Builders in the Greater Toronto Area sold 820 new low-rise homes in September, 17% above the 10-year average for the month. It’s the sixth month in a row low-rise sales have cleared that bar, which covers every month since the HST rebate program launched.
High-rise went the other way. Just 129 new high-rise units sold in September, according to new figures from the Building Industry and Land Development Association (BILD) and Altus Group, BILD’s official source for new home market data. That’s the lowest September on record for the segment, down 40% from September 2025 and 90% below the 10-year average. (BILD’s high-rise category includes units in low-, medium- and high-rise buildings, plus stacked townhouses.)
The low-rise surge isn’t enough to carry the market on its own. Total new home sales came to 949 in September. That’s up significantly from a year ago, and still 52% below the 10-year average of 1,978 units for the month.
Both segments are operating under the same program. BILD and Altus point to its rules around construction start and completion dates as the main obstacle keeping high-rise from taking part the way low-rise has. Altus also names a second problem.
“The high-rise sector remained plagued by undesirable inventory and program constraints centred on unattainable construction timelines,” said Edward Jegg, Research Manager at Altus Group.
High-rise inventory inched up to 12,909 units in September, or roughly 49 months of supply based on average sales over the last 12 months. Low-rise inventory sits at 7,048 homes, or 11 months’ worth.
And within low-rise, buyers are reaching for different product types than they used to.
“In the low-rise market, we have seen a positive response to the HST rebate program with increased sales activity and greater interest in semi-detached homes and townhouses,” said Justin Sherwood, Chief Operating Officer at BILD. “More than half of September’s sales were in semis and townhomes, representing a shift from traditional levels.”
Pricing has moved on that side of the market, too. The benchmark price for a new low-rise home was $1,246,764 in September, down 13.3% over the last 12 months. The high-rise benchmark held at $1,031,574, unchanged from a year ago. Both are gross prices that don’t reflect the HST rebate, so buyers who qualify would see an additional benefit.
Sherwood said the September high-rise numbers show the program rules need to change.
“The high-rise sales performance in September should be a wake-up call that there needs to be further measures and a modification of the program rules to allow the high-rise sector to better participate in the program, which would enable homebuyers in every segment of the housing market to benefit,” he said.
In Simcoe County, the split was starker still: 73 new low-rise homes sold in September at a weighted average price of $998,787, and not a single high-rise unit.
