Photo: James Bombales
GTA new home sales were sluggish in August, with just 974 homes sold. But according to one expert, there’s plenty of pent up demand in the market which will make itself known this fall.
There were 171 new detached homes and 803 new condos sold last month, according to data from the Altus Group, released by the Building Industry and Land Development Association (BILD). That leaves both property types 80 per cent and 28 per cent below the 10-year average, respectively.
But these numbers should not be seen as a shortage of demand, according to Altus Group Executive VP of data solutions Patricia Arsenault.
“Pent-up demand is forming, which suggests we should see sales start to firm up this fall,” she writes, in a statement.
So far that demand has been held back by various government regulations introduced in the last year, including a new mortgage stress test, which came into effect in January.
“Once the market adjusts and more people start looking for homes, our region’s short supply of housing will mean that affordability will continue to be a challenge for many new home buyers,” writes BILD president and CEO David Wilkes, in a statement.
Prices have been shooting up in the new condo market, which saw the benchmark price of a new condo rise 21.8 per cent over the last year to $784,512 in August.
“What I think you’re seeing from the new condo market is continued strength, it’s a very strong market,” Wilkes tells Livabl.
According to Wilkes, condos have become the new starter home, as buyers move away from the low-rise market towards the more affordable high-rise segment.
“When you look at their affordability, and the range of choice available, I think demand remains strong because of both of those factors,” he says.
