November Figures Show Sales Up by 2.6% and Average Selling Price Up by 7.4%

Toronto Real Estate Board President Paul Etherington announced, on December 4, 2014 that Greater Toronto REALTORS® reported 6,519 residential transactions through the TorontoMLS system in November 2014. This result was up by 2.6 per cent compared to 6,354 sales reported in November 2013.  Through the first 11 months of 2014, total sales amounted to 88,462 - up 6.6 per cent compared to the same period in 2013.  

While the trend of year-over-year sales growth continued, the supply of listings remained constrained, with active listings at the end of November down in comparison to last year. 

"Even with a constrained supply of homes for sale in many parts of the Greater Toronto Area, buyers continued to get deals done last month. Households remain upbeat about home ownership because monthly mortgage payments remain affordable relative to accepted lending standards. This is coupled with the fact that housing has proven to be a quality long-term investment," stated Mr. Etherington. 

The average selling price for November transactions was up by 7.4 per cent year-over-year to $577,936.  The year-to-date average price was up by 8.4 per cent to $567,198. 

"The robust average price growth experienced throughout 2014 has been fundamentally sound, with demand high relative to supply.  Strong competition between buyers has exerted upward pressure on selling prices. Barring a substantial shift in the relationship between sales and listings in the GTA, price growth is expected to continue through 2015," said Jason Mercer, TREB's Director of Market Analysis.

Summary of TorontoMLS Sales and Average Price November 1 - 30
	2014			2013
	Sales	Average Price	New Listings	Sales	Average Price	New Listings
City of Toronto ("416")	2,661	$616,130	3,823	2,518	$590,267	3,826
Rest of GTA ("905")	3,858	$551,592	4,966	3,836	$504,266	5,455
GTA	6,519	$577,936	8,789	6,354	$538,347	9,281

TorontoMLS Sales & Average Price  By Home Type November 1 - 30, 2014
	Sales			Average Price
	416	905	Total	416	905	Total
Detached	904	2,164	3,068	935,122	672,825	750,112
Yr./Yr. % Change	-0.3%	-0.8%	-0.6%	9.4%	10.6%	10.2%
Semi-Detached	261	389	650	667,178	449,429	536,864
Yr./Yr. % Change	-2.2%	-6.3%	-4.7%	4.2%	7.1%	6.1%
Townhouse	271	740	1,011	503,349	410,897	435,679
Yr./Yr. % Change	9.3%	4.5%	5.8%	6.3%	8.6%	8.1%
Condo Apartment	1,199	468	1,667	394,225	310,220	370,641
Yr./Yr. % Change	11.2%	8.1%	10.3%	2.0%	11.8%	4.3%

October Month reveals Increase of 7.7% in Sales and Average Selling Price Up 8.9%

Toronto Real Estate Board President Paul Etherington announced two days ago, on November 5, 2014 that Greater Toronto Area REALTORS® reported 8,552 sales through the TorontoMLS system in October 2014.  This result represented an increase of 7.7 per cent compared to October 2013.  New listings were also up on a year-over-year basis, but by a lesser 3.4 per cent. 

“Strong growth in sales was evident across all major home types during the first full month of fall.  This suggests that there are a lot of households across the Greater Toronto Area who remain upbeat about the benefits of home ownership over the long term, whether we’re talking about first-time buyers or existing home owners looking to change their housing situation,” said Mr. Etherington.  

The average selling price for October 2014 transactions was $587,505 – up 8.9 per cent compared to the average of $539,286 reported for October 2013.  Low-rise home types, including singles, semis and town houses, continued to be the driver of year-over-year growth in the average price. 

“While sales growth has tracked strongly so far this fall, many would-be home buyers have continued to have difficulties finding a home due to the constrained supply of listings in some parts of the Greater Toronto Area, particularly where low-rise home types are concerned.  The resulting sellers’ market conditions are forecast to drive strong price growth through the remainder of 2014 and indeed into 2015 as well,” said Jason Mercer, TREB’s Director of Market Analysis.

The Average Price in the (416) area code was $633,078, and the average price of a Detached Home was $951,746.

Carbon Monoxide Detectors are Now Mandatory in all Ontario Homes

As of October 15, 2014, carbon monoxide detectors are now mandatory in all Ontario homes. 

Carbon monoxide (CO) is a highly poisonous, odorless gas which is produced as a byproduct of combustion when common fuel-burning appliances and equipment that use natural gas, oil, wood, propane and kerosene don’t get enough air to burn up completely. According to the Technical Standards & Safety Authority, most Ontario households have between 4-6 carbon monoxide producing appliances such as a furnace, portable generator and gas fireplace.

Carbon monoxide poisoning can be deadly. Carbon monoxide can build up, especially in confined spaces, and can lead to toxic effects.

To protect Ontarians from carbon monoxide poisoning, the province now requires carbon monoxide detectors near all sleeping areas in residential homes; and in service rooms (such as boiler rooms and garbage rooms), and next to sleeping areas in multi-residential units. 
The Technical Standards & Safety Authority has provided these safety tips:

• Ensure at least one CSA approved carbon monoxide detector is outside bedrooms. However, it is advised to install one on every floor.

• Alarms need to be replaced every 7-10 years depending on the brand. Check the expiry date of the existing detector and replace any devices built before 2008.

• Have a licensed technician inspect your fuel burning appliances (e.g., furnace, range, fireplace, water heater) annually, to ensure they are in proper working order and vented correctly.

• Replace batteries in your detector annually, or opt for models with 10-year sealed lithium batteries that never need to be changed.

• For families with older parents or relatives, help them inspect their detectors.

• When a detector sounds, make sure everyone is out of the house and call 911. Exposure to carbon monoxide reduces a person’s ability to think clearly, so don’t delay clearing out.

For more information on carbon monoxide and safety tips, please visithttp://www.cosafety.ca/ and http://news.ontario.ca/mcscs/en/2014/10/keeping-ontarians-safe-from-carbon-monoxide.html

R.E. Market is and will continue Strong at all Levels & We might be looking at a new Residential Sales Record.

On October 3rd, Toronto Real Estate Board President Paul Etherington announced that there were 8,051 transactions reported through the TorontoMLS system in September 2014.  This result represented a 10.9 per cent increase compared to September 2013.  On a year-to-date basis through the first three quarters of the year, sales were up by 6.9 per cent annually to 73,465. 

"Despite a persistent shortage of listings in some market segments, we have experienced strong growth in sales though the first nine months of 2014. This is evidence that GTA households remain upbeat about purchasing a home. The majority of home buyers purchase a home using a mortgage. The share of the average household's income dedicated to their mortgage payment remains affordable, which is why buyer interest has remained solid," said Mr. Etherington. 

The average selling price for September 2014 transactions was $573,676 – up by 7.7 per cent compared to the same period in 2013.  Average year-over-year price growth was strongest in the City of Toronto, both for low-rise home types like detached and semi-detached houses and for condominium apartments.  The average selling price year-to-date was $563,813 – up 8.5 per cent compared to the first nine months of 2013. 

"If the current pace of sales growth remains in place, we could be flirting with a new record for residential sales reported by TREB Members this year. On the pricing front, the multitude of willing buyers in the marketplace coupled with the short supply of listings will continue to translate into very strong annual rates of price growth in the fourth quarter," said Jason Mercer, TREB's Director of Market Analysis.

http://www.torontorealestateboard.com/market_news/release_market_updates/news2014/nr_market_watch_0914.htm

Unemployment Rate down from 7% to 6.8% in September

According to "Statistics Canada", Employment increased by 74,000 in September, nearly all in full-time work. This pushed the unemployment rate down 0.2 percentage points to 6.8%, the lowest since December 2008.
Provincially, employment rose in Ontario, Alberta, Saskatchewan as well as Newfoundland and Labrador. There was little change in the other provinces.
http://www.statcan.gc.ca/start-debut-eng.html

June Data reveals that Semi-Detached Homes had the Strongest Price Increase, 9.7%

Last Friday, July 4, the President of the Toronto Real Estate Board, Paul Etherington announced a strong increase in residential sales reported through the TorontoMLS system in June.  Sales were up by 15.4 per cent year-over-year to 10,180 transactions.  New listings were also up compared to the same period in 2013, but by a lesser annual rate.  This means that competition between buyers increased in June.

“Home buyers in the Greater Toronto Area are confident in their ability to purchase and affordably pay for a home.  Generally speaking, buyers feel that ownership housing will be a good investment over the long term.  This is why we continued to see increases in home sales in June for all major home types across the GTA.  Given the degree of pent-up demand in the market today, I would expect to see sales growth continue through the summer,” said Mr. Etherington.

The average selling price for June transactions was $568,953, representing an increase of 7.4 per cent compared to June 2013.  The strongest price increase for the GTA as a whole was for semi-detached houses, with the average price up by 9.7 per cent year-over-year.  The pace of price growth for condominium apartments was also strong at 6.8 per cent.

“With less than two months of inventory in many parts of the GTA, it makes sense that we continued to experience very strong price growth in June.  This is especially the case for low-rise home types like singles, semis and townhouses.  Strong price growth for these home types will continue through the remainder of 2014.  Despite higher inventory levels, the condominium apartment market segment has benefitted from enough buyer interest to result in above-inflation price growth,” said Jason Mercer, TREB’s Senior Manager of Market Analysis.

Home Renovations are almost 4% of GDP of Canada, $63.4 Billion Industry

Recently Business News Network (BNN) in Canada talking about the effects of the Home and Garden TV Show (http://www.bnn.ca/News/2014/7/2/HGTV-effect-causes-record-home-renovations-.aspx), mentioned that the renovation industry raked in $63.4 billion in 2013 alone – a number that represents around 3.7 percent of Canada’s total GDP. 
Lower interest rates and rising home values have allowed homeowners to tap into more equity for big upgrades.
Essentially, homeowners pulled money out of their homes (Percentage of Home Equity landed to owners by Financial Institutions), only to put it right back in.
Renovations costs are expected to grow fastest in Alberta in 2014 and 2015, with a five percent projected increase in spending for each year, according to the report.
The good news for firms in the renovation sector is that we don't foresee an end to the expansion trend in the near term.

According to the World Bank (http://www.worldbank.org/en/country/canada), the GDP (Gross Domestic Product) of Canada in 2013 was $1,825 Trillion USD and the population 35.16 Million.

Sales and Prices Strongly Up in May, as Borrowing Costs remain near Record Lows

On Wednesday, June 4th, Toronto Real Estate Board President Dianne Usher announced that both the number of home sales through the TorontoMLS system and the average selling price were up strongly in May compared to a year ago. 

Total TorontoMLS sales for May 2014 amounted to 11,079 – a new high for the month of May.  This result was up by 11.4 per cent compared to 9,946 sales reported in May 2013.  The average selling price for these sales was $585,204, representing an 8.3 per cent year-over-year increase compared to the average price of $540,544 in May 2013. 

“We are now at the peak of the spring market when we generally see the greatest number of sales and the highest average selling prices.  Based on the May statistics, buyers have been more active this spring compared to last year.  Despite strong price growth so far in 2014, many households remain comfortable with the monthly mortgage payments associated with the purchase of a home, as borrowing costs have remained at or near record lows over the past few months,” said Ms. Usher. 

Average selling prices varied across the Greater Toronto Area, depending on geography and home type.  A detached home in the City of Toronto sold, on average, for $943,055.  In the surrounding GTA regions, the average detached price was $648,439.  The average price for condominium apartments was $401,809 in the City of Toronto and $307, 307 in the surrounding regions. 

“The listings situation in the GTA did not improve this past May.  With listings down and sales up compared to last year, competition between buyers increased.  The result was price growth well-above the rate of inflation, especially for singles, semis and townhomes,” said Jason Mercer, TREB’s Senior Manager of Market Analysis. 

“It is also important to point out that even though the condo apartment market segment remains comparatively well-supplied, as new project completions have generally led to an uptick in listings, we have seen enough buyer interest to prompt strong condo price growth as well,” continued Mercer.

Average Selling Price for April - up by 10.1 per cent. Lack of Inventory keeps putting pressure on home prices.

Toronto Real Estate Board President Dianne Usher announced today (May 6, 2014) that during April – the first full month of spring – Greater Toronto REALTORS® reported a 1.8 per cent year-over-year increase in sales through the TorontoMLS system.  Total April 2014 sales amounted to 9,706, compared to 9,535 transactions in April 2013. 

“April marked the beginning of the spring market, during which time we generally see the highest monthly sales totals in a given year.  Despite the persistent shortage of listings, a substantial number of GTA residents were able to come to terms on a home that met their needs.  However, sales levels would have been higher, but for the lack of supply,” said Ms. Usher.

“A number of factors underlie the constrained supply of listings.  Studies and polling suggest that the additional upfront land transfer tax in the City of Toronto has prompted some households to stay put and renovate rather than list their home and move.  In the broader GTA context, above-trend home sales in the years leading up to the recession have meant that many households who purchased during this period simply aren’t ready to move again,” continued Ms. Usher.

The average selling price for April 2014 sales was $577,898 – up by 10.1 per cent compared to the April 2013 average of $524,868. 

“Price growth for the GTA as a whole was driven by the single-detached, semi-detached and townhouse market segments in the City of Toronto.  So far this year, there has been no relief on the listings front for these home types in many neighbourhoods in Toronto and surrounding regions.  Until we see a marked and sustained increase in listings, we should expect to see the annual rate of price growth above the long-term norm,” said Jason Mercer, the Toronto Real Estate Board’s Senior Manager of Market Analysis.

To view TorontoMLS Sales & Average Price  By Home Type April 1 - 30, 2014, paste the link below on your browser.

http://www.torontorealestateboard.com/market_news/release_market_updates/news2014/nr_market_watch_0414.htm

March Home Sales Increase Average Price by almost 8%

Toronto Real Estate Board President Dianne Usher announced that Greater Toronto Area REALTORS® reported strong year-over-year increases in TorontoMLS home sales and the average selling price in March 2014.  Home ownership affordability, backstopped by low borrowing costs, continued to be a key factor underlying this growth.

A total of 8,081 sales were reported in March 2014 – up by 7.2 per cent in comparison to March 2013.  Sales growth was much stronger in March compared to the first two months of the first quarter.  Sales for Q1 as a whole were up by three per cent compared to the first three months of 2013.

“Sales activity in the GTA accelerated last month.  Compared to last year, a greater number of buyers found affordable home ownership options, as evidenced by sales growth for all major home types.  Against this backdrop, however, overall inventory at the end of March remained lower than last year.  This means competition between buyers increased, which is why the average selling price continued to climb,” said Ms. Usher.

The average selling price for March 2014 sales was $557,684 – an increase of almost eight per cent compared to the average reported for March 2013.  The average price for the first quarter of 2014 was up by 8.5 per cent year-over-year. 

"With borrowing costs remaining low, and in fact declining, strong home ownership demand will continue to butt up against a constrained supply of listings. Strong price growth will be the result for the remainder of 2014. If the pace of price growth experienced in the first quarter is sustained, TREB may revise its outlook for the average selling price," said Jason Mercer, TREB's Senior Manager of Market Analysis.

Homes Prices Will Continue to Rise in 2014

On February 19, Toronto Real Estate Board President Dianne Usher announced that “sales growth has rebounded so far in February after a slow start to the year in January.  While new listings were still down in comparison to last year, the annual rate of decline was less than experienced last month.  This may point to an improvement in the listings situation moving forward, which would help alleviate some of the pent-up demand that currently exists in the marketplace."

Greater Toronto Area REALTORS® reported 2,767 sales through the TorontoMLS system during the first 14 days of February.  This result was up by 1.3 per cent in comparison to 2,731 transactions reported during the same period in 2013.  New listings were down by 6.1 per cent on a year-over-year basis.

"Price growth well above the rate of inflation will be the norm for the remainder of the year.  Over the same period, mortgage rates are expected to remain low, thereby keeping home ownership affordable in the GTA," said Jason Mercer, TREB's Senior Manager of Market Analysis.

The average selling price during the first two weeks of February 2014 was $547,107 – up 7.8 per cent compared to the average of $507,474 for the first 14 days of February 2013.

Listings in January were Down by 16%, but prices were up by more than 9%

On February 5th, 2014, Toronto Real Estate Board said that Home ownership in the Greater Toronto Area remains affordable and there are many people looking to purchase a home.  In January, the number of homes listed for sale was down quite strongly compared to last year, which means that it was difficult for some buyers to find a home.

Greater Toronto Area REALTORS® reported 4,135 sales through the TorontoMLS system in January 2014.  This result was down by 2.2 per cent in comparison to January 2013.  New listings entered into the system were down over the same period by 16.6 per cent to 8,822.

“Looking forward, it is possible that strong price growth, and therefore an increase in home equity, will act as a trigger for more households to list their homes for sale.  This is especially the case for households whose life styles are changing, including those with an expanding family looking for a larger home or empty nesters looking to downsize,” said Dianne Usher, President,Toronto Real Estate Board.

The average selling price for January 2014 sales was $526,528 – up by more than nine per cent compared to $482,080 in January 2013.

“The pace of price growth will remain strong in 2014.  Similar to last year, competition between buyers for singles, semis and town homes in the City of Toronto and surrounding regions will continue to exert upward pressure on selling prices.  At the same time, mortgage rates will remain near historic lows, so despite strong price growth, home ownership will remain affordable for the average household in the GTA,” said Jason Mercer, TREB’s Senior Manager of Market Analysis.

Zero savings: A fifth of Canadians put nothing aside in 2013

According to an article published by the Financial Post (National Post) on January 25, 2014, almost a fifth of Canadians saved nothing at all last year, not a cent.

Blaming bills or debt or a lack of funds, 17% of individuals polled by Pollara for BMO’s household savings report, said they couldn’t save.

Respondents cited insufficient income to save (69%), high expenses (67%) and debt management (50%) as barriers for meeting their savings goals.

There is a silver lining, however, as this figure dropped from 28% in 2012 to 17% in 2013.

For the full article use the link: http://business.financialpost.com/2014/01/25/zero-savings-a-fifth-of-canadians-put-nothing-aside-in-2013/