July 2017 Market Watch

For this month’s episode of Market Watch we will be talking about what the July market looked like. The Toronto Real Estate Board (TREB) released their market watch report for the last month so let’s take a  look at the activity so far.

Now that we’re more than halfway through the year, we’ve seen it all in this market. The organic change from low to high to an unusual summertime shift. The number of new listings are up by roughly 5% in the year-by-year comparison as seen on TREB. The number of listings are decreasing as with around 5000 less listings than last month.

As shown in the graph above, July sales have dropped 40.4%, reaching the sales rate of 2013 but far below last year’s numbers. With all these numbers it’s no surprise that the pricing is still decreasing as well. In the first few months of 2017 we saw the average home price steeply increase month by month, however the summer months are not following the same pattern. As of July 2017 the average price sits at  $746,218 which is not a vast difference from June 2017’s $793,915. In the year-by-year comparison July 2017’s price is 5% higher than that of 2016.

For those who are unaware or need a refresher as to what months of inventory are, it refers to the time it would take to sell all current listings with no new listings being added. As seen in the graph above, the average inventory for the GTA area for July 2017 has increased by 0.1 months since June 2017, almost reaching the 2016 inventory.

The reductions in listings between June 2017 and July 2017 mean sellers too are holding back. This is not a direct result of the government policy changes but a psychological effect seen on GTA buyers. According to TREB’s research foreign buyers actually accounted for a small portion of GTA’s overall home buying activity. Many potential buyers are staying in their seats to see how the market will play out in the next few months which leaves the buyers and sellers who do not have the luxury of time to dive into the market.

The average day on market (DOM) for the City of Mississauga is 21 days while the City of Toronto now sits at 20 days. Both cities are stocked with 1.2 months of inventory. Properties of both areas are experiencing the longest duration on the market we’ve seen this year.

This is why it is so important to choose the right agent; Sellers must choose someone who can provide guidance in the current situation and understands what their expectations from this transaction. Buyers must find someone who can advise them, and knows when to push and when to hold back.

Steven Ho is the ideal realtor for any client, and here’s why: In a townhouse complex, Steven sold 30% of the 9 listings available, whilst 6 separate agents sold the remaining 6 listings. The average DOM for the 6 listings was 14 days, whilst for Steven’s listings the average DOM was only 9 days.

In terms of sold prices, the 6 other agents sold for roughly $489,000 while Steven Ho sold for $533,000, a difference of $44,000! A significant margin that is potentially lost with other realtors which could go to the payment of your next home. Here’s another reason to go with Steven: The other agents sold their listings for 102% of the asking price, which is a fair amount to gain no doubt. However Steven outperformed the other agents once again by selling his listings for 106% of the asking price. An additional 4% on a $500,000 home is $20,000!

People think all agents are the same, but different agents yield different results; picking Steven Ho will help you get the best results.

Source: All statistics are taken from the Toronto Real Estate Board 2017.