The real estate market has been hot and rising. The reality of 2020 in terms of real estate is that the year is picking up where 2016 left off. Meaning? Sale prices are rising up, while new listings are down. High demand, low inventory. What’s more is that prices are not predicted to fall anytime soon. For those of you who can buy, here are a few reasons why buying a home in 2017 is a good idea.
Home Prices and Rates Are Increasing
As of right now, it is clear that prices are continuing to go up, and no one knows how long they’ll remain high. Toronto racked up a record annual home price increase. Making it the 12th straight monthly increase. Prices in the GTA are now up a flaming 22.6% since last year, which is the fastest increase since Toronto has seen in the late 1980’s. TREB has reported that the average selling price in the region was $770,745, which is $140,552 more since last year. Detached, semi-detached and townhomes saw the largest year-over-year price growth of 26$ to 28% compared to last January. So, if it is possible for you, now is a great time to buy a home, while home prices are not predicted to decrease anytime soon.
Inventory is Shrinking
The Toronto Real Estate Board anticipates that the demand for ownership housing will remain strong. However as time goes by many would-be buyers might have problems finding a home that now meets their expectations and needs, as inventory remains at a low. Real estate experts forecast that inventory will continue to shrink, at least for the predictable future. Which means that in most areas of the country, buyers have more homes to choose from today than they will next year. Every day you wait to start looking for a new home, you face harder competition for fewer homes.
Rent Prices Are Also Increasing
Toronto’s blistering housing market is leaking over into the region’s 
rental market, pushing up rental prices to new breaking records. Average rents for condos rose 11.7% in the final months of 2016, compared to the same period a year earlier, hitting nearly $1,990 a month for a typical 720 Square Foot condo. Renters have started to feel the effects of Toronto’s extremely heated housing market. So not only are houses affected, but rentals are as well, with prices increasing by the year. For the first time in many years, the market was tighter for condominium apartments than for single-detached homes.
Land Transfer Taxes
Even Toronto has been trying to intervene with the heated market, by increasing the land transfer tax which is another obstacle to home ownership. Toronto homeowners can expect to pay around $100 more on their property bill this year. The city’s budget committee endorsed the harmonization but also increased the tax rebate for first-time home buyers by $750 – to $4,475 from $3, 725. Currently, first-time buyers are allowed a rebate of the Land Transfer Tax that is payable on a purchase price of up to $400,000 which was the average price when the tax was implemented almost a decade ago. The average price in 2016 was over $700,000, which means that first time buyers have lost substantial ground on the rebate. City Hall’s take from this tax on the average priced home has increased by 200% since 2008, going from $3,725 to over $11,000.
