GTA Has Record Year In Condo Sales, Record Decline In Single-Family Home Sales

The greater Toronto area experienced a record high in condo sales coupled with a record low in single-family home sales in 2017, according to a new report from the Building Industry and Land Development Association.

According to Altus Group, BILD’s source for new-home market research, there were 44,143 new homes sold in the GTA in 2017, the fourth strongest year for new home sales since 2000.

Of the new home sold in 2017, 82.5% (36,429 units) were condominiums apartments, stacked townhouses and lofts, making it the highest number on record. 

Only 17.5% (7,714) of 2017 sales were for single-family homes, including detached, link and semi-detached houses and townhouses (excluding stacked townhouses). That is the the lowest number since Altus Group started tracking these statistics in 2000.

“Low inventory and escalating prices across the board are behind the highs and lows of the sales numbers we saw in 2017,” BILD President and CEO David Wilkes said in a news release. 

“Our industry wants to build new homes to increase the housing supply in the GTA, but we need municipalities to work with us to expedite the process by simplifying the development approval process, updating zoning by-laws to align with provincial policies and servicing developable land with critical infrastructure,” he said. 

At the end of December, there were 11,397 new homes available for purchase, according to the report. That is down 13.2% year over year and 60.3% below 10 years ago. 

Altus reports this measurement — which adds up the new homes, both complete and under construction — has averaged between 20,000 and 30,000 units since 2000. Over the last 18 months, it has been below 20,000 units.

Single-family home inventory declined even more significantly. At the end of 2017, there were 3,481 new single-family homes available for purchase, down 74.4% from a decade ago.

The research found home prices rose again in December, with the benchmark price for available new single-family homes at $1.2M, up 23.2% year over year. The average price for available new condo apartments was $716,772 in December, up 41.3% from the previous year.

“While many end user buyers have been looking to the new condominium apartment sector for more affordable homes, some are now starting to be priced out of this segment as well,” Altus Group Executive Vice President of Research Patricia Arsenault said.

Wilkes said BILD plans to make the issue of housing supply and affordability a municipal election issue this fall.

“As the GTA prepares for unprecedented growth, we must get this right to ensure the region continues to be one of the most dynamic and vibrant places to live,” Wilkes said. “We are calling on governments at all levels to ensure that people who choose to live in the GTA can afford to purchase a new home.”