28 Mar 2023

Buyers Race to Secure Homes as Condos Gain Strength and Sub-$1M Opportunities Dwindle

Week 160: Buyers Race to Secure Homes as Condos Gain Strength and Sub-$1M Opportunities Dwindle


Things are heating up out there as buyers don’t seem too concerned about their financial futures.

Every desirable house on the market in our urban communities is positioned for multiple offers. And condos are joining the party, too, with some seriously strong sales.

If you’re a buyer, you probably notice more new listings for houses and condos.

Urban houses and condos added in supply, but sales were also up in each community, easily absorbing any new listings.

Days on market stats are down, virtually across the board, meaning buyers are buying and buying fast.

The “sleeping on it” days have ended, for now, anyway.

Unfortunately, those waiting for the bottom of the market to buy have missed the boat.

Looking back, October to December 2022 was the absolute best time to get in at the bottom if day trading real estate is your thing. Which it shouldn’t be!

Interest Rates today are a little more predictable as the regional bank implosions we spoke about a few weeks ago have caused people to run to safer government-backed bonds, putting downward pressure on our fixed-rate products.

So, those homes that would have remained below a million are crossing that threshold quite frequently. Sorry sub $1mm buyers, your time to shine is no longer. Turnkey under a million in most Toronto communities isn’t as guaranteed as a few months ago.

Even though condos added supply pretty aggressively, it seems as though this new buyer activity is absorbing and then wanting more. We should see some serious strength in the condo market as we head into Spring and early summer.

Sellers have a phenomenal opportunity to get top dollar today, so consider giving us a call to talk about what it would take to get your place listed. Buyers are armed with big offers right now.

My wife and I are also taking this opportunity to sell our home (we just decided last night) and move back closer to downtown. We loved the suburban life for a few years, but it’s time to head back downtown. So if you have a tremendous urban house, we’re interested! And if you’re looking for a Scarborough dream home, give me a shout. I’ll tell you all about it.

Anyway, this past week has been quiet on the economic front. The next Canadian rate announcement is in April, so we have a few weeks of good solid sales activity without being disrupted by uncertainty.

That should keep buyers active for a while.

As I’ve been saying, the summer should be relatively quiet and slow, as we’ve experienced for the past few Summers due to buyer fatigue. If this bidding war scenario persists, buyers will tire in a few months and pull back. Until the fall, then they’ll all be back.

If the BoC gives any indication that rates are coming down, good night Irene. So buyers get your offers out and make them now because, after a Summer lull, there’s the possibility of another aggressive run.

That’s all for this week, enjoy and we’ll talk soon.

I hope you found this valuable, and don’t forget to subscribe on YouTube and the TST Blog 🙂

Have a wonderful day, and I’ll see you next week. Don’t forget to subscribe to the blog so you get this in your inbox asap, and we’ll see you on Youtube!

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Urban Markets: Downtown & Surrounding Areas
House Average Price: $1,246,362
House Median Price: $1,175,000
406 Active Listings
44 Firm Sales This Week
Months of Inventory (MoI) ~ 1.38 (up from 1.22 last month)
Average Days on Market ~ 13.93

Condo Average Price: $783,450
Condo Median Price: $703,000
1431 Active Listings
106 Firm Sales This Week
MoI ~ 2.41 (up from 2.16 last month)
Average Days on Market (DOM) ~ 23.27

Urban North: Rosedale, Deer Park, Moore Park, Forest Hill, & Lawrence Park
House Average Price: $2,177,509
House Median Price: $2,170,000
115 Active Listings
6 Firm Sales This Week
MoI ~ 2.20 (up from 1.84 last month)
Average Days on Market ~ 18

Condo Average Price: $1,051,706
Condo Median Price: $865,000
200 Active Listings
9 Firm Sales This Week
MoI ~ 3.17 (up from 2.85 last month)
Average Days on Market ~ 37

Leaside, Davisville, Yonge & Eglinton
House Average Price: $2,066,667
House Median Price: $1,850,000
26 Active Listings
9 Firm Sales This Week
MoI ~ 1.05 (down from 1.11)
Average Days on Market  14

Condo Average Price: $754,000
Condo Median Price: $660,000
127 Active Listings
6 Firm Sales This Week
MoI ~ 2.43 (up from 2.01 last mth)
Average Days on Market ~ 17

Birch Cliff
House Average Price: $1,200,000
House Median Price: $1,200,000
22 Active Listings
1 Firm Sales This Week
Months of Inventory (MoI) ~ 1.02 (up from 0.74)
Average Days on Market ~ 14

Kingston Rd Corridor to Highland Creek
House Average Price: $1,173,703
House Median Price: $1,050,110
60 Active Listings
3 Firm Sales This Week
Months of Inventory (MoI) ~ 1.16 (up from 0.74)
Average Days on Market ~ 11

Condo Average Price: $538,000
Condo Median Price: $527,000
47 Active Listings
5 Firm Sales This Week
MoI ~ 2.29 (up from 1.81)
Average Days on Market ~ 21

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