Staying on pace with seasonal trends, the Greater Toronto Area new home market was quiet in July -- typical for the month -- as the price of new construction homes continued to hit records, with single-family homes leading the way.
The benchmark price for single-family homes, including detached, semi-detached and townhomes, soared 28.4% year-over-year in July to an average of $1,517,841, while the condo benchmark also climbed nearly 10% to $1,091,648 on average, the Building Industry and Land Development Association (BILD) -- which represents homebuilders -- announced Monday.
However, the sales of newly built and pre-construction homes declined last month, with 2,140 units sold -- a 14% drop below the 10-year average. Single-family homes, including detached, linked, and semi-detached houses and townhouses, accounted for 662 of the units sold in July, 21% below the 10-year average and down 61% year-over-year. Though keep in mind we're comparing to a time when the new home market was affected by the pandemic.
Sales of condominium apartments, including units in low, medium, and high-rise buildings, stacked townhouses, and loft units, were 11% below the 10-year average and down 26% year-over-year with 1,478 units sold according to the figures compiled for BILD by Altus Group.
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The figures also revealed that condo prices averaged at a record of $1,141 per square foot in the Toronto area last month.
July's new home sales were lead by activity in York Region, with 295 homes sold, while Toronto accounted for the most condo sales, with 528 units sold.
“New home sales took a bit of a breather in July,” said Edward Jegg, Team Leader, Analytics, Altus Group. "A drop in July is typical, as potential buyers take time off to enjoy too-short Canadian summers and fewer new projects launch. Adding to the seasonal dip this year was some moderation following the surge in sales from July 2020 through April 2021 that followed the initial pandemic lockdowns.”
Dave Wilkes, BILD President and CEO, said low inventory levels for condominium apartments and single-family homes continue to be s persistent problem in the GTA that exerts upward pressure on prices.
The remaining inventory for condominium apartments and single-family homes totalled 11,081 units in July, decreasing month-over-month to 9,483 and 1,598 units, respectively.
With the federal election just under a month away, Wilkes said he's happy to see that the issues of housing supply and affordaility are prominent in the lead-up to the polls.
"As they must be in elections at every level if we are to build the housing people in our region need, at prices they can afford," said Wilkes.
Wilkes added that there also needs to be a collaboration from governments of every level. "What we need is an alignment of federal, provincial, and municipal housing policy on market-rate housing.”
