Record October sales and highest average sale prices… but downtown condo inventories up by 250%

Big numbers came in once again for October as we’re now into the fall market with record sales of 10,563 sales of houses and condos across the GTA.  Low interest rates and high demand are continuing to boost our local market.
 
Condo townhouse and high-rise suite sales were up by 8.6% with a 29.5% share of the market and 3,113 units being sold.  Although not a record, October 2020 sales were only exceeded by those in 2016 (by just over 300 suites).
 
The October average sale price for all GTA homes came in at $968,318… a big 13.7% increase compared to one year ago.
 
The active listing inventory is one of the strongest indicators of how slow or fast the market has been moving.  The inventory average for the month of October compared to historical numbers was higher by 12.6% (mainly condo suites) compared to last year at this time.
 
Compare that slight inventory increase to a 24% year-over-year sales increase.  That’s why we’re seeing such a big jump in appreciation.

The sales-to-listings OR percent-chance-of-selling ratio is how we determine what type of market we’re actually in.  24-28% is a neutral market, below 24% is a buyer’s market and above 28% is a seller’s market.
 
Despite the busy market… the October ratio stayed steady at 61% while maintaining a very busy seller market.
 
The days-on-market average for GTA / Toronto homes increased by 1 day to 17 days.
 
Here’s a snapshot summary of the significant real estate milestones for Toronto in October 2020 as we finish the 9^th month of the coronavirus pandemic.

• October sales were 24.4% higher than last year (10,563) – a record for October on TRREB
• The ratio of sales-to-listings remained steady at 61% in October – still in busy seller market territory
• The October average sale price came in at $968,318– 13.7% above October 2019 and the highest EVER average sale price for the GTA
• The GTA real estate market overall averaged 17 days-on-market
• Detached home sales in October 2020 with a purchase price over $2,000,000 were up a big 109% (445 houses) while condo apartment sales over $2M were lower by a significant 20% (20 suites) compared to October 2019
• The CONDO share of the market was steady at 29.5% during the month
• Downtown condo active listing numbers were UP by a big 251% in C01 and by 268% in C08 from last year at this time
• October condo sales were down by 15.8% in C01 and increased in C08 by just 5.5% compared to 2019
• The downtown condo days-on-market average was 22 days (C01) and 23 days (C08)
• The ratio of sales-to-listings for condos downtown continued to show significant declines in C01 (from 77% in 2019 to 18.4%) and in C08 (from 67% in 2019 to 19.2%) putting both condo districts into weak buyer market territory
• Even when influenced by much higher inventories due to lower tenant demand, lower immigration into Toronto and restrictions on Airbnb rentals, adjusted average condo prices still beat those seen in October 2019 and appreciation gains over the last 12 months stayed strong throughout the GTA
• However, if you looked at specific numbers for just the month of October, the average was down 2.2% in C01 and 6.6% in C08… this may foreshadow bigger actual average prices in the coming months
• October saw detached homes in the 905 appreciate by an average 18% while sales were up 39%.  905 condo apartment sales were up 28% while average sale prices rose by 7%
• It looks like pent-up buyer demand and very low interest rates will continue to spur the market throughout the fall season as long as we keep a handle on COVID case numbers and more long shutdowns to our economy don’t happen

Watch the video to get the complete October 2020 Market Report details.


Here's the complete text version of the October 2020 Toronto Real Estate Market Report to read.