Housing Check is Canada News Media’s weekly look at one Canadian housing market. This week: Toronto and the Greater Toronto Area.
Home sales in the Greater Toronto Area fell nine per cent in September from a year earlier, as buyers held back amid uncertainty about the economy, inflation and borrowing costs, the Toronto Regional Real Estate Board said on Oct. 6.
The board reported 5,040 sales through its MLS system in September. The average selling price was $1,006,409, down 5.1 per cent from September 2025. The MLS Home Price Index composite benchmark, which tracks a typical home and strips out shifts in the mix of what sells, was down 4.7 per cent from a year ago.
New listings fell faster than sales. There were 16,500 new listings in September, down 14.4 per cent from a year earlier. Seasonally adjusted, sales, new listings, the average price and the benchmark all edged lower from August, the board said.
TRREB president Daniel Steinfeld said housing is a major voter issue and that the upcoming municipal election will shape housing policy across the GTA and Simcoe County for the next four years. He said decisions on affordability, supply and the cost of buying can affect buyer demand and confidence.
Jason Mercer, the board’s chief information officer, said there is substantial pent-up demand and that many households plan to buy in the coming months. He said buyers want more affordable prices but also need confidence in their job security and that inflation will stay low enough to keep borrowing costs from rising.
TRREB chief executive John DiMichele called on governments to make home ownership more attainable by reducing barriers such as Toronto’s municipal land transfer tax, and to oppose extending it across the GTA and Simcoe County. He also said trade uncertainty and tariffs are weighing on the Canadian economy.
The Bank of Canada held its policy interest rate at 2.25 per cent on Sept. 2. In its announcement, the central bank said inflation has hovered near three per cent, largely because of higher gasoline prices, while inflation excluding gasoline was 2.2 per cent. It said the risks to its inflation forecast have grown, and that new U.S. tariffs make the outlook for growth less certain.
The next rate decision is scheduled for Oct. 28, along with an updated Monetary Policy Report. Rate decisions move variable mortgage rates directly and influence fixed rates indirectly, so the announcement is the next date buyers and homeowners in the Toronto area will be watching.
Housing Check moves to a different city each week. Rent figures from Rentals.ca and Urbanation were not available for September at the time of publication.
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