Canadian household debt slows it’s accumulation, and the City laments the housing market’s “missing middle” as Toronto population continues to increase rapidly!
Here’s a brief breakdown – courtesy of our parent brokerage, Bosley Real Estate – of the major stories surrounding real estate in Toronto’s central core this past week!
As with each passing year, 2018 was filled with its fair share of ups and downs. As we move forward into 2019, what will be in store for the real estate market in the GTA? Will there be calm and chaos? The big question now is how much will interest rates rise and will there be a correction in 2019?
This year the Toronto real estate market was heavily influenced by the mortgage stress test and rising interest rates. Affordability has also become an issue for first time buyers, with the average sale price for the City of Toronto coming in at $842,483 at the end of November. Renters are also struggling for accommodation. The average one-bedroom condo rose 9.5% to $2,163 and with rent controls and builder discouragement, new construction will dry up leading to higher rents and lower vacancy rates.
Low housing supply will continue to be an issue in the new year. At the end of November, TREB posted 73,677 sales year-to-date, and with one month to go we will be lucky if we hit 78,000! The last time we saw levels in this range was 2003 and 2008. Whether the banks raise interest rates in the new year, the uncertainty appears to be making consumers hesitant. Compared to the record pace of home appreciation seen in 2016 and 2017, the GTA housing market is now positioned for a much healthier and sustainable growth in the future. Predictions are the housing market will maintain the status quo or could experience a slight growth in prices and sales in 2019. A return to a more balanced market that sees properties listed for a duration of time, we might need to go back to a more conventional way of approaching a deal and using the concept of negotiating.
People will continue to move for the usual reasons — whether they are downsizing, retiring, leaving town, and if incomes, jobs and population growth evolve stably, the housing markets are expected to respond accordingly. The spirit of optimism in Toronto will conquer all. Happy New Year!
*Bosley Real Estate Ltd. is a full service boutique brokerage operating in Toronto, Niagara-on-the-Lake and Port Hope, Ontario since 1928. We have four centrally located offices and over 250 sales representatives selling and leasing homes and condominiums in all the vibrant communities we work in. Our brand is well recognized internationally thanks to our unique affiliation with Leading Real Estate Companies of the World. Our sales teams meet weekly to discuss market conditions, trending topics, and anecdotes that more accurately reflect the true temperature of the real estate market.
HERE ARE THE TOP FIVE TRENDING STORIES OF THE PAST WEEK:
Modest price gains expected in real estate in 2019
“Canadian realtors are predicting modest gains in the Toronto area re-sale housing market in 2019 — a return to a pre-bubble balance that will see home prices climbing in the low single digits.”
City of Toronto land transfer tax revenues miss target for first time
“The City of Toronto’s budget-balancing golden goose — the land transfer tax — is sick. For the first time since the tax on real estate exchanges was introduced in 2008, revenues that used to gush into Toronto’s operating budget will miss the target — $818 million this year — recommended by city staff and approved by city council, staff acknowledged Monday.”
Growing population in Toronto and Hamilton need housing’s ‘missing middle,’ report says
“The Greater Toronto and Hamilton Region could be short 165,600 homes by 2041 if it doesn’t right size its housing supply to give families more space and build places that will induce seniors to downsize. Failure to do so could skew the population to an older demographic and impede its prosperity by discouraging younger, skilled workers, says a new study.”
Canadian Household Debt Growth Lowest In 35 Years As Borrowing Binge Busts Out
“You can’t say higher interest rates and tough new mortgage rules aren’t having an effect on Canadian consumers?”
10 things you don’t know about the Bloor St. Viaduct as it turns 100
“One of Toronto’s oldest and most recognizable landmarks is turning 100 on Wednesday. To celebrate the centennial of the Bloor St. Viaduct, here are some things don’t know about one of the city’s most impressive feats of engineering..”
In case you missed it last week, here’s a useful infographic, created by Bosley, to highlight the most imortant figures in TREB’s November 2018 real estate statistics!
Last week’s round up:
Bosley Real Estate Market Insight For The First Week Of December 2018
And here’s the Bosley’s Market Insights from November:
Bosley Real Estate Market Insight For The Final Week Of November 2018
Bosley Real Estate Market Insight For The Third Week Of November 2018
Bosley Real Estate Market Insight For The Second Week Of November 2018
Bosley Real Estate Market Insight For The First Full Week Of November 2018
Steven Fudge, Sales Representative
& The Innovative Urbaneer Team
Bosley Real Estate Ltd., Brokerage – (416) 322-8000
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