November 11, 2006. The real estate market in Toronto is still very active, but the price increases have slowed down, and, unless the property is priced aggressively, it takes longer for a listing to sell. The number of available listings increased, year-over-year, by 6%. 5% more new homes and condos were listed in October than during the same period last year. October sales decreased by 4% in comparison to October 2005.

If the property is not priced close to its market value, even in the hot market it becomes hard to sell, and, ultimately, sells for less. The expectations of some home owners have been, obviously, raised more than the market will bear. Following are some interesting real estate statistics for some of Toronto popular neighbourhoods.

The above graph shows the number of currently available freehold listings in comparison to the numbers that were available at half-point of last year's fall market, at the end of March and at the end of May 2006.

The above graph shows listings of freehold properties that have their price reduced, which were available in October 2005, March 2006, May 2006 and are available on November 11, in the same neighbourhoods as on the previous graph. You may notice that at this point in time the Kingsway and the Beaches have the highest number of reduced listing. It is interesting that, for the first time in quite a few years, there is a number of deals falling apart. In some of the cases the banks come short with the appraised value. In High Park north of Bloor four sales fell apart recently, in Roncesvalles/High Park six, three in the prime Beaches and one each in Swansea and the Kingsway.

The two graphs above show the percentage of properties listed and sold within the same month. The higher that percentage the quicker the market performance and more 'bidding wars'. Bloor West Village had the highest percentage of the listings sold within the same month in October.

We are still experiencing competition among buyers for good properties, and listings that show well and are priced reasonably draw multiple offers and sell well above asking. The above two graphs show the percentage of the asking price paid on average for listings in the same neighbourhoods.

You may also notice that Bloor West Village has the smallest number of reduced properties. This neighbourhood is always popular.

Mortgage rates are still very low, and allow many first time buyers to enter the market. The prices are stabilizing, and it is easier to locate a suitable home.