Although home sales in the Greater Toronto Area were down 5.8 per cent last month compared to October 2022, selling prices remained higher than last year’s levels, according to the Toronto Regional Real Estate Board.

“Record population growth and a relatively resilient GTA economy have kept the overall demand for housing strong,” said TRREB President Paul Baron. “However, more of that demand has been pointed at the rental market, as high borrowing costs and uncertainty on the direction of interest rates has seen many would-be home buyers remain on the sidelines in the short term. When mortgage rates start trending lower, home sales will pick up quickly.”

TRREB reported 4,646 sales overall. New listings were up much more compared to the 12-year low reported last October, but not so much when looking at the 10-year average for the month. Competition among buyers fueled the average selling price to rise 3.5 per cent year-over-year and above the “cyclical lows” seen in Q1.

“The Bank of Canada also noted this resilience in its October statement,” said TRREB Chief Market Analyst Jason Mercer. “However, home prices remain well-below their record peak reached at the beginning of 2022, so lower home prices have mitigated the impact of higher borrowing costs to a certain degree.”

TRREB CEO John DiMichele noted the lack of support for uninsured mortgage holders reaching the end of their current term as high borrowing costs prevail. “If these borrowers want to shop around for a more competitive rate, they are still forced to unrealistically qualify at rates approaching eight per cent,” he said.

“Following their most recent round of consultations, the Office of the Superintendent of Financial Institutions should have eliminated this qualification rule for those renewing their mortgages with a different institution.”