Average price declined on a month-over-month basis for the third month in a row, this time dropping by 3.3% from $1,254,436 in April to $1,212,806 in May. For those of us that saw 7% month-over-month increases to start the year and said, “This is unsustainable,” the last couple of months is the result. Of course, the government increasing interest rates at an unprecedented pace is the fuel on the fire, er, in this case, the highly-flammable kerosene poured onto a palm-sized flame. Year-over-year, the average home price in Toronto is still up 9.4%, having increased over $100,000 from $1,108,124 in May of 2021 to $1,212,806 in May of 2022.
Sales dropped for the second month in a row, this time to a twenty-year low of 7,283. That’s a 9.1% decline from the 8,008 sales recorded in April, but if you look at the year-over-year figures, it’s where we really see why and how we experienced a twenty-year low. Sales in May of 2021 were 11,903, so the 7,283 recorded this past month represents a 38.9% year-over-year drop. The general feeling out there last month: “The buyers aren’t buying,” and I believe that’s one-hundred percent attributable to the interest rate panic that the government has caused. The market will return to normal, whether that’s in June, July, or beyond. But for now, the government continues to scare the hell out of people.
New listings increased by a modest 1.4% last month, from 18,413 in April to 18,679 in May. That’s on the heels of an 8.1% decline from March to April. Year-over-year, we saw yet another nominal figure: a 0.5% increase in new listings, from 18,593 in May of 2021 to 18,679 this past month. Sluggish movement in the new listings figure is neither a benefit or a detriment to the market, but if sales don’t rise or fall at the same pace as new listings, then active listings at the end of the month will continue to rise, months of inventory increase, absorption rate decreases, and the market shifts from the favour of the seller into a “balanced” range.
Active listings increased by 17.8% this past month, checking in at 15,433, compared to 13,098 in April, and that’s up from 10,167 in March, 6,985 in February, and 4,140 in January. Notice a trend? With new listings increasing and sales decreasing, active listings are ramping up. Year-over-year, those 15,433 active listings in May represented a 26.0% increase over the 12,247 recorded in May of 2021.
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