Photo: Taku/Flickr
In the second quarter, sales of new condos in the Toronto CMA totalled 5,992, a 56 per cent surge over the doldrum days of 2013. According to Urbanation’s latest report, the tally was also the third highest amount for a second quarter, following the highs reached in the busy days of 2011 and 2007.
Year-to-date, there have been 18,463 sales, in step with the 10-year annual average.
The Toronto CMA had 105,027 units in active development, the first time the amount of condos either in pre-construction, under construction or in the occupancy was over 100,000 in the city. Of these condos in active development, 18,744, or roughly 18 per cent, were unsold. That’s above historical averages but down 3 per cent from last year. On the other side of the equation, the 82 per cent share of sold suites represented a 10-year high.
The average index price for a new condo edged up 2.8 per cent in the second quarter, reaching $554 per square foot. The average price tag for an unsold suite inched up slightly to $570 per square foot, a 1.8 per cent boost.
“The new condo market has performed well above expectations in the first half of the year, reflecting a sharp rebound in buyer confidence, a number of highly attractive new openings and a variety of incentives for existing inventory” said Shaun Hildebrand, Urbanation’s Senior Vice President, in the news release.
“While sales have heated up, prices have remained in check due to competitive supply pressures and an absence of short-term speculation on the part of buyers.”
For the resale market, condos sales broke another record, rising 12 per cent from last year to 5,238 units. Listings also reached a new milestone, rising by 10 per cent to a total of 11,246.
What does that mean for condo-hunters? The sales-to-listings ratio was at 47 per cent — falling short of the 50 per cent boundary between a balanced and sellers’ market.
As for the prices for resale units, they also saw an increase, rising by 3.4 per cent from 2013 to an average of $427 per square foot, a new record high.
