which was released last week, shows that home sales in Toronto were down 8.7 per cent in July compared to the previous month even as listings inched up by 7.8 per cent.
“The spring tightening in demand-supply conditions is unwinding rapidly in BC and Ontario. Softer sales and increasing new listings returned most markets in these provinces to balance, with Toronto the closest it’s been to a buyer’s market since January,” the report states. “We expect higher interest rates to keep curbing buyers’ enthusiasm for months to come, while possibly forcing the hand of some current owners to sell.
In fact, the bank says that a 24 per cent increase in listings that has occurred nationwide since April has now fully reversed the declines seen earlier this year.