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Tight supply drives up home prices in Toronto and Vancouver real estate markets

According to the Toronto Regional Real Estate Board, homebuyers in Toronto who purchased a property last month paid a higher average price compared to the previous year. However, their average payment was lower than what they would have paid if they had finalized the deal in May. The Ontario housing board noted similar trends in last month's sales figures and explained that these fluctuations can be attributed to a combination of market conditions. These conditions include high interest in buying homes, challenging mortgage rates to contend with, and limited housing supply.

Paul Baron, the president of the board, stated in a press release that home sales were hindered in the previous month due to uncertainty surrounding the Bank of Canada's views on inflation and interest rates. Additionally, a persistent shortage of available properties likely discouraged some potential buyers who couldn't find a home that met their requirements. In simple terms, if there are no homes available, you can't make a purchase.

At the beginning of 2023, buyers were on the side lines as interest rates increased and potential sellers hesitated to put their homes on the market due to reduced competition among buyers. However, recent months have indicated a potential recovery in the market. During the period from February to May, both average home prices and sales experienced a gradual increase, leading sellers to regain confidence and list their homes for sale once again. However, the trend took a different turn in June.

In June, the average selling price of a home was $1,182,120, representing a 3.2% increase compared to the previous June. However, this price was lower than the average of $1,195,929 recorded in May. Across the suburban 905 area code as well as the more urban 416 area code, prices of detached, semi-detached, and townhouse properties showed year-over-year increases. On the other hand, condo apartment prices experienced a slight decline of 1.1% on average compared to the previous year. The decrease was minimal, only 0.2% in the 416 area, but slightly higher at 1.1% in the 905 area.

The total number of sales in the entire region reached 7,481, which was higher than the previous June's figure of 6,422 but lower than the 8,997 sales recorded in May. Detached home sales saw a notable increase of 13.3% year-over-year, reaching 3,377. Semi-detached property sales rose by 7.4% to 678 during the same period. Townhouse sales also experienced significant growth, with a 13.1% increase totalling 1,233, while condo apartment sales climbed by 27.2% to reach 2,122.

In terms of new listings in the market, there were a total of 15,865, indicating a decrease of approximately three percent compared to the previous June. The day following the announcement by the Real Estate Board of Greater Vancouver that home prices in the previous month had risen compared to May, it was revealed that prospective homebuyers were facing a shortage of available properties in the region.

In the area, the composite benchmark price reached over $1.2 million last month. Although this represented a 2.4% decrease from June 2022, it showed a 1.3% increase from May. Total sales in the market reached 2,988 in the last month, indicating a significant 21.1% increase compared to the same period the previous year. The number of new listings in the market reached 5,348 in the previous month, slightly higher than the 5,278 listings recorded in June 2022.

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