The GTA housing market logged a mixed April, with home sales rising 7% year-over-year as new listings pulled back — a combination that suggests tighter conditions are beginning to take hold this spring.
Average prices dipped again, but early signs of month-over-month stabilization may give fence-sitters something to think about.
GTA REALTORS® reported 5,946 home sales through TRREB's MLS® System in April 2026 — up 7% compared to April 2025. New listings told a different story: 17,097 properties entered the MLS® System during the month, down 9.3% year-over-year. On a seasonally adjusted basis, both sales and new listings were up month-over-month from March 2026, though sales climbed at a faster rate — potentially signalling growing competition between buyers in some neighbourhoods.
On pricing, the numbers remain in buyers’ favour, for now. The MLS® Home Price Index (MLS® HPI) Composite benchmark declined 6.6% year-over-year in April 2026, while the average selling price came in at $1,051,969 — down 4.9% compared to April 2025. Month-over-month, the seasonally adjusted average selling price edged up versus March 2026, while the MLS® HPI Composite held flat.
“We have experienced an uptick in home buying activity so far this spring," said TRREB President Daniel Steinfeld. "Buyers have taken advantage of more affordable housing market conditions on the back of lower home prices. If market conditions continue to tighten and home prices level off, this could be a signal to intending homebuyers who remain on the sidelines."
TRREB’s Chief Information Officer Jason Mercer pointed to broader economic uncertainty as a lingering constraint on the market’s full recovery.
“Lower home prices and borrowing costs over the past year have been a catalyst for some homebuyers this spring. However, we still have a substantial amount of pent-up demand in the marketplace," Mercer said. "More certainty on the trade front and an easing in geopolitical tensions would result in further improvements in market activity."
On the supply side, TRREB CEO John DiMichele pointed to the need for continued policy reform: “We recently released a major new housing policy report, ‘Removing Roadblocks: Tackling Municipal Barriers to Housing Supply and Affordability in Ontario,’ outlining the next phase of provincial housing policy reforms needed to build more of the right types of homes and improve affordability for Ontarians," DiMichele said. "While historic progress has been made, we must continue the work of removing the decades of legislative and regulatory red tape, outdated local rules, and rising municipal costs that are blocking new housing in Ontario. This report is a roadmap for cutting red tape and unlocking new housing supply."
The data paints a market in transition. Sales are gaining traction, listings are thinning, and prices — while still softer than a year ago — are showing early signs of stabilizing. It’s not a seller’s market yet, but the window of buyer-friendly conditions may be narrowing.
