April GTA home sales down 23% as uncertain buyers stick to sidelines

Home buyer confidence remained on ice in April, due to lingering global trade uncertainty and the prospect of a looming recession.

However, despite the ongoing – and evolving – unease posed by US import tariffs, overall home affordability improved in the Greater Toronto Area region, benefitting active buyers.

A total of 5,601 homes were sold over the course of the month, reports the Toronto Regional Real Estate Board (TRREB) marking a 23.3% annual decline, as “potential buyers continue to wait for lower borrowing costs and for certainty about the trajectory of the economy.”

However, transactions did improve over the short term, up 11.7% from March – a seasonally-typical uptick.

 “Following the recent federal election, many households across the GTA are closely monitoring the evolution of our trade relationship with the United States. If this relationship moves in a positive direction, we could see an uptick in transactions driven by improved consumer confidence and a market that is both more affordable and better supplied,” said TRREB President Elechia Barry-Sproule.

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Ample supply is starting to cool prices

Those on the house hunt also had plenty of choice, as the supply of available listings continues to ramp up; a total of 18,836 properties were newly listed in April, up 8.1% year over year, and 9.1% compared to March. That contributes to a total of 27,386 homes on the market, a hefty 54% increase from where inventory was sitting during the same month in 2024.

“Inventory levels remained elevated historically in April, pointing to substantial choice for households looking to purchase a home in the GTA,” said TRREB Chief Information Officer Jason Mercer. “Buyers took advantage of this choice when negotiating purchase prices, which resulted in a lower average price across market segments compared to last year. Lower prices coupled with lower borrowing costs translated into more affordable monthly mortgage payments.” 

While variable borrowing costs remained stagnant in April – the Bank of Canada opted to hold its benchmark rate at 2.75% in its most recent announcement – fixed mortgage rates decreased, as bond markets fell in response to overall tariff uncertainty.

The combination of slowing sales and increasing supply is now having a modest downward pull on Toronto’s usually-sticky home price; the average home sold for $1,107,463, down -4.1% year over year, while the MLS Home Price Index benchmark, which measures the price of the most typical home sold without the upper and lower extremes, dropped by 5.4% annually.

GTA condo sales continue deep drop

Source: Toronto Regional Real Estate Board

Sales and price declines were seen for every type of home across the GTA region in April. Detached houses, while the most-bought in terms of sales volume, saw the number of transactions drop by 21.7%, with the average house price down by 5.4% to $1,431,495.

That was followed by a decline in townhouse sales, down 22.9%, at an average price of $912,629 (down 3.9% year over year). Condo units continue to absorb the greatest correction, with sales plummeting by 30.4% year over year, and the average price of a unit falling by 6.8% to $678,048. Semi-detached houses, meanwhile, saw the smallest declines; sales fell by 7.2% annually, with the average price dipping 4.1% to $912.629.

Also read:

• Bank of Canada holds target rate at 2.75% in April 2025 announcement
• Canadian home sales fall to a 16-year low in March as tariff fears persist
• How could US tariffs impact Canadian mortgage rates?
• What a fourth liberal term means for your finances