TORONTO — GTA new home sales in March extended the very slow start to 2024, marking the third month of record lows for new home sales with buyers continuing to remain on the sidelines.
There were 1,125 new home sales in March, which was down 16 per cent from March 2023 and 66 per cent below the 10-year average, according to Altus Group, the Building Industry and Land Development Association’s (BILD) official source for new home market intelligence.
Condominium apartments, including units in low, medium and highrise buildings, stacked townhouses and loft units, accounted for 601 units sold in March, down 38 per cent from March 2023 and 73 per cent below the 10-year average, indicates a release.
There were 524 single-family home sales in March, up 38 per cent from March 2023 and 51 per cent below the 10-year average. Single-family homes include detached, linked and semi-detached houses and townhouses.
Total new home remaining inventory decreased compared to the previous month, to 19,508 units which included 16,318 condominium apartment units and 3,190 single-family dwellings, representing a combined inventory level of 13.5 months, based on average sales for the last 12 months.
This remains one of the highest inventory levels for new homes seen in the last decade and, when combined with the decrease of 16 to 18 per cent in the benchmark price since the peak in 2022, provides a unique buying opportunity for prospective new homebuyers, BILD noted.
Purchasing a pre-construction home today will allow buyers to lock in a price now, while benefiting from lower interest rates that may be on the horizon when they close.
March also saw benchmark prices increase.
The benchmark price for new condominium apartments was 1,054,906, which was down six per cent over the last 12 months and 16 per cent from the 2022 peak. The benchmark price for new single-family homes was $1,594,951, which was down 11 per cent over the last 12 months and 18 per cent since the 2022 peak.
“While the current situation is very beneficial for prospective new homebuyers, it is a period of increased jeopardy for builders and developers that is becoming more critical with every passing day,” said Justin Sherwood, SVP communications and stakeholder relations at BILD, in a statement. “At the very time when builders should be ramping up production, they cannot due to a combination of high interest rates, elevated construction costs and slow demand. This is becoming a very concerning situation and persistence of these market conditions risks future housing supply.”
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