August is traditionally one of the quieter months in Toronto real estate.
People squeeze in the last couple of weeks of summer. Buyers slow down their searches. Sellers wait until September to list.
And with Labour Day falling late this year, that summer slowdown lasted a little longer than usual.
So I wasn’t expecting fireworks from the August numbers.
I didn’t get them. And I actually think that’s good news.
- Detached prices were up 1% compared with last August.
- Semi-detached and row houses were also up 1%.
- Condo prices were down 2%.
In other words, despite everything we’ve heard about the housing market over the past year, Toronto prices are essentially moving sideways.
At the same time, properties are taking longer to sell.
- Detached homes averaged 33 days on the market.
- Semis and row houses took 30 days.
- Condos took 41.
We’ve spent years being conditioned to think a home selling in three days with 15 offers is somehow the sign of a healthy real estate market.
I don’t think it is.
What I’m seeing now looks much closer to what a functional real estate market should actually look like.
A Slower Market Isn’t Necessarily A Weak Market
This distinction matters.
When people hear that homes are taking longer to sell, they tend to assume something is wrong.
But buyers should have time to look at a property.
They should be able to arrange financing, investigate what they’re buying, compare their options and make a rational decision.
Sellers should have enough time for their agent to properly expose their property to the market instead of relying on a four-day auction.
A market where prices are relatively stable and buyers have time to make decisions isn’t necessarily weak.
It may simply be more balanced.
And after years of extreme highs followed by painful corrections, I think a little boring would actually be quite healthy for Toronto real estate.
Toronto Condos:
$730,877 Average Selling Price | 547 Sales | -2% YOY | 41 Days on Market
Condo prices remain relatively stable, but there’s something happening underneath that number that I’m watching carefully.
New listings fell another 6.6% year-over-year in August.
That continues a trend I’ve been talking about for several months: Condo inventory is gradually being absorbed.
At the same time, I’m seeing first-time buyers recognize the opportunity that’s sitting in front of them.
And they’re not rushing. They’re comparing buildings. They’re looking at layouts. They’re investigating maintenance fees. They’re negotiating. They’re taking their time.
Good.
This is a generation of buyers that doesn’t particularly like being pressured into making a decision, and the current market is giving them the luxury of being selective.
The opportunity is that they can be selective while prices remain relatively stable and sellers are still willing to negotiate.
The risk is assuming those conditions will exist indefinitely.
There’s Another Condo Story I’m Watching For 2027
There’s also a potential demand factor sitting on the horizon that I don’t think should be ignored.
Canada’s current prohibition on purchases of residential property by non-Canadians is scheduled to expire at the beginning of 2027 unless the federal government changes course again.
Historically, foreign ownership in Toronto has been disproportionately concentrated in condos. Does that mean international buyers suddenly flood back into Toronto the moment the rules change?
Absolutely not.
There are still substantial taxes applicable to foreign purchasers, and there is plenty of time for Ottawa to make further changes.
But even a relatively modest change in demand could become relevant if condo inventory continues to be absorbed.
I’m not making a prediction around it yet. I’m simply putting it on my watch list.
Semi-Detached & Row Houses:
$1,320,691 Average Selling Price | 95 Sales | +1% YOY | 30 Days on Market
This may be the segment I find most interesting in the August numbers.
Prices were essentially flat. But new listings fell 23% compared with last August.
That’s significant.
At the same time, sales were down 10%, and the average time required to sell increased from 20 days last August to 30 this year.
At first glance, those numbers might seem contradictory. Supply is falling, but buyers still aren’t rushing. I think that’s actually telling us something important about this market.
Buyers are becoming more discerning.
The good houses still sell.
But buyers aren’t overlooking bad pricing, poor presentation or obvious compromises the way they once did simply because they’re afraid someone else will buy the property first.
Sellers have to earn the sale again. And I think that’s healthy.
It also makes strategy far more important on both sides of the transaction.
Detached Houses:
$2,235,041 Average Selling Price | 147 Sales | +1% YOY | 33 Days on Market
Detached was probably the most stable segment in August.
- Prices were up 1%.
- Sales were up 1%.
- And unlike the other segments, new listings actually increased by roughly 6%.
I suspect some sellers made a smart decision here.
Rather than waiting until everyone else launched after Labour Day, they put their homes onto the market early and got in front of the buyers who were already looking.
That’s something I talk about with sellers all the time.
Sometimes the best listing strategy isn’t following the market. It’s getting ahead of it.
And when detached homes are taking approximately 33 days to sell, timing becomes even more important.
You can’t necessarily plan a sale around four days on MLS and an offer night anymore.
You have to plan the entire move.
Seven Rate Decisions Without A Change Matters
Then there’s the financing environment.
The Bank of Canada held its policy rate at 2.25% again this month, making this the seventh consecutive rate decision without a change.
Stability doesn’t generate particularly exciting headlines.
But it gives buyers something incredibly useful: Predictability.
Prices are relatively stable. Inventory still creates negotiating opportunities. Properties are staying on the market long enough to properly investigate them. And variable rates haven’t been moving every six weeks.
For buyers who spent the last few years waiting for conditions to become clearer, I think this deserves some attention.
If you’ve been waiting for the market to give you a signal that it’s time to buy, perhaps this is it.
Not because I think you need to rush.
Because you don’t have to.
If I Were Buying This Fall
I’d be actively looking. But I wouldn’t be buying indiscriminately. I’d be looking for properties that have been sitting.
I’d be looking for sellers whose expectations may have changed.
I’d be looking for good properties that have been overlooked.
And I’d be looking for situations where the lack of competition gives us an opportunity to negotiate something we simply couldn’t have negotiated a few years ago.
Price is part of that.
So are conditions, closing dates and the ability to properly investigate a property before committing to it.
This is exactly the kind of market where I enjoy representing buyers.
There’s time to understand the property, understand the seller’s position and figure out where the leverage actually is.
If I Were Selling This Fall
I’d be getting much more strategic.
The days of putting a property onto MLS and letting the market do the work are gone.
With buyers taking their time, pricing, presentation, timing and competition matter enormously.
Before one of my listings ever reaches MLS, I want to understand exactly what we’re competing against.
Where should we be positioned? What are buyers going to compare us with? What objections do we need to eliminate? And what is going to make someone choose this property instead of the alternatives?
In a more rational market, those decisions matter more, not less.
October May Tell Us More Than September
There’s one final thing I’m watching.
I wouldn’t be surprised if the September numbers for houses eventually look softer than people expect. Labour Day fell late this year, effectively giving summer another week.
That matters when we’re comparing September activity year-over-year.
October is the month I’m particularly interested in.
By then, the fall market will have had time to establish itself.
More buyers should have returned to their searches.
And the pressure to make a move before the holidays starts becoming much more real.
For condos, I expect the more gradual story to continue for now: relatively stable pricing, inventory slowly being absorbed and buyers remaining selective.
My Take
I don’t look at August and see a market that’s booming. I don’t see one that’s falling apart either. I see something Toronto hasn’t had much of over the past several years: A relatively normal real estate market.
Prices are stable. Buyers have time. Sellers have to compete. Financing conditions are predictable. And there are opportunities to negotiate.
That’s not a market I’m afraid of.
It’s a market I want to work in.
Because when the market isn’t doing all the work for you, strategy matters again.
And whether you’re buying or selling this fall, that’s exactly where I’d start.
Recommended Reading
Why Toronto’s Fall Real Estate Market Looks Different This Year
Why Some Toronto Condos Still Sell Instantly While Others Sit for Months
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