New condo market sizzles in April

GREATER TORONTO, May 24, 2011 /CNW/ - No amount of rain could slow down the high-rise housing market in the GTA in April as buyers snapped up 3,249 suites, resulting in the best April ever for new condo sales, the Building Industry & Land Development Association (BILD) announced today.

According to RealNet Canada Inc., condo sales were up 89 per cent compared with April, 2010, and 23 per cent on a year-to-date basis. In addition to being the best April ever, the 3,249 units sold amount to the third-best monthly condo sales tally on record. April sales were double the average levels achieved over the last 12 years, RealNet revealed.

Remarkably, nearly two-thirds (64 per cent) of all new home sales in April were high-rise condo suites, which in itself is a record-high monthly market share. On a year-to-date basis, six of every 10 new homes sold have been a condo suite.

"We're running out of superlatives to describe the high-rise housing market in the GTA," said BILD President and CEO Stephen Dupuis. "The fact is that a new condo was purchased every 13 minutes last month, which pretty much says it all."

As for the low-rise market, April sales declined by four per cent compared with April 2010, and are down 14 per cent on a year-to-date basis, reflecting price pressure caused by the very restricted supply of low-rise land. Low-rise prices are up 7.3 per cent year/year to $524,954 while high-rise prices are up 5.2 per cent to $447,352.

"The $77,602 differential between the low- and high-rise price index goes a long way towards explaining the low-rise slowdown as well as the high-rise surge," Dupuis concluded.

April '11	Low Rise			High Rise			Total
Region	2010	2011	% Change	2010	2011	% Change	2010	2011	%Change
Durham	226	274	21.2%	3	11	266.7%	229	285	24.5%
Halton	237	144	-39.2%	31	191	516.1%	268	335	25.0%
Peel	578	601	4.0%	157	88	-43.9%	735	689	-6.3%
Toronto	38	102	168.4%	1,445	2,402	66.2%	1,483	2,504	68.8%
York	785	661	-15.8%	87	557	540.2%	872	1,218	39.7%
GTA	1,864	1,782	-4.4%	1,723	3,249	88.6%	3,587	5,031	40.3%
Jan-April	6,775	5,810	-14.2%	7,040	8,675	23.2%	13,815	14,485	4.8%

Source:  RealNet Canada Inc.

With more than 1,350 members, BILD, formed through the merger of the Greater Toronto Home Builders' Association and Urban Development Institute/Ontario, is the voice of the land development, home building and professional renovation industry in the Greater Toronto Area. BILD is proudly affiliated with the Ontario and Canadian Home Builders' Associations.

 

 

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