Your house is worth more than it ever has been, new GTA figures show

By Megan O’Toole, National Post

Homes throughout the Greater Toronto Area are worth more than they have been in decades, as the real-estate market continues its dramatic resurgence.

In September, the average resale home price hit a record high of $406,877 as existing home sales shot up by 28% over last year — and the Toronto Real Estate Board forecasts the upward trend will hold in the coming months. The year-to-date average price, at above $388,000, has also set a record.

Jason Mercer, an analyst with the TREB, said the spike in values was seen across the board, from lower-end homes all the way up to luxury condos.

“It’s been pretty widespread,” he said, noting both the 416 and the 905 have been similarly affected by the market rebound, which is being fuelled by rock-bottom interest rates.

“We’ve seen it across all price ranges, from the $100,000 to $200,000 range to over a million dollars,” Mr. Mercer said.

University of Toronto real-estate expert Gilles Duranton says while the 28% rise in sales is significant, buyers and sellers should be cautious when looking at the price valuations. Amid such a dramatic change in the number of transactions, Mr. Duranton said, the distribution of houses is likely to change greatly, causing extreme and possibly artificial fluctuations in the average price.

“The really significant news is that transactions are up by a huge amount, so it’s telling you the market is turning,” Mr. Duranton said. “This is really good news for the market, for people selling houses and for brokers.

“For people buying houses, that may not be really good news.”

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