Recent Sold Price for Properties in Scarborough E05

Based on the Toronto Real Estate Board (TREB) data, in the month of May 2020, there were 15 detached properties sold in the Scarborough E05 district (bounded by Steeles Ave to the north, Highway 401 to the south, Victoria Park Ave to the west and Kennedy Rd to the east). The number of detached property transaction recovered from the historical low of last month (due to COVID impact); however, the number is still relatively low and is about half of the number of properties sold in last year May.

The average sold price for Scarborough E05 detached home in May 2020 was $1,063,500, it is lower compare to last month average price (which is an anomaly, due to the limited number of transactions). The average price is in-line with March 2020 and is about 7% higher compare to last year May.

The average sold price for detached home and condo in the Scarborough E05 neighbourhood is illustrated in Figure 1. Table 1 provide additional details for detached properties sold in the E05 neighbourhood between May 1, 2020 and May 31, 2020.

There were 15 condo apartments sold in May 2020, the average sold price was $492,799, which was slightly lower compare to the all time high reached in March 2020, but still significantly higher (13%) than last year May ($436,876).  The number of sale (15 sale during May) was slightly lower compare to previous months and significantly below last year May(38 sales). Table 2 provide additional details for condo apartment sold in the Scarborough E05 neighbourhood between May 1, 2020 and May 31, 2020.

Figure 1: Average Sold Price for Detached Home and Condo in the Scarborough E05 Neighbourhood

Housing Inventories

The average days on market (DOM) for detached house listings in E05 sold in May 2020 was 25 days (Figure 2), it was slightly longer compared to the City of Toronto average days on market (22 days). However, the slight longer average DOM maybe due to the fact that some of the properties were sitting on the market during April as result of COVID. In my opinion, the market shifted from a strong seller market early this year (January to March) to a more balance market in April and is becoming more favourable to seller again due to the limited inventory.

The average days on market for Scarborough E05 condo sold in May 2020 was 26 days. It was also slightly longer compare to the City of Toronto’s average DOM of 22 days.

There were 26 new detached home listings that came onto the market in May 2020, and there were 23 active detached home listing in May. For condos, there were 15 new listings along with 28 active listings on market for May (Figure 3). The number of detached home and condo new listing for May were slightly higher compare to the record low we saw during April, however, the inventory is still significantly lower (about half) compare to the last year May.

In general, due to the limited number of new inventory coming onto the market, any available properties on the market are selling relatively quickly. Combined with the government reopening the economy and the nicer weather, we start to see more and more buyers coming out to the market and we have not seen any significant price drop due to COVID.

Figure 2: Average Days on Market for Detached Home and Condo in the Scarborough E05 Neighbourhood

Figure 3: Active Detached Home and Condo Listing and Number of Sold Listing in the Scarborough E05 Neighbourhood

Figure 4: Average Sale to Listing Price in the Scarborough E05 Neighbourhood

The Bigger Picture (Market Watch by Toronto Real Estate Board)

Toronto Regional Real Estate Board President Michael Collins announced that Greater Toronto Area REALTORS® reported 4,606 sales through TRREB’s MLS® System in May 2020. This result was down by 53.7 per cent compared to May 2019. While the number of sales was down substantially on a year-over-year basis due to the continued impact of COVID-19, the decline was less than the 67.1 per cent year-over-year decline reported for April 2020.

On a month-over-month basis, actual and seasonally adjusted May sales were up substantially compared to April. Actual May 2020 sales increased by 55.2 per cent compared to April 2020. After accounting for the regular seasonal increase that is experienced each year between April and May, seasonally adjusted sales were up by 53.2 per cent month-over-month.

The number of new listings entered into TRREB’s MLS® System in May was down by a similar annual rate to that of sales, dipping by 53.1 per cent to 9,104. On a month-over-month basis, actual new listings were up by 47.5 per cent.

The MLS® Home Price Index Composite Benchmark price was virtually unchanged in May 2020 compared to April 2020. On a year-over-year basis, the composite benchmark was up by 9.4 per cent. The average selling price for all home types combined was up by three per cent compared to May 2019 to $863,599. On a seasonally adjusted basis, the average selling price was up by 4.6 per cent month-over-month compared April 2020.

The difference in year-over-year growth between the MLS® HPI Composite Benchmark and the average selling price was related to the fact that home sales in the City of Toronto, particularly in the detached segment, were down by a greater annual rate than overall sales in the GTA. This resulted in a compositional impact on the overall average selling price.