SOLD! 13 Browning Avenue
Congrats to our amazing clients who just beat out the competition with a bully offer and bought this stunning 4 bedroom home in Playter Estates!
Toronto Real Estate Speculators Causing a GTA Market Bubble?
There’s been a lot of talk of a “housing bubble” in the Greater Toronto real estate market. Many pundits are talking about speculators – domestic investors fuelling an already overheated market. RE/MAX looked at just over 5,000 individual freehold transactions in the GTA between March 15, 2019 and March 14, 2021 and found that less than 2% of sales were repeated in that time period, leading to the conclusion that speculators are not a significant factor driving the current market and rising prices.
RE/MAX examined home-buying activity in six Greater Toronto Area neighbourhoods – C03, W05, E01, Erin Mills, Aurora and Northwest Ajax – on properties priced between $500,000 and $1,499,999.
Of the 1.58% transactions between March 2019 and March 2021 that were repeat sales, only approximately 20% of these indicated that renovations were made between sales.
Wrong Conditions for Speculators
Investors tend to wait out hot markets, preferring to buy when prices are down and sell when they’re up again. Those who are looking for short-term investment opportunities in the Toronto housing market (and in many other Canadian regional, for that matter) will be hard-pressed to find them under current conditions.
Bully offers and bidding wars are commonplace in the current market, with demand outpacing supply in virtually all areas of the GTA and the winner buyer paying top dollar. The current environment is simply too hot for investors and builders.
There may very well be some investment/speculation occurring in the GTA condo market, as pricing dropped in tandem with condo sales, but investors have always played a role in the condominium market so this isn’t entirely surprising. That’s unlikely to end anytime soon.
RE/MAX Brokers Say Homebuyers Are Not Speculators
RE/MAX brokers in the GTA were clear that there is no speculation in the market at this point. We took our research a step further and conducted an online survey of RE/MAX brokers and agents in Western Canada, Ontario and Atlantic Canada. A landslide 96% confirmed that the majority of homebuyers are end users, while only 4% were classified as speculators. With a freehold market that’s being driven by end users, upward pressure on housing values is often a function of limited supply.
If Not Speculators, Who (Or What) is Driving Toronto Real Estate Prices?
There are many other factors that may be contributing to the dramatic price growth across the Canadian real estate market. Covid-19 prompted a spike in sales of single-detached homes at a time when condominium sales have dipped, and prices of detached homes are traditionally higher than condominiums. We’ve also seen an uptick in the luxury freehold market, with sales over $3 million posting their best year on record in 2020. All of these factors tend to skew prices higher.
To illustrate, this data table depicts the average prices for detached homes and condominiums from January 1-February 28, 2021, according to the Toronto Regional Real Estate Board.
The Market is Self-Regulating
After some concerns of overheating earlier in the year, there has been a shift in the market activity in recent weeks with more detached inventory coming on-stream. In areas north of the 416, the increase in new listings appears to be meeting demand, with fewer bidding wars taking place. Evidence of this can be found in the number of listings that have been cancelled and reintroduced to the market at a higher price point. The 416 also reported growing inventory levels.
Covid-19 fatigue is playing a role as well, with some purchasers taking a step back from the heated market conditions experienced during the second half of 2020 and in the first quarter of 2021.
The Future of Canadian Real Estate
What’s in store for Toronto real estate, and Canada as a whole? While it’s difficult to predict the market with the uncertainty around Covid-19 and the economy, we expect domestic buyers to continue to be active in the market, due to a number of factors.
Interest rates are playing a major role in spurring home-buying activity, as buyers scramble to take advantage. The government is committed to low interest rates until the “economic slack is absorbed.”
Equity gains are inspiring existing homeowners to trade up to larger homes or better neighbourhoods – both in and outside of the city.
Pent-up demand is also a going concern. For every bidding war, there is a handful of disappointed buyers. They’re still out there, and they’re still hoping to buy a home.
Savings have grown year over year, and some purchasers are sitting on a substantial amount of money. With traditional “safe” investment vehicles like GICs yielding next-to-nothing returns, and stock market risks, many are choosing to invest in their principal residence. The Bank of Canada says savings rose to $180 billion in 2020. Statistics Canada says that the household savings rate was at 14.6% in Q3 2020 and economists estimate that figure will be 13% in the Q4 and continue into 2021. To put that number into context, the average savings rate in 2019 was 1.4%.
Strong economic growth is expected as the vaccine rolls out and confidence returns to the market.
Immigration will ramp up, with an anticipated 401,000 new Canadians coming this year, another 411,000 in 2022, and 421,000 more in 2023. The February 13 Express Entry draw invited almost 28,000 candidates to apply for permanent residence.
Source: blog.remax.ca
Toronto home prices by subway station
Owning a home “steps from transit” certainly has its perks and can command a pretty penny on its sale price. Whether or not a home is within walking distance to the closest subway or Light Rail Transit stop is a top consideration for Toronto home buyers who lead a pedestrian lifestyle, or simply wish to leave the car at home on their commute. But what exactly is the cost of a home or condo by each TTC subway stop?
To find out, the average 2018 sold prices for houses and condos within 800 metres (roughly a 10-minute walk) of all 75 TTC subway and LRT stations were collected. Sold prices were sourced from the Toronto Real Estate Board for the period between January 1 and December 31, 2018.
The 5 Most Affordable TTC Stops for Houses
- Ellesmere (Line 3): $708,489
- Midland (Line 3): $716,813
- Lawrence East (Line 3): $725,813
- Finch West (Line 1): $741,891
- McCowan (Line 3): $761,074
The 5 Least Affordable TTC Stops for Houses
- York Mills (Line 1): $3,426,020
- Museum (Line 1): $3,002,150
- Summerhill (Line 1): $2,932,837
- St. Clair (Line 1): $2,888,106
- Sherbourne (Line 2): $2,870,130
The 5 Most Affordable TTC Stops for Condos
- Kennedy (Lines 2 & 3): $329,530
- Lawrence East (Line 3): $364,656
- Ellesmere (Line 3): $382,752
- Victoria Park (Line 2): $388,953
- McCowan (Line 3): $420,572
The 5 Least Affordable TTC Stops for Condos
- Summerhill (Line 1): $1,242,618
- Rosedale (Line 1): $1,172,898
- St. George (Lines 1 & 2): $1,141,827
- St. Clair West (Line 1): $1,090,897
- St. Clair (Line 1): $1,078,285
Methodology
Sold prices of individual properties were sourced from the Toronto Real Estate Board from January 1, 2018 to December 31, 2018. Sold condo prices includes sold condo apartments and condo townhouses. Sold house prices includes sold detached, semi-detached and attached houses. The boundary used for sold listings was a 800m radius from each subway stop. All calculations by Zoocasa.
Curious about the average price in your neighbourhood? Check out Toronto data here and reach out for your specific hood! Toronto Real Estate Update 2018
source: zoocasa
lead image by Doug Estey
3 Packing Mistakes to Avoid
You’ve chosen your moving company and booked the movers, but there’s one thing that still needs to be done before the big day: packing up your belongings. Before you get too excited and begin stuffing your boxes with all your stuff, make sure that you’re setting yourself up for a smooth and efficient move. Mindless packing can end up taking a lot of otherwise unnecessary time and energy to fix—a combination that could cost you, as you’re most likely paying for the movers by the hour. “Sometimes people will complain and not tip the guys because it took so long,” says Cezar Iordan, owner of Moovers Chicago, “They don’t realize that it took so long because of the simple mistakes they made.”
So what are these mistakes? Here, Iordan reveals the three most-common packing blunders he sees, as well as the quick fixes to make your moving day as painless as possible.
Packing Books in Large Boxes
Why it’s a problem: We understand—you want to keep your beloved book collection in just one or two boxes. But Iordan says that this strategy slows the process down as huge, heavy boxes are incredibly difficult for movers to lift and carry—not even their trusty moving straps make it easier.
What’s more, Iordan says people often don’t tape these hefty boxes properly—they’ll usually put only one line of tape on the bottom of the box. “They have 100-pound boxes they want us to move and have them in perfect shape when they’re dropped off,” he says. “When you have a huge, large box full of books, the bottom of it will collapse and everything will fall out.”
The fix: Pack books in small boxes and reinforce with multiple strips of tape. While you may have more boxes, it’s easier for the movers, who can carry several smaller boxes with their moving straps.
Not Labeling Your Boxes Clearly or Correctly
Why it’s a problem: Reusing those old boxes from your last move? That’s fine, but make sure that any and all labels from previous moves be removed or covered—multiple labels make it difficult to know exactly in which room it should be placed. “Imagine you’re holding the box and asking a client where they want the box to go, but they don’t know what’s inside so they have to open it up and see what’s inside,” he says. “It will drag the duration of the move out.”
The fix: Cover or cross out all previous labels and put one very clear label on the side of the box, not the top. “Since we use dollies or straps, we carry four or five boxes at a time which makes it impossible to see the top of every box,” Iordan says.
Not Packing Your Fragile Items Properly
Why it’s a problem: “People will put all of their fragile items in a box without any kind of bubble wrap, paper, or peanuts, and expect the items to be in perfect condition after the move,” Ioran says. “That’s just impossible.” The good news? Many professional moving companies (like Moovers) will refuse to move the precious cargo until it’s properly wrapped (but this adds a lot of time onto the actual move).
The fix: Wrap your fragile items with care while packing. “Always, always, always wrap anything made of glass in bubble wrap to ensure that nothing gets damaged,” he says. You’ll thank yourself for putting in the extra time when moving day comes, and the movers will thank you, too.
source: apartment therapy
