December Sales Show Signs of Recovery
By Lucas on Jan 28, 2014
The Building Industry and Land Development Association (BILD) recently announced a detailed report of the Greater Toronto Area’s (GTA) December new home sales statistics.
New home sales in December 2013
According to RealNet Canada, in December 2013, there were 642 new low-rise sales in the GTA. The highest selling region was York with 304 sales, and the lowest selling region was Toronto with only 14. There were 1,069 new high-rise sales; the highest region was Toronto with 807 sales, and the lowest was Durham with a big zero.
2013 saw a total of 28,406 new home sales in the GTA, which is 23% lower than the 10-year average. The only year in the last 10 years with a lower total is 2008. High-rise sales were down 13% compared to 2012, and low-rise sales were also down 13%.
Although 2013’s sales numbers were low, it is important to note that last December actually performed 79% better than December 2012!
December 2013 new home prices
"In 2013 we saw the second-lowest level of supply in the last decade, which resulted in higher prices for new homes, particularly in ground-related housing," said BILD president and CEO Bryan Tuckey. "The GTA remains challenged by constrained land supply and an outdated development approvals process which delays the introduction of new inventory into the market."
The RealNet New Home Price Index of low-rise homes increased 3.4% to $654,147, compared to December 2012. The price index of high-rises stayed relatively the same at $436,564, and the price per square foot went up about 1%.
What does it all mean?
In BILD’s and RealNet’s Strategic Review, which was released last week, they stated that 2013’s new home sales show signs of a market in recovery.
"Sales of new homes today will define the jobs of tomorrow, and now is the time for the industry, consumers and government to watch the market, and watch it carefully," Tuckey commented. "We are all in this together and we need to work collaboratively to engage in a solution-oriented, fact-based discussion about building quality, complete communities that people in the GTA can afford to live in."
