TORONTO – November 01, 2018: Urbanation Inc., the leading source of information and analysis on the Toronto condominium market since 1981, released its Q3-2018 condo market results today.

Highlights of the release include:

• New condominium apartment sales in the Greater Toronto Area increased 4% year-over-year to 4,738 units in Q3-2018, reaching the third highest Q3 volume of the past 10 years

• Year-to-date sales of 14,055 units were down 46% from the record high of 25,839 sales recorded during the same period last year

• Resale condominium apartment sales grew 2% annually in Q3-2018 to 5,253 units, marking the first annual increase since Q1-2017

• Unsold inventory of new condos in development increased 2% quarter-over-quarter and 22% year-over-year to 9,927 units, although remaining 33% below the 10-year average of 14,806 units. Unsold inventory equaled 5.2 months of supply, rising from 5.1 months in Q2-2018 and 3.0 months a year ago in Q3-2017

• Despite the growth in supply, the average sold price for all actively marketing projects in Q3 increased 11% annually to $745 psf, with asking prices for unsold units up 19% to an average of $972 psf. Within new projects that opened for pre-sale during the third quarter, prices averaged $745,416, a 33% jump from a year ago ($562,340). The average size of a new unit launched in Q3-2018 was 714 sf, resulting in average per square foot prices for new launches rising past $1,000 for the first time ($1,044 psf)

• Average resale condominium prices grew by 6.5% year-over-year to $690 psf, or $577,000 based on an average size of 837 sf, representing a sharp deceleration from the 27% annual pace recorded a year ago in Q3-2017

• Construction started on a record 8,150 new condominiums in Q3-2018, raising the total number of condos under construction to a new high of 67,581 units in 236 buildings. Projects under construction were 95% pre-sold on average.

Quarterly new condominium apartment sales have settled into a relatively steady pace in recent quarters, following frenetic levels in 2017. However, the market appears poised to receive a boost in the final months of the year as a significant number of new units launch for pre-sale, which should be met by strong demand given current trends. The average opening quarter absorption rate for new launches has remained above 55% for 11 straight quarters dating back to Q1-2016 (averaging 58% in Q3-2018). This was not solely reflective of increased investor activity, as projects with a mix of buyers, as well as those geared primarily to end-users, have been achieving high absorptions upon opening. However, not every project is selling quickly — 8 of 17 projects launched in Q3-2018 sold less than 30% of their units, compared to only 1 of 15 launched in Q3-2017 — illustrating increased price sensitivity, a dispersion of new projects across the GTA region, and the importance of a strong marketing campaign. Looking forward, high price points in the current new condominium market should prevent another sustained resurgence in sales activity in the immediate future.