sell (-6.45%).
Semi-Detached 15-12 days (-20%).
Freehold Townhome 16-13 days (-18.75%)
Unfortunately, Condo Townhomes lagged a little behind, taking an additional 4 days to sell compared to last month (17-21 days/+23.53 %).
Ok, that's it for April! Thanks for reading and have a great day! - Tyson
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