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Toronto Real Estate Sales In 2012 – So Far
How’s the Toronto Real Estate Market faring in 2012 so far? Quite well! The Toronto Real Estate Board has just released its mid-month resale housing figures for January 2012, which covers Toronto home sales through the Toronto MLS Listings for the first two months of January in 2012.
Toronto Real Estate sales are doing well even early in 2012. Think warm thoughts!
“The market didn’t miss a beat after the holiday season, with robust sales growth continuing and sellers’ market conditions remaining in place,” said Toronto Real Estate Board President, Richard Silver, in a press release about the mid-month housing figures. “Strong competition between buyers continued to push the average selling price higher in the Greater Toronto Area relative to a year ago.”
GTA real estate agents reported 1,506 sales using the Toronto MLS Listings during this time period, which is an increase of six per cent. New listings also increased over the same time period, rising 3.7 per cent over last year.
To see the full press release, including average prices and sales by property type and area code, click here!
Renovating Your Toronto Real Estate
Renovate Your Toronto Real Estate To Sell
The majority of us Toronto homeowners plan to sell – someday, even if it’s not within the next few years. And some of us may desire a new home, but it’s just not feasible or within our financial goals to move this year.
Which renovations are worth your time - and money?
You can get that new-home feel by renovating, and making your renovations cost-effective by choosing the renovations that will give you the highest return on your investment in the terms of dollars when you sell.
The best way to get the highest return is to give yourself the kitchen or bathroom you’ve always wanted, according to the Appraisal Institute of Canada. When you perform a major kitchen or bathroom upgrade, you can expect to get the highest return: between 75% and 100% of your original investment.
But because kitchen and bathroom upgrades can be the more expensive of your renovation options, here are some other less expensive renovations that also offer a high return on your investment:
Interior and/or exterior painting – 50%-100%
Finishing your basement – 50%-80%
Adding a family room – 50%-75%
Installing hardwood flooring – 50%-75%
Some renovations/home additions surprisingly offer a very low return on investment and might be a bit of a waste of money if you’re renovating with selling in mind:
Installing a swimming pool – 10%-40%
Paving your driveway – 20%-50$
Installing skylights – 0%-25%
If you want to see real numbers, check out the Appraisal Institute of Canada’s RENOVA tool. You can plug in how much you expect to spend on a renovation and see your estimated return.
Getting Your Toronto Property Tax Assessment
This week, Toronto city council approved a 2.5 per cent residential tax increase for 2012. And to follow the example that all major local news outlets are using, this would add $60 to the current Toronto property tax bill for a home that is assessed at $447,090 – or what’s considered average.
Dust off the old calculator - should you get a Toronto property tax assessment?
Now, $60 isn’t a huge pile of money, but it’s still more than you were paying before. And, you might actually already be paying more than your fair share. Your property tax amount is based on your property tax assessment, which can be too high. An appeal of a property tax assessment that is too high can lead to literally thousands of dollars saved.
Homes along the residential streets of downtown Toronto are more likely to experience a tax assessment that is incorrect and too high. This is because in the sometimes monotonous suburbs, all the houses are of similar size and value because they were often constructed at the same time and by the same builder, as is the case with many neighbourhood developments. These homes are likely to all have the same property tax assessment and can be compared to one another easily.
In downtown Toronto, the homes are very unique and different across the board. You could have new construction, a single-detached older home and a small bungalow all on the same street.
If you’re concerned about your property tax assessment being too high, chat with nearby homeowners who live in homes similar to yours with respect to size, age and design. A discrepancy between tax assessments in similar homes could raise a red flag, but keep in mind that things you can’t see inside of the home – such as a brand new kitchen or master bathroom renovation – can also affect the home’s overall value and therefore the property tax assessment.
Note that for this tax year, the deadline to file a Request for Reconsideration (RfR) with the City of Toronto is April 2, 2012. This review is free of charge. Visit the City of Toronto website for more information.
Toronto Hits Number Two For Real Estate Sales in 2011
December MLS sales totalled 4,718 houses and condominiums in all the districts. This sales number was up 7.3% from one year ago and came in as the 3rd best December in TREB history.
36.2% of the market sales were condo townhouses and high-rise suites with 1,710 units changing hands during the month.
Sales for this year totalled 89,347 homes That made 2011 the 2nd best year for sales in the Toronto Real Estate Board’s history after 2007.
The December average sale price came in at $451,436 – up 4% from one year ago. The average for the year was $465,412, up 7.9% from 2010.
East of Yonge and south of Bloor in the C08 downtown TREB district, the condo sales price average was $412,843 while west of Yonge in C01 the average was $409,572.
Watch the video below for the full report.
December Numbers From Toronto Real Estate Board Make Second-Best Record Official
The latest numbers from the Toronto Real Estate Board show that 2011 was officially the best sales year on record for Toronto real estate and four per cent higher than in 2010 with a total 89,347 sales.
According to the Toronto Real Estate Board, 2011 might have taken the top place had their been more listings in the GTA.
“Low borrowing costs kept buyers confident in their ability to comfortably cover their mortgage payments along with other major housing costs,” said Richard Silver, the president of the Toronto Real Estate Board. “If buyers had not been constrained by a shortage of listings over the past 12 months, we would have been flirting with a new sales record in the Greater Toronto Area.”
For the full press release, visit here.
Are you thinking of buying a home this year? Search our featured Toronto Real Estate Listings here.
