Home sales in the Greater Toronto Area (GTA) declined 6% in November from a year earlier as high interest rates and a slowing economy kept buyers on the sidelines.
The Toronto Regional Real Estate Board (TRREB) said the 4,236 homes sold in the metropolitan region during November was down 8.7% from 4,640 sales in October of this year.
The board said a lack of affordability amidst higher interest rates is negatively impacting the Toronto market.
The average interest rate charged on a home mortgage in Canada is above 6%, with many mortgage rates higher than 7%, making it difficult for people to qualify for a loan.
The average home price across Greater Toronto reached $1.08 million in November, which was flat compared with November 2022.
New listings rose 16.5% to 10,545 in November compared with 9,053 during the same month a year ago.
Vancouver Sales Rise
Across the country, home sales in Vancouver totalled 1,702 in November, a 4.7% increase from last year.
However, November’s sales figure marked a slowdown from the previous month of October and was 33% below the 10-year seasonal average of 2,538 seen during the month of November.
The Real Estate Board of Greater Vancouver said newly listed properties has given homebuyers the largest selection of inventory to choose from since 2021.
There were 3,369 new listings of properties in November, a 10% increase from a year earlier. Vancouver’s average home price in November was $1.19 million, a 4.9% increase from November 2022.
