2011 - Year of the Condo as GTA Market Shifts

GREATER TORONTO- The Building Industry and Land Development Association (BILD) has announced that more than 28,000 new condominium units were sold in the Greater Toronto Area in 2011, setting a new record for the market’s high-rise sector while demonstrating a shift in today’s new home purchasing decisions
According to RealNet Canada Inc., BILD’s official source of new home market intelligence, there were 45,926 new homes sold in the GTA last year, resulting in the second-best year ever for total sales. Not surprisingly, the high-rise sector played a considerable role in the market’s success, closing the year with a 62 per cent market share. This is in direct contrast to the year 2000 when high-rise sales held a mere 25 per cent share.
The price gap between new high-rise ($434,322) and low-rise ($545,372) homes currently sits at a record-high $111,000 spread.
There were over 130 new condo openings in the GTA in 2011, backed by a strong performance in the 905 markets, particularly York Region which saw high-rise sales more than double over last year.
The active supply for all new housing options are at near-record lows for new home purchasers, particularly in the low-rise sector where supply is down 73 per cent to 10 years ago. According to RealNet, the active supply available in the low-rise sector is at a record setting low of only four-months of housing inventory.