An average condo in the GTA went for $437,000 in during the last housing peak in 2017. Fast forward to today’s pandemic buying frenzy and the condo price is now roughly $625,927—a 44 per cent spike in value.

Tech-enabled real estate brokerage, Properly, compared the sale prices of GTA homes during the housing peak of January to April 2017 to their current AI-driven estimate as of June 1, 2021 and found condos appreciated the most, followed by townhouses with condo fees (33 per cent), semi-detached homes (27 per cent), freehold townhouses (26 per cent), and detached homes (21 per cent).

Condo sales felt the wrath of the pandemic most over the past year, but things are looking up for what is still considered the most affordable way into the market.

“While sales are now back up to pre-pandemic levels, it’s relieving for condo owners to know that their investments have appreciated significantly over time,” said Anshul Ruparell, co-founder and CEO of Properly. “Moving forward, it’s forecasted that solid growth in condo sales will continue as pandemic restrictions ease. I anticipate we’ll see people coming back to the city centre and back to our incredible city that offers world class dining, entertainment, and liveability.”

Condo market bouncing back

Condos in Toronto also appear to be bouncing back after months of COVID-related weak sales numbers, with 2,886 units sold in Q1-2021—more than 2.5 times higher than the quarterly average from Q2-2020 through Q4-2020, and even higher than the pre-pandemic Q1-2020 sales number of 2,829.

It’s expected that GTA homes will continue to rise in value in the coming months and years. CMHC’s recently published Housing Marketing Outlook suggests the average home in Toronto will cost $275,000 more in two years.

“Following the extremely hot spring market we’ve just seen, we’re beginning to see a slight cooling as we head into the slower summer months,” says Ruparell. “By comparing sale prices during the 2017 peak to today, we hope to shed light on how properties can perform over time.”

Photo by Jovydas Pinkevicius