Greater Toronto’s new construction market just posted its third-highest quarterly sales total on record, an indication that the market has recovered from the challenges of the COVID-19 pandemic.
In its Q2-2021 Condominium Market Survey released today, Urbanation reported that 9,001 new condominium apartment sales took place in the Greater Toronto Area between April 1st and June 30th. This marks the third-highest quarterly total on the books, the real estate consulting firm noted in its survey results.
Last quarter’s sales total was 5.5 times higher than the number of sales recorded during the same time period last year, then 1,637 units. Q2-2021’s sales were also just shy of the number of transactions that took place during Q2-2019, in which 9,075 unit sales were recorded.
“The second quarter showed that the GTA new condominium market not only fully recovered from
COVID-19 but also returned to near record high sales volumes,” said Shaun Hildebrand, President of Urbanation, in the market survey report.
Last quarter, 8,490 new condominium units were launched for pre-sales according to Urbanation, resulting in a record-high absorption rate of 81 percent. On average, new units entering the market during Q2-2021 were priced at $728,160, about $1,110 per square foot based on the average unit size of 656 square feet.
The GTA’s ‘905’ region ate up the majority of sales during the last quarter, accounting for 58 percent of new condominium sales, the report stated. Yet, new condo units that launched in the City of Toronto tended to cost more than those located in ‘905’ communities, priced at an average of $834,504 compared to $661,537.
Across the GTA, unsold inventory dropped by 10 percent annually to 11,716 units, which is an 11-quarter low and 23 percent below the 10-year average of 15,179 units. Units left unsold in the GTA at the end of Q2-2021 have seen their prices increase by nine percent from a year ago to a high of $1,196 per square foot.
“The 905 continued to be a driving force as developers and buyers have shifted to more affordable locations of the region,” said Hildebrand in the report. “With inventory approaching a three-year low, expect further upward pressure on new condo prices in the near-term.”
Although available unit supply remains tight, new construction activity ramped up in Q2-2021. The number of new condos under construction within the GTA increased by 11 percent year-over-year to a record-high of 86,346 units last quarter.
While there were an additional 22,857 units in the pre-construction stages of active projects, 3,271 units were completed last quarter, said Urbanation. A total of 10,938 units are expected to be completed during the second-half of 2021, bringing the total completions in 2021 to 18,157 units, down 19 percent from the record-high of 22,473 units that were finished last year.
