Greater Toronto real estate failed to maintain momentum last month. Toronto Regional Real Estate Board (TRREB) data shows prices stalled in December. Last month was one the weakest for sales in the past decade, while inventory climbed to one of the highest levels over the same period.
Toronto Real Estate Price Uncertainty: Will They Head Higher Or Lower?
The price of a composite benchmark, or typical, home across the Greater Toronto region.
Source: TRREB; CREA.
Greater Toronto real estate prices lost the minor steam it produced a month prior. The price of a composite benchmark home was $1.06 million in December, virtually unchanged from a month before. It was an unexpected shift from the 0.1% growth observed a month prior, which had marked the first monthly advance in half a year. Home prices in the region remain roughly the same as they were back in 2021—though the stagnation follows one of the sharpest climbs in the world.
Greater Toronto Real Estate Price Growth Stalls
The annual rate of change for a composite benchmark home across Greater Toronto.
Source: CREA; TRREB; Better Dwelling.
One positive sign is that annual growth has re-emerged in positive territory. Prices are 0.15% higher than the same month last year, which isn’t much but annual growth hasn’t been positive since the start of 2024. That said, prices are still 19.6% (-$260k) below the record high reached in March 2022.
Toronto Real Estate Sales Amongst The Weakest On Record, Inventory Near Record High
Greater Toronto real estate sales and active listings through the MLS for the month of December.
Source: CREA; TRREB; Better Dwelling.
Enthusiasm ahead of rate cuts helped drive growth in November, but the actual cuts in December failed to hold the interest of buyers. The board saw 3,359 homes sold through the MLS in December, a decline of 1.8% from last year. December isn’t typically a big month for sales, but this was the 2nd worst month for at least 10 years. It’s only behind December 2022, the first December after rates began climbing.
Similar to home sales, December isn’t typically a big month for sellers deciding to list their property. New listings showed annual growth of 20.2% to 4,681 homes in December. Despite the relatively light volume, it outpaced sales and helped to boost active listings to 15,393 homes for sale, up 48.5% from last year. Coincidentally, that’s the second most listings for at least a decade.
The market optimism ahead of rate cuts has led to several false starts over the past year, so this shouldn’t be a total surprise. Prices didn’t advance but the second worst sales in a decade combined with the second most inventory isn’t exactly a bullish combination.
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