GTA new home market sees slower sales, falling inventory levels, in July

Toronto, Aug. 31, 2021 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) — The GTA new home market was quiet in July, as is typical for the month, the Building Industry and Land Development Association (BILD) announced today.

Total July new home sales, with 2,140 units sold, were 14 per cent below the 10-year average, according to Altus Group*, BILD’s official source for new home market intelligence.

Single-family homes, including detached, linked, and semi-detached houses and townhouses (excluding stacked townhouses), accounted for 662 units sold in July, 21 per cent below the 10-year average.

Sales of condominium apartments, including units in low, medium and high-rise buildings, stacked townhouses and loft units, with 1,478 units sold in July, were 11 per cent below the 10-year average.

“New home sales took a bit of a breather in July,” said Edward Jegg, Team Leader, Analytics, Altus Group. “A drop in July is typical, as potential buyers take time off to enjoy too-short Canadian summers and fewer new projects launch. Adding to the seasonal dip this year was some moderation following the surge in sales from July 2020 through April 2021 that followed the initial pandemic lockdowns.” 

New home prices reached record highs in July. The benchmark price for new condominium apartments in July was $1,091,648, which was up 9.8 per cent over the last 12 months. The benchmark price for new single-family homes was $1,517,841, which was up 28.4 per cent over the last 12 months.

Remaining inventory decreased in July compared to the previous month for both condominium apartments and single-family homes, to 9,483 units and 1,598 units respectively. Remaining inventory includes units in preconstruction projects, in projects currently under construction, and in completed buildings.

“Low inventory levels for both condominium apartments and single-family homes are a persistent problem in the GTA that exerts upward pressure on prices,” said Dave Wilkes, BILD President & CEO. “We are encouraged to see that the issues of housing supply and affordability are prominent in the lead-up to the federal election—as they must be in elections at every level if we are to build the housing people in our region need, at prices they can afford. What we need is an alignment of federal, provincial and municipal housing policy on market-rate housing.”

July New Home Sales by Municipality: **

Source: Altus Group

With more than 1,300 member companies, BILD is the voice of the home building, land development and professional renovation industry in the Greater Toronto Area. The building and renovation industry provides more than 230,000 jobs in the region and $26.9 billion in investment value. BILD is proudly affiliated with the Ontario and Canadian Home Builders’ Associations.

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For additional information or to schedule an interview, contact John Provenzano, BILD Media Relations Manager, at [email protected], (416) 617-7994.

*Altus Group should be credited as BILD’s official source of new home market intelligence.

**Historical data are subject to revisions.