TORONTO — Home sales in the Greater Toronto Area fell by more than one-quarter in February compared with a year ago despite buyers maintaining “substantial” negotiating power.
The Toronto Regional Real Estate Board said 4,037 homes were sold last month, down 27.4 per cent compared with 5,562 in February 2024.
Sales were down 28.5 per cent from January on a seasonally adjusted basis.
The average selling price declined 2.2 per cent compared with a year earlier to $1,084,547, as the composite benchmark price, meant to represent the typical home, was down 1.8 per cent year-over-year.
Meanwhile, 12,066 properties were newly listed in the GTA last month, up 5.4 per cent compared with last year, as total inventory in the region soared 76 per cent to 19,536.
The board said some buyers remain hesitant, despite the imbalance of sales and new inventory providing them with more favourable conditions. But an anticipated decline in borrowing costs in the coming months should improve affordability.
“Many households in the GTA are eager to purchase a home, but current mortgage rates make it difficult for the average household to comfortably afford monthly payments on a typical property,” said TRREB president Elechia Barry-Sproule in a press release.
TRREB chief market analyst Jason Mercer said macroeconomic factors such as ºÚÁϳԹÏÍø’s imperiled trade relationship with the U.S. are also spooking would-be buyers who are taking “a wait-and-see attitude towards buying a home.”
On March 4, U.S. President Donald Trump’s executive order hitting ºÚÁϳԹÏÍø with 25 per cent across-the-board tariffs, except for a 10 per cent levy on Canadian energy, took effect. ºÚÁϳԹÏÍø’s response includes retaliatory tariffs on $155 billion worth of American goods.
“On top of lingering affordability concerns, homebuyers have arguably become less confident in the economy,” Mercer said.
“If trade uncertainty is alleviated and borrowing costs continue to trend lower, we could see much stronger home sales activity in the second half of this year.”
In the City of Toronto, there were 1,540 sales last month, a 21.2 per cent drop from February 2024. Throughout the rest of the GTA, home sales fell 30.8 per cent to 2,497.
All property types saw fewer sales in February compared with a year ago throughout the region.
Detached homes saw the steepest decline with 31.1 per cent fewer sales, followed by townhouses at 30.6 per cent, semi-detached homes at 22.3 per cent and condos at 22 per cent.
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