Market Report

Toronto Metro experienced an increase in new listings in June, resulting in significant active inventory growth and a weakening of market balance indicators, accompanied by declining house prices. The rental and new construction segments also saw weakness, with pre-construction sales being exceptionally low. Despite this, housing starts have remained strong, and completions have reached new record-high levels. At the same time, mortgage rates have edged lower, supported by the Bank of Canada’s interest rate cut and lower bond yields.

In June, Toronto Metro sales continued to weaken which is not uncommon for this time of year, as sales usually decline between May and December. They dropped by 11% compared to the previous month, were 17% lower year-over-year, and 34% below the 10-year average. The total of 6,213 sales was the lowest number recorded for this month since at least 2006.

The number of new listings in June was higher than the historical norm. Even though it declined by 3% compared to the previous month, typically it declines more significantly in June and continues to do so towards the end of the year, except for a slight uptick in September. This indicates that the underlying new listing activity is growing. It was 13% higher than last year’s level and 7% above the 10-year average. The total of 17,963 new listings is the highest for this month since at least 2006, excluding the pandemic period.