To date this year, every property in downtown Toronto I’ve had the pleasure of dealing with has had multiple offers. Every condo my clients have looked at have had offer nights! Condos in the downtown core are hot but how hot? Well, in my opinion very hot but buyers are putting some cold water on what could be an inferno. Buyers are buying with their heads and not their hearts. The other story is the detached average house price in Toronto for April was $1,354,719!
I look at the amount of condos being built in this city and the amount of people I talk to from all over the world and I know this city is going to grow for a good number of years to come. Condo sale prices have increased 7.1% over this time last year, no surprise here, a large amount of buyers fall into the $400,000-$700,000 affordability range. Also, homeowners looking for a second investment property look to invest in condos and lease them out. Detached, semi-detached and townhomes prices have fallen but things will change as the weather warms up!
My experiences this year tells me buyers are being smart. They are not letting their emotions get in the way of purchasing a home. Last year at this time the opposite seemed to be true. It’s no surprise prices are down from the peak of last year and with a colder winter its no surprise listings are down as well compared to last year. I am sure spring and warmer weather will bring out more buyers and I’m sure there will be more homes coming to market!
Average Toronto condo price grows 15.1% year over year! Condos are not the only story, semi-detached and townhouses saw an average year over year growth of 3.7% (semi-detached) 8.2% (townhouses). Year over year thats a good return considering last January the market was at a fever pitch. The amount of homes that sold in January to last January are down across the board, ranging for -18% to -23% for the Toronto market. If you are thinking of selling your home maybe now is a good time to do it. If you are planning to buy rely on your full-time realtor to find you that deal! How can a part-time realtor do a full time job?! (These stats are for the Toronto market. I will not be including the 905 market moving forward.)
The Deal Looks like the cat’s out of the bag: Reserve Properties has coughed up $11 million to purchase the Leslieville Value Village Parking lot ($6,750,000) and the Queen St Value Village building ($4,250,000). The deal closed in December and they didn’t waste any time submitting their plans to the City. What They’re Building The first phase of what’s surely to be an iconic development in Leslieville Value Village site includes only 6 enormous townhouses. Like double the size of any house in the area at approximately 3,305 square feet! Each unit will have work spaces on the ground floor then a 4 bedroom home above. Private garage and all. The views from the roof top terraces are going to be insane! We have no idea how much they’ll be selling for but 3000 square foot townhouses should be trading... View Article
Active listings are up 172.4% year over year! Last year started off with a roar! short supply, high demand. That was the first quarter of last year. Then the government brought in measures to settle the housing market, which it did. At the end of the day, the foreign buyers tax may have had more of a psychological impact than one in realty. The second and third quarter were quieter and the fourth quarter saw a jump before the new stress test came into effect (Jan 01, 2018) for buyers paying 20% or more. Maybe there is a ceiling to this market and we are seeing it with detached homes. The average price of detached homes year over year are down 2.5% and sales were down 13.6% year over year. But, keep in mind 2016 was a record year. My guess... View Article
Year over Year listings are up! The market has seen an upward movement this fall. Some leading professionals believe the impact of the Ontario Fair Housing Plan and the foreign buyers tax is starting to fade from peoples memories as a reason for this upward tick. A contributing factor may also be the upcoming mortgage changes taking place in January where new stress tests will apply to all mortgages even with a healthy 20% plus down. On another note TREB (Toronto Real Estate Board) lost another court decision. At the end of the day the more information a buyer or seller has regarding recent sold data the more informed the buyer or seller will be. No matter how much data is shared, choosing a realtor will always be based on trust and the value of a realtors abilities!
Semi-detached and townhouses are selling over 5% on average compared to last year at this time. Example: $600,000 townhouse last year is today $644,400 on average. Condos are the big performer at 21.8% on average to last year at this time. Example: $500,000 condo last year is today $609,000 on average. If you are actively looking for a condo, townhouse or semi-detached it is worth getting an action plan together. I can help! The longer you wait the more you will pay!
How Your Buying Power Changes with Stress Test Stricter mortgage regulations are coming January 1, 2018. It’s time to think about what that means for you. Back in October of 2016, the federal government implemented new mortgage rules, endearingly known as “stress tests”, that required all insured mortgages to be approved at the Bank of Canada’s posted rate of 4.64%. Now, a similar stress test is coming to non-insured mortgages. Key things to know When the new rules kick in, everyone applying for a mortgage will have to prove that they can afford the monthly costs of a 4.89% mortgage – regardless of the rate they are offered and would pay if they are successful. For example, a couple want to lock in a 2.75% variable rate mortgage. They will have to prove they can afford 4.89%. The stress test rate for uninsured mortgages... View Article
Canoe Landing Community Recreation Centre Canoe Landing Child Care Centre Bishop Macdonell Catholic Elementary School, serving 550 children from kindergarten to grade eight Jean Lumb Public School, serving 550 children from kindergarten to grade eight Multi-functional event and market space facing the park, to be operated by a non-profit organization This integrated multi-use facility will help ensure that families living in CityPlace and the surrounding high-density neighbourhoods will have access to the amenities and services necessary for a thriving, liveable, equitable community. For families in condos and apartments, the park is your back yard, and the community centre is your living room. Through public meetings and working group meetings in 2015 and 2016, the facility was designed in close collaboration with the community in order to respond to the particular needs and desires in a vertical neighbourhood. For example, to make the best use... View Article
