Thursday, March 19, 2009

2,565 RESALE HOUSING TRANSACTIONS SHOWS RATE OF DECLINE SHRINKING

Greater Toronto REALTORS® announced 2,565 transactions in the first half of March compared to 3,183 during the same period last year. The annual rate of
MLS® sales decline was the smallest in five months.

Mid-month March MLS® sales increased compared to the 2,044 sales experienced in the first half of February.

MLS® sales follow a recurring seasonal trend, with transactions generally increasing between January and May and then decreasing between June and December.

“As we move into the spring market, it appears that we are seeing stronger demand for
ownership housing in the Greater Toronto Area,” said TREB President Maureen O’Neill. “Buyers are reacting to the market’s strong foundation of affordability.”

The average price for MLS® sales was $365,499 compared to $385,405 last year.

“Affordability has improved over the past few months due to a combination of lower home prices, near record lows for mortgage rates and rising earnings,”1 according to Jason Mercer, TREB’s Senior Manager of Market Analysis.

Average weekly earnings for the Toronto CMA, as reported by Statistics Canada, have been rising on a year-over-year basis over the past year. For example, in February 2009, average weekly earnings rose by approximately 2.5 per cent compared to
February 2008.


For a complete copy of the most recent Market Watch Report visit www.TorontoRealEstateBoard.com

Greater Toronto REALTORS® are passionate about their work. They adhere to a strict Code of Ethics and share a state-of-the-art Multiple Listing Service. Serving over 28,000 Members in the Greater Toronto Area, the Toronto Real Estate Board is Canada’s largest real estate board. Greater Toronto Area open house listings are now
available on www.TorontoRealEstateBoard.com.



Source: Toronto Real Estate Board

Monday, March 02, 2009

GTA Housing Resales at 2,044 in Mid February

Greater Toronto REALTORS® reported 2,044 sales through the
first 14 days of February, compared to 2,775 sales reported during the same period in 2008.

“While sales have been lower, the housing sector remains one of the pillars of the GTAeconomy,” said TREB President Maureen O’Neill. “Each existing home transaction generates,on average, more than $33,000 in spin-off spending on renovations and other housing-relateditems. This spin-off spending translates into jobs.”

“The City of Toronto needs to do its part to encourage homeownership by reducing the taxburden on existing and potential home owners,” said TREB President Maureen O’Neill. “To thisend, Greater Toronto REALTORS® are calling on the City to roll back the municipal landtransfer tax. We presented our views to the City’s Budget Committee yesterday.”

The average home price in the GTA was $364,748 compared to $385,735 in mid-month
February last year.

“It is interesting to note that while the average price was down, the annual rate of price declineslowed compared to the previous four months,” according to Jason Mercer, the Toronto RealEstate Board’s Senior Manager of Market Analysis. “If this trend continues into the spring, itcould point towards average home prices leveling off between $360,000 and $370,000.”


Greater Toronto REALTORS® are passionate about their work. They adhere to a strict Code of Ethics and share astate-of-the-art Multiple Listing Service. Serving over 28,000 Members in the Greater Toronto Area, the TorontoReal Estate Board is Canada’s largest real estate board. Greater Toronto Area open house listings are now
available on www.TorontoRealEstateBoard.com.


Source: Toronto Real Estate Board