Greater Toronto Area REALTORS® reported 6,379 sales through TREB’s MLS® System in September 2017, which is down by 35 per cent compared to September 2016.

The number of new listings entered into TREB’s MLS® System amounted to 16,469 in September – up by 9.4 per cent year-over-year. Toronto Real Estate Board President Tim Syrianos explains:

The improvement in listings in September compared to a year earlier suggests that home owners are anticipating an uptick in sales activity as we move through the fall. Consumer polling undertaken for TREB in the spring suggested that buying intentions over the next year remain strong. As we move through the fourth quarter we could see some buyers moving off the sidelines, taking advantage of a better-supplied marketplace.

The average selling price in September 2017 was $775,546, which is up 2.6 per cent compared to September 2016. The MLS® Home Price Index composite benchmark was, on the other hand, up by 12.2 per cent on a year-over-year basis. The reason for the difference in annual growth rates between the average price and the MLS® HPI composite is the fact that detached homes, which are as we know the most expensive market segment on average, accounted for a smaller share of overall transactions this year compared to last. Jason Mercer, TREB’s Director of Market Analysis, also adds:

With more balanced market conditions, the pace of year-over-year price growth was more moderate in September compared to a year ago. However, the exception was the condominium apartment market segment, where average and benchmark sales prices were up by more than 20 per cent compared to last year. Tighter market conditions for condominium apartments follows consumer polling results from the spring that pointed toward a shift to condos in terms of buyer intentions.

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