Universal Design

"Make no mistake, the condo market has been dropped to its knees. It’s not a TKO, but let’s give it a standing eight count," reads a recent report from CIBC's Deputy Chief Economist Benjamin Tal and Urbanation's President Shaun Hildebrand. The report delves into the current state of Canada's housing market and breaks down why there is hope yet for the GTA condo.

Outlooks for the GTA market have been somber for some time now, and this is not something Tal and Hildebrand shy away from. They acknowledge condo sales have stooped to '90s levels and that "the days of 20,000-plus annualized new condo sales will likely stay in the rearview for the foreseeable future," but argue that what will emerge from this prolonged downturn will be a leaner and more structurally sound market that favours end users over speculative investors.

August brought a fifth-straight gain in national home selling activity, with the Canadian Real Estate Association (CREA) reporting a 1.1% bump in transactions in its latest statistics package, released Monday morning. Although a 1% uptick is nothing to write home about, it marks “the best month of August for sales since 2021” and contributes to a cumulative 12.5% rise since March, CREA said.

While recent months’ gains were “led overwhelmingly” by the Greater Toronto Area, according to the national association, August’s activity was driven by sales in Montreal and Ottawa — and to a lesser degree, Greater Vancouver.