Ontario House Market in August 2022

As Ontario’s housing market struggles with increasing interest rates and declining demand, the average price of a house in Ontario continues to fall. The average Ontario house price in August 2022 was $829,739, a decrease of 0.6% year-over-year and 0.2% month-over-month. Even though the Greater Toronto Area (GTA) housing market had a modest price uptick this month, the first monthly price increase since February 2022, prices have declined. The average sold price of a house in the GTA is still up 1% year-over-year, so the average price change from one year to the next is still positive.

The peak of the Ontario housing market’s average selling price occurred in February 2022, when it hit $1,086,493 on average. Since then, housing prices in Ontario have decreased by 23.6% during the last six months. The average price of a house in Ontario has decreased by $256,754 from its high in February 2022. This occurs during a time of aggressive rate rises by the Bank of Canada and increasing mortgage rates in Canada. Prime rates in Canada more than doubled during this time period, rising from 2.70 percent to 5.45 percent.

The ongoing monthly decline in house prices in August 2022 follows a pattern seen in several of Ontario’s main property areas in recent months. In February 2022, the average selling prices in Toronto, Hamilton, Ottawa, and Mississauga all reached all-time highs, but they have since declined. However, Ontario’s average house prices are just 0.6% lower than they were a year ago. Compared to last year, the national average sales price of a property in Canada has decreased by 4% year-over-year.

As the housing market in Ontario cools, a prevalent trend throughout the province’s largest cities is the occurrence of considerably fewer transactions compared to the same month the previous year. The Toronto housing market is seeing a 35% annual decline in home sales, while the Ottawa housing market is experiencing a 28% annual decline in home sales. The property market in Hamilton has similarly weakened, with sales activity decreasing by 30% year-over-year. Mississauga house sales are down 40% year-over-year, while Brampton home sales are down 42% year-over-year.

Mississauga topped the list of Ontario’s main metropolitan housing markets for yearly price gain in August 2022, with a 12 percent increase in average sold prices. Ottawa followed with a 5% year-over-year price rise. The year-over-year rise in Hamilton house prices was 2%, while the year-over-year increase in GTA home prices was a mere 1%. Average sales prices on the property market in Brampton decreased by 4% year-over-year.

After experiencing remarkable price increases early this year, Ontario’s housing market is now seeing annual price increases comparable to those of other Canadian home markets, such as Alberta’s. For example, Edmonton house prices have decreased 2% year-over-year for August 2022, whilst Calgary’s housing market has decreased 1% year-over-year. The average sales price in the province of Alberta has increased by 2% year-over-year. British Columbia did not do much better, with annual housing price increases of 2%.

This month, Toronto, Mississauga, and Brampton all continued to have average sales prices of over $1 million, though only narrowly. The average house price in Toronto’s housing market for August 2022 was $1,031,979 in the City of Toronto and $1,079,500 in the GTA, representing a 1% and 0.4% monthly rise, respectively. The average selling price in Brampton was $1,018,639. Mississauga, with an average sales price of $1,077,093 in August 2022, rounded out the top three.

The Hamilton and Ottawa property sectors remain less costly alternatives to the Greater Toronto Area’s pricey housing market. The average sold price in Hamilton for August 2022 was $792,767, almost unchanged from the previous month, while the average sold price in Ottawa was $635,585, down 2% monthly. With an average price of $648,036 per property, real estate in London, Ontario is still very cheap.

Looking at year-over-year price rises in the rest of the province, several Ontario home areas continue to have intriguing yearly price fluctuations when examining average prices. The average property price in Thunder Bay increased by 3% year-over-year to $331,016. In the meantime, housing prices in Cornwall rose 23% annually to $432,693. House prices in Sarnia-Lambton are up 1% to $494,387; in York Region, prices are down 2% to $1,260,526, in Timmins, prices are up 23% to $270,212, and in Orangeville, prices are down 1% to $829,100.

Source: https://wowa.ca/ontario-housing-market