Are Toronto area house prices stabilizing?

Posted: February 19, 2009, 4:31 PM
By Justin Robertson, National Post

Toronto’s real estate market is showing faint signs of stabilizing.

There were 2,044 homes sold in the first half of February, compared to 2,775 sales during the same period in 2008, the Toronto Real Estate Board said today.

The average selling price was $364,748, compared to $385,735 in the same period last year (and $343,632 in January, 2009). At the peak, in April, 2008, the average GTA house price was $398,687.

“If this trend continues into the spring, it could point towards average home prices leveling off between $360,000 and $370,000,” Jason Mercer, the board’s senior manager of market analysis.

“There is not too many people out there making big ticket purchases at the moment - and that includes homes,” said Mr. Mercer. ‘‘But on the supply side of the market there still quite a lot of listings out there, meaning there are more properties listed on the housing market for people interested in buying.”