Toronto’s real estate board says home sales and prices were down in October from a year earlier as economic uncertainty persists.
The Toronto Regional Real Estate Board said home sales totalled 6,138, down 9.5 per cent from last year. On a seasonally adjusted basis, the GTA saw a 2.3 per cent drop in sales from September.
The board said new listings totalled 16,069, up 2.7 per cent from last year, while active listings of 27,808 were up 17.2 per cent.
The rise in listings and drop in sales put pressure on prices as the benchmark index fell five per cent from last year, while the average selling price of $1,054,372 was down 7.2 per cent from last year.
Month-over-month, the average price was down 1.4 per cent from September.
TRREB president Elechia Barry-Sproule said that both lower home prices and interest rates are helping buyers who are well-positioned.
“Buyers who are confident in their employment situation and ability to make their mortgage payments over the long term are benefiting from affordable housing market conditions relative to the past few years,” she said in a statement on Wednesday.
“However, many intending homebuyers remain on the sidelines due to uncertainty about their economic future.”
The average price for a detached home was down 7.3 per cent to $1,355,506. The average price for a condo was down 4.7 per cent to $660,208.
Toronto broker Cailey Heaps described a “slow and steady” market, with buyers in the drivers’ seat due to increased purchasing power. But she said many are still feeling the pinch of economic uncertainty.
“The broader economy is still a concern. It has an impact on consumer confidence,” said Heaps, president of the Heaps Estrin Real Estate Team.
“(The federal budget) clearly signals that the government’s very worried about the economy and that the economy continues to struggle, so I think when you factor that into buying decisions, despite the increased purchasing power based on lower interest rates and lower housing prices, I think there are some people who still feel uncertain.”
In the City of Toronto, there were 2,351 sales last month, a 6.2 per cent decrease from October 2024. Throughout the rest of the GTA, home sales were down 11.5 per cent to 3,787.
Overall, all property types saw fewer sales in October compared with a year ago throughout the region.
The largest drops were in the detached and condo segments, which were both down 11 per cent. Townhouses saw an 8.5 per cent decrease while semi-detached home sales were down 2.8 per cent.
TRREB chief information officer Jason Mercer said he expects the market to rebound once people are more confident about the economy.
“Once we have more certainty on the economic front, including trade with the U.S. and China, home sales should increase.”