RECORD-BREAKING OCTOBER AND YEAR-TO-DATE DOLLAR SALES
OCTOBER SALES
Record volume of $99,404,833 – the first new monthly record since June – was up 5% from October 2016’s previous record of $94,406,889.
Units of 203 were down 20% from last year’s record 254.
New listings of 251 were down by 10% from the 278 of one year ago, while the sales/listings ratio of 81% was down 10%.
YEAR-TO-DATE SALES
2017’s record volume of $976,264,520 is up 8% from 2016’s prior record of $904,770,325.
Units of 2135 – the second highest YTD total ever – are down 12% from 2016’s record 2437.
New listings of 3195 are down 11% from last year’s 3592, giving 2017 a 67% sales/listings ratio, 1% below 2016.
Lastly, the average sale price of $457,267 is up 23% from a year ago.
October’s record volume sales and stronger unit sales were a welcome rebound from Q3’s slowing market. October also had 3% fewer new listings than last October, 15% fewer total listings, and a 23% rise in the average sale price, all of which indicates that the regional demand for listings exceeds the supply.
The story of Georgian Triangle real estate activity so far in 2017 could perhaps be entitled ‘A Tale Of Two Markets’.
After the stratospheric sales of the first five months (involving a dizzying number of multiple offer and over-asking price deals), dollar and unit sales dropped 45% and 46% respectively from from their peaks in May to their depths in July. This was followed by a at third quarter, partly attributable to slowing Greater Toronto area sales and an increase in the Bank Of Canada’s prime rate.
Then came October, with volume of $99,404,833 – the first new monthly record since June – up 5% from last October’s record, albeit with much of the increase being due to a 32% jump in the monthly average sale price from a year ago. So was the slowdown just a blip that will now be followed by a modest rebound, or was October just a blip within a prolonged market levelling? Difficult to say.
One thing is certain. We’re still in the sellers’ market that began to gain huge momentum in 2014. October’s sales/listings ratio was a very high 81% and its total listings were down 15% from a year ago. So if you’ve considered selling your home there is plenty of demand and prices are way up.
