The number one question I get by friends, family, clients or anyone else that finds out I am a realtor is “How’s The Market?”. Since this seems to be on so many people’s minds I have decided to start a monthly series on the blog to give you an idea of what’s going on out there on the front lines of the market.
January 2017
When my neighbours’ 3 bedroom house sold down the street a few weeks back for $1.08M I knew the market had gone crazy, but the stuff I have seen continues to blow my mind.
While the rental market cooled for a little over December and early January, we are already back to multiple offers (one place I showed had 3 offers) on leases.
For 4ish years I lived in Cityplace and while I had a lot of fun times there, it wasn’t the greatest from a real estate investment perspective. Prices remained relatively flat for most of my time there, only to grow nicely just before I sold and moved out. Having lived in the area and showed plenty of units nearby, I quickly realized which are the good and bad buildings in the area. 38 Dan Leckie in my mind is one of the bad ones. I am not sure if it is due to the proximity to the Gardiner, or whether it is the fact that the units come with one of the worst “all-in-one washer/dryer systems” that don’t work because the builder never installed ventilation for them, but when I had a client ask to see a unit there this passed weekend I reluctantly agreed after giving them my warnings.
We went to see a 500ish sqft 1 bedroom listed at $320,000 with no parking and no locker, on the market for less than a few days. Upon arriving in the lobby another agent walked up to me and handed me the key saying he just got a text that it had sold conditionally. Regardless, we figured we would take a look since deals can fall through. The unit was tenanted and showed that way (ie. not staged to perfection and generally like you had walked into someone’s home who wasn’t expecting any guests, even though they were alerted to the appointment days before). The entire hallway and part of the living area wall was the galley style kitchen, obscurely split in the middle by a fridge with what felt like an out of placed oven in the living area. This was clearly the forgotten unit, that the builder tried to cram in last minute. The bedroom was an internal bedroom (no window), and the main living space was so small and non-functional that we both looked at one another confused. Outside was a full-on construction site for The Lakeshore, still in the early stages of construction which the buyer will have to endure for years and the sounds of the Gardiner not too far in the distant. This was the unit nobody should want in most markets, unless they are getting a really good deal, but this one was already sold conditionally in just 2 days! Upon leaving the unit and reaching the lobby another agent was waiting to take her clients up knowing also that it had sold. This is just how desperate the market is out there for buyers right now and how silly this agent was to accept an offer so quickly when they could have easily gotten multiples.
The sad reality is there is so little inventory out there right now that people will buy ANYTHING. If you own a unit that you were scared would be tough to sell, now is the time to unload it on the next sucker. Please contact me immediately!! People are even renting out their garages now, that is just how much demand is out there. It is 100% a seller’s market and if you are a buyer you need to either hold tight, or find a realtor that is going to be able to find you something off-market (one of the services I offer my clients).
Every week my company puts out a market update, and here is an except from the latest to give you an idea of the numbers behind it:
Listings in the freehold sector retracted significantly last week from 114 new listings two weeks ago to a mere 67 last week. Surprisingly, sales nearly doubled to 65 units over the same period. Less availability created a sharp rise in the number of homes selling at or over the list price (72%). Over the past few years we have not seen this level of activity until well into the spring market (usually April/May) before it falls, and remains below, the 70% point from around mid August.
The resale condo market is experiencing similarities to its freehold brother. New listings for the week are down nearly 50% to 189 across the 416 while sales have increased by nearly 30%. Tighter supply and more sales has constricted the market and now we are reporting a new record in terms of sales at or over the list price. While the percentage has been tracking higher all year our research indicates we are now hovering at 55%. Clearly we are in a seller’s market for condos in Toronto.
So ya, the market is as wild as it has ever been and on track to possibly even do better than last years insane 20% increases if people don’t start selling their places soon! Wanna cash out and move to the Bahamas? I can help with relocation too ;)
