Record year of 119,532 home sales, surpassing the previous record of 112,288 in 2016.
As Featured in the Move Smartly Report:
FREE PUBLIC WEBINAR: The Market Now with John Pasalis
Join John Pasalis, report author, leading market analyst and Move Smartly contributor, and President of Realosophy Realty, in a free monthly webinar as he discusses key highlights from this report, with added timely observations about new emerging issues, and answers your questions. A must see for well-informed Toronto area real estate consumers.
The Market Now
The average house price for the year of 2021 was $1,342,444, up 23% over 2020 and up 39% over the 2019 average.
The average condo price for 2021 was $702.356, up 11% over 2020 and up 19% over 2019.
Turning to the monthly statistics for December, the average price for a house in December was $1,491,134, up 32% over last year; the median house price in December was $1,320,000, up 35% over last year.
House sales were down 22% on a year-over-year basis, but well above pre-Covid 19 pandemic levels for December in 2018 and 2019. New house listings in December were down 7% over last year while the number of active houses for sale at the end of December fell to just 1,566, a 52% decline over last year.
The average price for a condominium (condo) in December reached $738,302, up 20% over last year; the median price for a condo in December was $675,000, up 19% over last year.
Condo sales were down 11% in December over last year, but well above the pre-Covid 19 levels for the same month in 2018 and 2019. New condo listings were down by 16% in December over last year, but above the volumes in 2018 and 2019. The number of condos available for sale at the end of the month, or active listings, was down 65% over last year.
(For all monthly statistics for the Toronto Area, including house, condo and regional breakdowns, see the below in this post.)
At our brokerage, we’re seeing that conditions remain very competitive for both houses and condos in many popular areas in the Toronto area; however, we’re also seeing some of our clients find value in slightly less popular areas or less updated homes. Be sure to attend the monthly public webinar (see sign up above) which accompanies this report to hear more on-the-ground insights directly from me and my team at Realosophy.
I’m also excited to be presenting a new online course that comprehensively prepares all home buyers — from upsizers, first-time buyers to investors — to reach their goals in Toronto’s complex and competitive market (see sign up below).
Monthly Statistics:
House Statistics
House sales (detached, semi-detached, townhouse, etc.) in the Toronto area in December 2021 were down 22% over the same month last year, but were above levels for the same month in pre-Covid 2018 and 2019.
New listings in December were down 7% over last year, but slightly ahead of new listings volumes seen in 2018 and 2019.
The number of houses available for sale (“active listings”) was down 52% when compared to the same month last year and 69% below the inventory levels seen in pre-Covid 2019.
The Months of Inventory ratio (MOI) looks at the number of homes available for sale in a given month divided by the number of homes that sold in that month. It answers the following question: If no more homes came on the market for sale, how long would it take for all the existing homes on the market to sell given the current level of demand?
The higher the MOI, the cooler the market is. A balanced market (a market where prices are neither rising nor falling) is one where MOI is between four to six months. The lower the MOI, the more rapidly we would expect prices to rise.
This December, the market remained very competitive with the MOI at 0.5 months.
While the current level of MOI gives us clues into how competitive the market is on-the-ground today, the direction it is moving in also gives us some clues into where the market may be heading. The MOI has been trending down below a very competitive 1 MOI for the past twelve months.
The share of houses selling for more than the owner’s asking price climbed from 68% in August to 78% in December.
Average house prices had plateaued in 2021, remaining relatively constant in the $1.3M range since the start of the year, up to this September, when average prices surged above $1.4M and continued to climb in December to $1,491,134, up 32% over last year.
The median house price in December was $1,320,000, up 35% over last year.
The median is calculated by ordering all the sale prices in a given month and then selecting the price that is in the midpoint of that list such that half of all home sales were above that price and half are below that price. Economists often prefer the median price over the average because it is less sensitive to big increases in the sale of high-end or low-end homes in a given month which can skew the average price.
Condo Statistics
Condo (condominiums, including condo apartments, condo townhouses, etc.) sales in the Toronto area in December 2021 were down 11% over last year and up 50% compared to pre-Covid 2019.
New condo listings were down by 16% in December over last year, but above the volumes in 2018 and 2019.
The number of condos available for sale at the end of the month, or active listings, was down 65% over last year, a period that saw a surge in condo listings due to declining prices, falling rents and rising vacancy rates.
The strong demand helped push the MOI down to just 0.7 MOI for the month of December.
The competition for condos picked up very slightly with the share of condos selling for over the asking price rising from 45% in August to 56% in December.
Average condo prices had plateaued at approximately $700K for most of 2021, but have increased over the past two months. The average price for a condo in December reached $738,302, up 20% over last year. The median price for a condo in December was $675,000 up 19% over last year.
Regional Trends
Houses
Sales across all five regions in the GTA were down in December while average prices were up on a year-over-year basis. The decline in new listings helped keep the market competitive with MOI below 1 across the entire GTA, indicating a strong seller’s market.
Condos
Condo sales were up in Durham but down across the rest of the GTA in December. Average prices were up double digits in all five regions. Current MOI levels are below 1 across the GTA signalling a strong seller’s market.
Browse All Real-Time Regional Market Trends on Movesmartly.com:
Greater Toronto Area Market Trends
All Market Performance by Neighbourhood Map, Toronto and the GTA
Read the full Move Smartly Toronto Area Market Report to see all monthly statistics for houses, condos and regional trends this month
Top Image Credit: Getty/iStock
The Move Smartly monthly report is powered Realosophy Realty Inc. Brokerage, an innovative residential real estate brokerage in Toronto. A leader in real estate analytics, Realosophy educates consumers at Realosophy.com and MoveSmartly.com and helps clients make better decisions when buying and selling a home.
