We've got the recap in video format again and straight from the horses mouth! In this case, the horse in question is CP's President, CEO and Broker of Record, Chris Kapches LLB. In this video Chris analyses the Toronto housing market for February and discusses how there is more than is being reported by press headlines.

The broad strokes are as follows...

- The market is currently quite "fractured" and isn't doing as well as last year. BUT, last year's market was operating in a "state of delirium"

- Variances in average sale price year over year will remain negative until we get to April/May when, as of last year, the government instituted the fair housing plan and the large market correction transpired.

- Inventory remains low within the 416 area code (which is to say The City of Toronto), particularly in the case of condo apartments. Chris considers the condo market to be in "crisis" at the moment.

- The inventory issues have resulted in some well priced, "turn-key" homes in the 416 having exceedingly high numbers of offers on them.

- Year over year price declines in the 905 have continued to paint a negative picture of Toronto's overall market conditions despite the 416's average sale price rising since the correction.

- Foreign buyer's tax and other government fair housing legislature has effected the 905 market place more than the 416, resulting in an skewed perspective on the overall GTA market. 

- Concerns going forward are that the lack of inventory and the continued demand may result in escalating prices in the 416 area code.

- High-priced homes, ie. houses over $2M or more have declined by 67% from February 2017. That disparity has driven the average sale price down dramatically. 

Get the full story from Chris below...

Each week The Glenn Team provide highlights from the weekly CP office meeting to provide a balanced overview of the Toronto and GTA markets and relevant issues affecting real estate markets. Meetings are overseen by Chestnut Park's CEO and Broker of Record, Chris Kapches, LLB, who provides weekly analysis and commentary. Additional input is provided by the CP Toronto office Realtors who give a day to day, real life perspective of the local markets.

BACK AT IT

We took a two week hiatus from the weekly meeting posts as last week both Chris and Richard Stewart (on-staff lawyer) were away and the week previous, there was very little news of relevance beyond to us Realtors and Brokers.

We began this week as usual; with a few stats. If you don't receive our monthly market reports, you can see the latest infographic along with Chris' comments on our blog here.

Additionally, new data for this week is beginning to show the real discrepancy in the year over year statistics. With just over 1,100 properties sold so far this month, Chris expects this number to go to 2,200-2,300 by the end of the month; down 24% from February 2017. Though this reads dramatically, it should be restated that early 2017 saw the highest inventory and sales averages Toronto has ever seen, so it's not an overstatement to say that the market was inflated. That being said, this years numbers represent a more sustainable level of inventory. The primary reason for this decline outside of previous market data is that detached properties aren’t selling nearly as much as semi-detached and condominium apartments. As reported in the Market Update, the number of $2M properties sold is also down, and the average sale price in the 416 is still around $750,000 where last year's was almost $850,000.

No doubt up until May, when prices began to correct, we'll see lots of negative press about this, but the larger story is that the market is still going through a correction to achieving more sustainable numbers and that the 416 area is still experiencing growth, albeit at a slower pace.

CHMC SEES IT DIFFERENTLY

The Canada Mortgage and Housing Corporation doesn't share our modestly positive viewpoint on the Toronto real estate market. It's latest Housing Market Assessment says markets like Toronto, Hamilton, Victoria and Vancouver are still being overvalued and are vulnerable to further price corrections. The report takes into account economic fundamentals such as personal disposable income and population growth, as well as price acceleration as it's indicators for the valuation. House prices in Calgary, Edmonton, Saskatoon and Regina appear broadly in line with fundamentals, but strong evidence of overbuilding is still observable. 

A NEW LEASE ON LIFE IN TORONTO

It was announced a couple weeks back that as of April 30th, 2018, a new standardized lease agreement for all rentals in Ontario will become mandatory. This new document will not be retroactive but will be required for anyone wishing to lease a residential property on or after April 30th. The new form virtually negates the use of any existing OREA Offer to Lease forms which could otherwise detail conditions that would contribute to the final lease document. Though the details are not 100% clear at this point, we expect that the new form will either be used as a schedule to an offer to lease or function as the primary document to facilitate the lease agreement. More information, as well as a link to the document itself, can be found on the Government of Ontario website.

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The residential resale market in the first month of 2018 is, in a phrase, a tale of two markets. Actually, that is not entirely true. It is a tale of many markets, a fractured landscape that varies by housing type, and, importantly, by location.

The overall data for the greater Toronto area indicates that compared to January 2017 sales declined by 22 percent, from 5,155 last year to 4,019 this year. The average sale price also declined, from $768,351 last year to $736,783. A closer look at the data reveals that, except for detached properties, the decline in average sale prices was almost exclusively in the 905 regions. The 416 regions, or the City of Toronto, actually experienced price growth.

In January 2017 the average sale price for all properties sold, the bulk of which were in the 905 region, was $770,745. This year the average sale price declined to $736,783. Last year, the average sale price in the 416 region was $727,928. This January the average sale price increased to $766,616, an increase of 5.4 percent. So, whereas prices are declining in Toronto’s outlying areas, within the city itself, they continue to increase.

The only housing type in the 416 region that saw price reductions was detached properties. The decline was modest at 3.9 percent. There is no surprise in this decline. Detached properties in Toronto in early 2017 had become exceedingly expensive. Detached properties continue to be expensive, the average sale price coming in in January at $1,283,981. The high end of luxury properties sales had an overall decline in January. Last year 166 properties were reported sold having a sale price of $2 million or more. This year that number dropped to only 90.

There are a number of factors responsible for this decline. Firstly, the run up of prices in early 2017 for detached properties, particularly in the City of Toronto, was simply unsustainable. Secondly, we were greeted with new mortgage stress testing rules in 2018 for conventional mortgages (all sales over $1 Million must be conventional – that is the minimum deposit required by buyers is 20 percent of the purchase price). Early indications are that the new mortgage stress tests reduce the purchasing horizon of buyers by about 15 percent. That means that buyers will either buy lower priced properties, or pay less than they could have before the new stress testing. Lastly, there is an uncertainty in the market place that is resulting in hesitancy. There is a belief that prices may continue to decline, so why buy now.

Active listings are also up substantially in early 2018. Last year at this time there were only 5,034 available properties for sale, less than the total number of sales that were achieved in January 2017. Active listings this year have increased by 136 percent, to 11,894. Interestingly, the increase in active listings is heavily concentrated in the 905 region.

For example, last year there were 211 semi-detached properties for sale in the greater Toronto area. This year that number has jumped to 765, an increase of 262 percent. By comparison, in the City of Toronto last year there were 102 semi-detached properties for sale, and this year there are 219, an increase of 115 percent, substantially less than the increase in the 905 region. In fact, in the case of semi-detached properties in Toronto, even with the increase we have experienced, the supply remains insufficient to meet demand. It is for this reason that in Toronto’s popular eastern districts (Riverdale, Leslieville, Beaches) sales continued to take place at more than 105 percent of asking prices, and on average in only 16 days. Sales in the Greater Toronto market place took place on average in 32 days, 68 percent longer.

As has been the case for a number of months, condominium apartments sales continue at a blistering pace, albeit not quite as fast as last year. Sale prices have been sky rocketing. Last year the average sale price for condominium apartments in the Greater Toronto area was only $442,598. This year it is $507,492. In the City of Toronto the average sale price has jumped from $471,409 to $543.279. Prices have reached challenging levels in Toronto’s central districts. Last year the average sale price was $529,000. That same condominium apartment will now cost you $616,322, almost 17 percent more than last year.

As we move into February the resale landscape remains fractured. It will continue to remain in this strange state until May, when comparisons on a year over year basis become more balanced. Until then comparisons will be made with the first few months of 2017, the most incredible months in Toronto’s resale market history, and unless the various markets in Toronto’s overall landscape are examined, the variances will appear very negative. It’s that psychology that will be at play for the next few months.

Prepared by: Chris Kapches, LLB, President and CEO, Broker