Thanks to low levels of market supply compared to red-hot buyer demand, the cost of a home in the Toronto region has been steadily increasing. As of February, the average selling price for all home types in the Greater Toronto area is now $1,334,544, up 27.7 per cent annually from February 2021.
The onset of the COVID-19 pandemic was the catalyst for many homeowners to reevaluate their needs in a property and move elsewhere, a trend that kick-started months of record-breaking sales and prices. With this in mind, how much have Toronto property values risen since the pandemic began?
New data findings from Properly show that Toronto home values have been driven up 21 per cent over the past two years.
The Canadian tech-focused real estate brokerage used its AI-powered Instant Estimate calculator to compare the sold prices of Toronto homes six months prior to the pandemic (from September 2019 to February 2020) to their current estimated values as of March 22nd, 2022.
Prior to COVID-19 between September 2019 and February 2020, the median selling price for a Toronto home was $748,000 for all property types. By May 2021, that value rose a whopping $127,389 to a median price of $875,389. Since then, Toronto prices have climbed even higher to $904,518, a $156,518 increase since pre-pandemic times.
Outer Toronto neighbourhoods report steep price growth
The term ‘urban exodus’ was a popular topic of discussion during the height of the pandemic as city residents moved away from the downtown core and into outer-city or suburban neighbourhoods.
Between working from home and living through multiple lockdowns, areas outside of the downtown region saw booming activity as home buyers went in search of more space for fewer dollars, Properly noted in its report.
Since early 2020, Midtown and York have reported some of the highest increases to home values, where prices have grown 36 per cent and 28 per cent over Properly’s two-year time frame. In a three-way tie, Scarborough, North York, and Toronto’s West End tied for third place at 24 per cent each. Out of the 10 Toronto districts, home values in the East End grew the least at 18 per cent.
Detached home values soar 31 per cent over two years
With personal space and privacy in high demand during the COVID-era, Toronto’s detached homes have recorded significant increases to their value over the past two years.
Properly’s data shows that detached homes increased in value by 31 per cent since the start of the pandemic. Toronto townhomes and row houses followed closely behind with 28 per and 26 per cent growth in value. Specifically in Midtown, townhouses rose 62 per cent in value, more than any other home type in any other GTA neighbourhood.
“Townhouses provide a really functional solution for buyers that want to get out of high-rise condo living and get into a space that in some cases has a small yard and a community that can be very welcoming, especially with young families,” said Sammy Kohn, a Properly real estate agent, in the report.
The value of condos and semi-detached properties jumped 25 per cent and 23 per cent over the same two-year time frame.
