Both sales activity and price experienced notable growth last month, amid continuous supply issues
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July 2018 numbers from the Toronto Real Estate Board showed that both sales activity and the average selling price of homes in the city have seen strong growth, thus keeping up Toronto’s status as the most vibrant housing market nationwide.
“We have certainly experienced an increase in demand for ownership housing so far this summer. It appears that some people who initially moved to the sidelines due to the psychological impact of the Fair Housing Plan and changes to mortgage lending guidelines have re-entered the market. Home buyers in the GTA recognize that ownership housing is a quality long-term investment,” TREB director of market analysis Jason Mercer said.
Data collated from the TREB’s MLS® System showed that residential sales went up by 18.6% on a year-over-year basis in July, up to 6,961 transactions. The average selling price of a Toronto home increased by 4.8% in the same time frame, up to $782,129.
Read more: Toronto condo sales activity outstrips single-family segment
“Home sales result in substantial spin-off benefits to the economy, so the positive results over the last two months are encouraging,” TREB president Garry Bhaura stated.
However, new listings fell by 1.8% year-over-year during that month. Bhaura called on local officials to intervene in these long-running inventory issues as necessary.
“The new provincial government and candidates for the upcoming municipal elections need to concentrate on policies focused on enhancing the supply of housing and reducing the upfront tax burden represented by land transfer taxes, province-wide and additionally in the City of Toronto.”
