2,565 resale housing transactions shows rate of decline shrinking

[carturo15]

TORONTO, March 19, 2009 – Greater Toronto REALTORS® announced 2,565 transactions in
the first half of March compared to 3,183 during the same period last year. The annual rate of
MLS® sales decline was the smallest in five months.
Mid-month March MLS® sales increased compared to the 2,044 sales experienced in the first
half of February.
MLS® sales follow a recurring seasonal trend, with transactions generally increasing between
January and May and then decreasing between June and December.
“As we move into the spring market, it appears that we are seeing stronger demand for
ownership housing in the Greater Toronto Area,†said TREB President Maureen O’Neill. “Buyers
are reacting to the market’s strong foundation of affordability.â€
The average price for MLS® sales was $365,499 compared to $385,405 last year.
“Affordability has improved over the past few months due to a combination of lower home prices,
near record lows for mortgage rates and rising earnings,â€1 according to Jason Mercer, TREB’s
Senior Manager of Market Analysis.
1Average weekly earnings for the Toronto CMA, as reported by Statistics Canada, have been rising on a year-over-year basis
over the past year. For example, in February 2009, average weekly earnings rose by approximately 2.5 per cent compared to
February 2008.

 

[carturo15]

The market does not seem to be very slow as many people think. I believe we still have in Toronto a healthy and strong real estate market.

 

[TKTKTK]

The market does not seem to be very slow as many people think. I believe we still have in Toronto a healthy and strong real estate market.

Absolutely, but it's still in decline.

 

[taal]

Right, but it doesn't show us how much inventory is being bought from new developments ... that could be down a lot while resale is up (or not down as far)

 

[urbandreamer]

All I know is everywhere I drive/walk/bike around Toronto I see way more homes for sale than normal. It will be interesting to watch this Spring....

 

[carturo15]

All I know is everywhere I drive/walk/bike around Toronto I see way more homes for sale than normal. It will be interesting to watch this Spring....

That is truth, but on the other hand we still have a good number of buyers to support the market. 2.565 transactions in 15 days is not a bad number at all, that is 171 transactions a day!. how many big cities in USA would love to see at least half of these numbers in their markets.

 

[MBS-Guru]

as of this morning, we've hit 27,000+ listings in the GTA. That is the most ever for March .........

 

[Yossi Kaplan MBA]

Market Conditions

as of this morning, we've hit 27,000+ listings in the GTA. That is the most ever for March .........

... yes, but don't forget the total amount of properties available has also grown significantly therefore you could expect a higher number of listings (regardless of economic situation).

Percentages may be more helpful in this case to better assess what's really going on.

"from the trenches" perspective there is a very active market right now with many sellers still making profits on units they have bought pre 2007 (assuming we retracted to 2007 prices, more or less), and buyers. Buyers are either investors that look at long-term economic conditions and gobbling properties instead of stocks or currencies, and the other kind are the end-users who are looking for great places to live at reduced rates.


yk.

 

[Ken]

I am still on the sideline, waiting for the results for this spring/summer. Afterall, I think this is the first spring/summer sale of a downturn market. There is still a lot of downward pressure due to job losses in TO, but I have to say that the mortgage rate is dropping to an attractive level.

 

[ponyboy]

Prices in Toronto have declined only 10% or so. I believe that the smart money suggests there is a ways to go still. This recession is not typical. There is a massive write down of assets going on, and it will take years to resolve. I'm not predicting armageddon like some, but you can likely expect 20-30% price reductions within 2-3 years, especially if interests rates tick up. Inflation will probably increase, and that will put pressure on rates.

In giving this opinion, I don't have the conflicts of interest of the realtors who might say otherwise--they always provide positive spin. I'm not a realtor, make no money from the RE industry, or banking industry; I own my home with no intention to sell it any time soon, so I'm not necessarily rooting for price drops.

 

[DarnDirtyApe]

I find it interesting that in RE a completed sale is now considered a bullish indicator. What if all of these sales are just cementing lower comps?

Remember that stocks continue to change hands even though the price may plunge. Each participant in a transaction has a different opinion about the future direction of the asset value, but only one will be proven correct.