When I heard that February 2022 sales numbers were down 17 percent over February 2021, my immediate thought was maybe the market is moderating. No. Even though February 2022 sales were down double digits, February 2021 was the highest month of sales for February ever and February 2022 was the second-highest February on record. Not bad considering the severe weather we had in February.
The seller’s market continues. Considering the 435,000 immigrants expected in 2022, the current market will likely continue for some time. Expected interest rate increases could moderate prices. We have only 1/3 of the inventory we had at this point In 1997 in the GTA, but the population has increased 54%. This highlights the critically low inventory we are experiencing, which continues to be a huge factor in real estate market stats, not only for the city of Toronto but York and surrounding regions as well. We are running out of superlatives. Year-over-Year stats: new listings are down again, although, at a smaller number (-7% in Toronto and -4% in York Region), properties sold down (-17% in Toronto and -18% in York Region), days on market are down (11 or 42% in Toronto and 9 or 44% in York region) AND the average selling price is UP (+28%% in Toronto and +32% in York Region).
The higher end of the market ($2,000,000+) saw a whopping 83% increase in units sold over last year. Luxury homes ($3,000,000+) in both Toronto and York are experiencing a phenomenon usually seen only in more modestly priced home. Both buyers and their agents are getting increasingly aggressive. Bully offers are common on homes where the offer date is sometime in the future. Consumers often think it is agents holding back on offers until a future date is what drives up prices. Even homes where offers are welcomed at any time, multiple bids are commonplace. I had a home listed for what I thought was market price, not holding back on offers. Offers welcomed anytime. Day one had 4 showings and Day two had 3 showings. By the end of the 2nd day, there were two offers competing against each other, and the home sold over asking. A larger number of showing requests came in on Day 3, but they were too late.
Condominium apartment unit sales were down (-15% in Toronto and -13% in York Region) over last year but up significantly (+31% in Toronto and +65 in York Region) over last month, a promising sign for condo buyers. The average selling price was also up (+21% in Toronto and +32% in York Region) over last year.
We saw a .25% increase in interest rates in early March. That translates to $150 a month increase on a $1,200,000 mortgage. Don’t wait to buy!
