The Greater Toronto Area housing market continued to cool in October, with both sales and prices falling compared to last year amid ongoing economic uncertainty.
The Toronto Regional Real Estate Board (TRREB) reported 6,138 home sales last month — a 9.5 per cent decline from October 2024. On a seasonally adjusted basis, sales were also down 2.3 per cent from September.
Despite fewer transactions, listings climbed modestly. New listings rose 2.7 per cent to 16,069, while active listings jumped 17.2 per cent year-over-year to 27,808, signaling a growing supply in the market.
The combination of higher inventory and weaker demand drove prices lower. TRREB’s benchmark home price index dropped five per cent compared with a year ago, while the average selling price fell 7.2 per cent to $1,054,372. Month over month, prices were down another 1.4 per cent.
Detached homes averaged $1,355,506 — a 7.3 per cent decrease — while condominiums saw a smaller decline of 4.7 per cent, with an average price of $660,208.
TRREB president Elechia Barry-Sproule said that for some, the current market presents an opportunity. “Buyers who are confident in their employment situation and ability to make mortgage payments over the long term are benefiting from more affordable housing conditions relative to recent years,” she noted. However, she added that many potential buyers remain hesitant amid broader economic concerns.
TRREB’s chief market analyst Jason Mercer said he expects a rebound once confidence improves. “Once we have more certainty on the economic front, including trade with the U.S. and China, home sales should increase,” he said.
The data reflect a market still in adjustment mode — more balanced than the frenzied years of the pandemic boom, but still weighed down by caution, inflation, and a slower pace of economic recovery.