It’s Condolicious … !

The Greater Toronto Area resale housing market reported 5,155 sales in October, Toronto Real Estate Board President Maureen O’Neill announced today.

This represents a 35 per cent decline from the 7,915 sales reported in October 2007 and a 25 per cent decrease from the 6,876 transactions that took place during the same period two years ago.

In the City of Toronto, there were 2,136 sales, with sales activity down 38 per cent from the 3,455 transactions recorded last October.

In the 905 Region 3,019 sales were recorded, with sales activity down 32 per cent from a year ago when 4,460 homes changed hands.

With 68,570 transactions to date this year, sales are within 16 per cent of the 81,563 transactions noted a year ago. The 2007 market referred to was a record breaking year with each month breaking records for the entire year. Putting into perspective 2008 figures are indicative of a return to a more balanced market.

In the City of Toronto 27,324 sales year-to-date are within 18 per cent of the 33,441 transactions recorded last year at this time.

In the 905 Region the 41,246 sales to date are within 14 per cent of the 48,122 homes that changed hands up to this point a year ago.

In the City of Toronto, the current average price of a home is $376,896, down 13 per cent from last October’s average of $434,022 and within three per cent of the October 2006 average of $386,807.

In the 905 Region homes are selling for an average price of $336,049, a decline of eight per cent from October 2007’s average of $364,142. Prices in this area however, remain one per cent higher than the October 2006 average of $332,822.

“Earlier this year the International Monetary Fund undertook a study of housing markets in 17 countries and found that Canada was one of only two nations in which house prices are supported by the economy,” said Ms. O’Neill. “There’s no doubt that real estate will continue to be a solid long-term investment in our country.”

TREB Members reported 5,155 sales in October, down 35 per cent from the 7,915 sales reported in October of 2007, and also down 25 per cent from the 6,876 sales reported during October 2006.

Within the City of Toronto, 2,136 sales were recorded. This was down 38 per cent from the 3,455 sales recorded in October of last year. In the 905 suburbs, however, the 3,019 sales recorded were down 32 per cent from October 2007’s figure of 4,460.

GTA-wide, prices declined 10 per cent to $352,974 from last October’s average of $394,646. They were down one per cent over the average recorded in October 2006 of $356,423. As with sales, price declines differed according to region.The City of Toronto average was $376,896, down 13 per cent from the $434,022 recorded during the same month in 2007, and down about three per cent from the $386,807 recorded in October 2006. Meanwhile, the average for the City’s 905 suburbs was $336,049.This is down eight per cent from the $364,142 recorded last October, and up one per cent from the $333,166 recorded in October 2006.

Breaking down the total, 2,064 sales were reported in TREB’s 28 West districts and averaged $335,329; 892 sales were reported in the 14 Central districts and averaged $450,437; 946 sales were reported in the 23 North districts and averaged $382,032; and 1,253 sales were reported in TREB’s 21 East districts and averaged $290,719.

You can download and review the complete market report here.

Description:

In this new segment, each week I will gather statistics on condominiums in various Toronto districts.  Although I will only be reporting on 1-2 random condos per district each week, hopefully this will provide some insight into the condominium market that we’re currently in.  Certainly, 1 or 2 condos will not be indicative of the overall market or even the neighbouring market for that matter, but week after week recurring themes and trends should gradually pop up.

Please email us or leave a comment if you wish to have us send you detailed PDF reports for any of the condos below.

* Note: Statistics are Year-to-Date and other districts to be added.

C01 District

18 Yonge (18 Yonge Street)
	Beds	Baths	Parking	Avg. $	Median $	% of List	Days on Market
	0	1	N	$189,500	$189,000	99%	25
	1	1	N	$256,250	$256,500	97.25%	29
	1	1	Y	$282,576	$283,500	96.2%	29
	Most recent sale (6 weeks ago): $301,000, 97% of list, 24 days on market
	1+1	2	Y	$317,867	$320,000	97.5%	17
	Most recent sale (7 weeks ago): $330,000, 98% of list, 36 days on market
	2	2	Y	$388,127	$385,000	97.5%	42
	Most recent sale (3 weeks ago): $387,000, 97% of list, 16 days on market

C08 District

King’s Court (230 King St. E.)
	Beds	Baths	Parking	Avg. $	Median $	% of List	Days on Market
	0	1	N	$197,300	$194,875	102.75%	11
	0	1	Y	$232,000	$232,000	97.5%	25
	Most recent sale (3 weeks ago): $241,000, 96% of list, 16 days on market
	1	1	N	$239,800	$239,500	100.3%	9
	Most recent sale (2 weeks ago): $277,500, 99% of list, 9 days on market
	1	1	Y	$288,700	$290,200	111.33%	6
	1+1	1	Y	$316,500	$316,500	99%	14
	1+2	1	N	$290,500	$291,500	99.3%	23
	2	1	Y	$347,167	$347,000	100.7%	10
	Most recent sale (1 week ago): $347,000, 97% of list, 14 days on market
	2	2	Y	$421,500	$432,500	100.7%	27
	2+1	2	Y	$4100,800	$389,000	98.75%	45

Prices of existing homes in Canada’s largest city took a stunning drop in the first half of October, down by 15 per cent compared with the same time last year.

The average price of a home in the city of Toronto is now $375,804 compared with the $441,878 recorded in the first two weeks of October in 2007, according to figures released by the Toronto Real Estate Board yesterday.

The impact was more muted once the 905 suburbs were factored in where the average price of a home is down by 8 per cent to $337,671.

Overall, Greater Toronto Area prices fell by 11 per cent, with the average home now commanding $353,722 from the prior $399,013.

The last time average prices were that low was back in January of 2007 – or 21 months ago.

“That’s a very big drop,” said TD Economics Strategist Millan Mulraine in an interview. “We expected things to moderate, but when you see double-digit declines like that then the market is moving downward much faster than anticipated.”

Toronto is generally seen as one of the most stable cities in North America. Prices have not risen as quickly here as in other metropolitan areas, and analysts have factored in a soft landing for price depreciation.

But on Wednesday, after a report that Canadian house prices had fallen by more than 6 per cent in September compared to a year earlier, Merrill Lynch economist David Wolf warned that the housing market is likely to trend weaker than the general consensus and that the “risk of an outright bust cannot be dismissed.”

Fear of a recession and a drop in consumer confidence has taken a toll on the housing market. The Royal Bank expects to see zero growth this year, and a puny 0.5 per cent growth next year in the Canadian economy.

Sales volumes in the city of Toronto, meanwhile, declined by 21 per cent, while it was down by 16 per cent in the 905 suburban area.

The Toronto Real Estate Board is monitoring whether the implementation of a city of Toronto land transfer tax had an impact on declining sales.

One reason for the bigger price declines in the city could also be because more expensive homes tend to drop in value more quickly, said economist Mulraine.

“There is a bigger margin on more expensive homes, so if you lose a few thousand to get the house moving, that’s not as big an issue. However, given that you also have a double-digit drop in the GTA proper, then it looks like this is not just restricted to upper-end homes.”

Buyers have also far more choice this year, with listings up by 30 per cent compared to a year ago.

Homes are taking an average of 34 days to sell compared to 29 in 2007.

Source: http://www.yourhome.ca/homes/article/519655

Let’s get an idea of how condo apartments are doing so far in the C01 district.

The C01 district had 60 sales midway through October and monthly sales projected to be 135. If we compare this to last October, our projected figure will not exceed even half of last year’s total, which was 287, and 228 for 2006. That’s a 60% decrease! I’m holding my breath to see what adjectives they use in the headlines to describe this month’s results. Crumbling? Meltdown? Actually, it’s not surprising at all as consumer confidence has dropped significantly in recent months as has their stock portfolios.

Percentage of asking price was 97.7% and an average of 37 days on market. Contrast this with last year’s percentage of asking price at 101% and 22 days on market.

Activity in the Greater Toronto Area resale housing market moderated considerably during the first half of October with 2,700 homes changing hands, Toronto Real Estate Board President Maureen O’Neill announced today.

Sales volumes in the GTA decreased 18 per cent compared to the first half of October 2007, when 3,297 transactions were recorded and are down 10 per cent compared to the same period in 2006 when 3,007 sales took place.

In the City of Toronto 1,140 sales took place in the first half of this month. This represents a 21per cent decline from the 1,446 sales that took place in the same period a year ago and a 13 per cent decrease from the 1,312 transactions recorded in the first half of October 2006.

In the 905 Region there were 1,560 sales in the first two weeks of this month, a 16 per cent decrease from the 1,851 transactions that took place during the same timeframe in 2007 and down eight per cent from the 1,695 homes sold during the first half of October 2006.

House prices declined throughout the GTA during the first half of the month. The average priceof a GTA home is currently $353,772, down 11 per cent from $399,013 recorded the comparable period in 2007.

In the City of Toronto the current average price $375,804, a 15 per cent decrease from the $441,878 average recorded at mid-October 2007.

In the 905 Region the average price of a home is currently $337,671. This represents an eight per cent decline from the $365,527 average recorded during the first half of October 2007.

With 27,559 properties currently listed on the TorontoMLS system, there is now 30 per cent more available stock from which to choose as compared to a year ago when 21,182 homes were listed.

“More choice can mean slightly longer wait times for sellers whose homes are now on average, selling after 34 days on the market as compared to 29 days a year ago,” said Ms. O’Neill. “The list to sales ratio is 97 per cent of the list price.”

Increased sales activity was noted in specific pockets located throughout the GTA.

Sales in Oshawa (E16) increased 15 per cent compared to the first half of October 2007, based mainly on solid sales of detached homes.

In Brampton West (W24) sales in the first half of October increased 21 per cent compared to the same period a year ago mainly due to strong attached row house sales.

Downtown East (C08) experienced a 16 per cent overall increase in activity compared to mid-October 2007 primarily as a result of condominium apartment sales.

Newmarket saw a 17 per cent increase in sales compared to the first half of October 2007 as a result of strong condominium apartment and semi-detached home sales.

Previous news releases have incorporated 2006 comparisons. This was necessary in order to place the market statistics in a broader context. We will be referencing 2006 in its entirety at the end of the month when it will be more relevant.

“While we continue to watch the economic picture globally, it is the local real estate climate that will determine our market place,” said Ms. O’Neill. “After the 2007 record highs, 2008 is an encouraging market for buyers.”