TORONTO, May 6, 2014 -- Toronto Real-estate Board President Dianne Usher announced during April the 1st full month of spring Greater Toronto REALTORS reported a 1.8 % year-over-year increase in sales through the TorontoMLS system.
"April marked the beginning of the spring market, in which time we often see the highest monthly sales totals in a specified year. Regardless of the persistent shortage of lists, an important number of GTA residents were able to come to terms on a home that met their requirements. However, sales levels would have been higher , but for the lack of supply," said Ms. Usher.
"A number of factors underlie the constrained supply of lists. Studies and polling suggest the extra upfront land transfer tax in the City of Toronto has pushed some households to remain put and renovate rather than list their home and move. Usher. In the wider GTA context, above-trend home sales in the years leading in to the recession have meant that many households who purchased during this period simply aren't ready to move again," continued Ms.
The average selling price for April 2014 sales was $577,898 up by 10.1 per cent compared against the April 2013 average of $524,868. The MLS Home Price Index ( HPI ) Composite Benchmark was up by seven per cent year-over-year.
"Price growth for the GTA as a whole was driven by the single-detached, semi-detached and townhouse market segments in the Town of Toronto. The MLS HPI strips away price fluctuations resulting from a change in the mix of home types sold from one period to the next. Until we see a marked and sustained increase in lists, we should expect to see the annual rate of price expansion above the long-term norm," said Jason Mercer, the Toronto Real estate Board's Senior Manager of Market Analysis.
"April marked the beginning of the spring market, in which time we often see the highest monthly sales totals in a specified year. Regardless of the persistent shortage of lists, an important number of GTA residents were able to come to terms on a home that met their requirements. However, sales levels would have been higher , but for the lack of supply," said Ms. Usher.
"A number of factors underlie the constrained supply of lists. Studies and polling suggest the extra upfront land transfer tax in the City of Toronto has pushed some households to remain put and renovate rather than list their home and move. Usher. In the wider GTA context, above-trend home sales in the years leading in to the recession have meant that many households who purchased during this period simply aren't ready to move again," continued Ms.
The average selling price for April 2014 sales was $577,898 up by 10.1 per cent compared against the April 2013 average of $524,868. The MLS Home Price Index ( HPI ) Composite Benchmark was up by seven per cent year-over-year.
"Price growth for the GTA as a whole was driven by the single-detached, semi-detached and townhouse market segments in the Town of Toronto. The MLS HPI strips away price fluctuations resulting from a change in the mix of home types sold from one period to the next. Until we see a marked and sustained increase in lists, we should expect to see the annual rate of price expansion above the long-term norm," said Jason Mercer, the Toronto Real estate Board's Senior Manager of Market Analysis.
