In August 2016, the Toronto Real Estate Board (TREB) reported a record 9,813 GTA home sales through the MLS System, which is 23.5 per cent above the number of transactions reported one year before.

The TREB notes that there were two additional working days in August 2016 compared to 2015, and that most sales are reported on working days. When that discrepancy in working days is accounted for, the growth percentage decreases to a growth of about 13 per cent.

“The conditions underlying strong demand for ownership housing remained in place, including a relatively strong regional economy, growth in average earnings and low borrowing costs. Unfortunately, we did not see any relief on the listings front, with the number of new listings down compared to last year,” said Larry Cerqua, TREB president, in a press release. “This situation continued to underpin very strong home price growth, irrespective of home type or area.”

The MLS Home Price Index (HPI) Composite Benchmark for August 2016 was up by 17.2 per cent year-over-year. Similarly, the average selling price for all home types combined grew 17.7 per cent annually to $710,410. Both the MLS HPI benchmarks and average prices for low-rise home types were up by double digit percentages.

“Population in the GTA continues to grow. The resulting growth in households coupled with favourable economic conditions and low borrowing costs means that we remain on track for another record year for home sales,” added Jason Mercer, TREB’s director of market analysis.