News and Updates

The Toronto Regional Real Estate Board (TRREB) has led the way in advocating for many of the changes that realtors and their clients are now benefiting from, like personal real estate corporations, the ability to use the realtor trademark “REALTOR®” in advertising and tougher penalties for breaches of the code of ethics.

With the implementation of TRESA’s phase two regulations on December 1, 2023, TRREB is turning its attention to working with Minister McCarthy and his team on phase three of the regulatory process and key changes that, if passed, will benefit realtors and consumers.

For the first time in decades, Toronto real estate is in a buyer’s market. October marks another month of bad records for Toronto real estate. With sales down 5.8 per cent since the same month last year, the region has posted one of the lowest numbers of October home sales to date. This suppressed sales figure is a clear sign that the Toronto real estate market is in a state of recession.

Royal LePage Wolle Realty recently announced its merger of operations between its offices in Kitchener and Waterloo, and Royal LePage Grand Valley in Kitchener. Effective November 1, the combined brokerage will operate under the Royal LePage Wolle banner and the ownership of Mark Wolle. Goran Askraba will manage the Waterloo office.

Last month, eight of Ontario’s 10 largest cities (outside of the GTA) were experiencing underbids on homes, a report from Wahi shows. Barrie, Guelph and Hamilton were at the top of the list, with median sale prices bid down by 3 per cent compared to median list prices.

Canadian homebuyers are getting some relief, as the national average home price dropped for the third consecutive month in September, to $741,400. Some local markets are seeing the same trend, including the GTA, Greater Vancouver, Montreal and Edmonton. However, average prices in many in-demand markets are still around the $1 million mark.

Since March of last year, the Bank of Canada has raised interest rates an unprecedented nine times. Not only that, but the rates themselves have swung from historic lows to a 20-year high. Resulting monthly expenses have been just too steep for many mortgage holders. To get a read on Canadians’ sentiments overall, Royal LePage commissioned a survey. It found that “74% of mortgagees with lending agreements set to renew within the next 18 months report feeling concerned about higher interest rates”.