GTA REALTORS® Release July 2023 Stats

In July 2023, the housing market in the Greater Toronto Area (GTA) showed positive trends compared to the same month in the previous year. Home sales, new listings, and home prices were all higher. However, when compared to the previous month, the market appeared to be more balanced, with sales decreasing while new listings increased.

TRREB President Paul Baron mentioned that despite higher borrowing costs, home sales remained higher than last year, indicating that many households have adapted to the changes. However, the momentum in sales that was seen earlier in the spring seemed to have slowed down since the Bank of Canada started raising interest rates in June. The impact of higher rates was compounded by the fact that there were fewer listings available for people to purchase compared to previous years.

In July 2023, there were 5,250 home sales reported by GTA REALTORS® through TRREB's MLS® System, which is a 7.8% increase compared to July 2022. During the same period, new listings were up by a greater annual rate of 11.5%. The MLS® Home Price Index Composite benchmark showed a 1.3% increase year-over-year, and the average selling price went up by 4.2% to $1,118,374 over the same timeframe.

On a seasonally adjusted monthly basis, the number of sales decreased for the second consecutive month, while new listings showed an upward trend. The seasonally adjusted average selling price declined slightly, but the MLS® HPI Composite benchmark increased slightly.

TRREB Chief Market Analyst Jason Mercer explained that uncertainty regarding borrowing costs, jobs, and the overall economy influenced home sales in the past two months. He believes that in the long term, the demand for homes will remain strong due to record population growth. However, in the short term, many potential homebuyers may stay on the sidelines until there is more clarity regarding monetary policy and the economy.

TRREB CEO John DiMichele highlighted the misalignment in public policy related to housing. Although the federal government plans to have record levels of immigration, there has been little progress in creating more housing to accommodate this growth. Population growth is crucial for economic development, but it will be unsustainable if people cannot find affordable places to live. DiMichele emphasized the need for all levels of government to work together to address this issue.