If it bleeds, it leads! An old journalism “ism” but so, so true. After all, they DO have to capture your attention at whatever cost, in terms of the proper interpretation of the facts!
So here’s the headline from the Huffington Post that caught MY attention:
Canadians’ Faith In Real Estate Fizzles As Toronto Sales Plunge
Really? all Canadians have lost faith in housing because Toronto sales decreased by 20% compared to last May? which was the highest sales month in the Toronto Real Estate board’s history? Really?
According to this Huff Post article:
“Canadians’ confidence in the housing market hit an all-time high less than a month ago — but a month, it turns out, is a long time in real estate.
That confidence is now falling as evidence mounts of a slowdown in the Toronto area, Canada’s largest housing market.
The Bloomberg Nanos consumer confidence barometer found the share of Canadians expecting house prices to rise in the next six months has fallen to 45.5 per cent, from a record high of 50.1 per cent just three weeks earlier. That was the highest level since Nanos Research started the survey in 2008.”
I’ll post the link to this article at the end of this blog but first I want to state the “alternative” facts…which, in this case, are TRUTH.
*Sales are down because we have only 1.1 months worth of inventory AND we are comparing sales to last May which was the highest month of sales on record. You just can’t sell from an empty cart. Supply was only up by 2% in the city of Toronto compared to last year…most of the sales took place in 905.
*prices surged in March by 33% compared to the year before but REMEMBER how we calculate average sale prices. Total $$sales divided by the NUMBER of transactions. IF foreign buyers were paying attention to warnings about a 15% penalty then they would be jumping in to purchase before the tax. This would put a higher number of luxury homes than normal in the transaction mix. If sellers thought now was the time to cash out…that too would have added high end prices to the pot.
*Even though there is some psychological hesitation on the part of buyers currently….the average days on market in the GTA is ELEVEN DAYS. That is STILL warp speed quick! It was 10 days in March!
*There is no SUBSTANTIVE change to the market in the city of Toronto. That said, we are counselling sellers to be REALISTIC about expectations when pricing their homes. LOTTERY PRICING is not an advisable strategy, and buyer fatigue has set in, for now, and they ARE willing to wait/punish sellers for not pricing at/near fair market value.
*The ONLY way to truly impact the Toronto market and its pricing/sales is to affect supply and demand imbalance by raising interest rates, and this is not on the foreseeable horizon.
READ THE HUFF POST ARTICLE HERE: http://bit.ly/2rAYPgL
If you (or someone you know), are looking for a Realtor who cares MORE about focusing on you, your concerns, goals and the successful purchase or sale of YOUR unique home, than they care about their volume of transactions and awards, please let me know the best way for me to connect. I would love to offer my highly personal service. Contrary to that old expression, not only IS this business, but it IS personal! And, please, I encourage you to ask me any questions you may have about this post. I value your input and appreciate the time you took to read it.