An open house sign in Toronto is seen in this file photo.JENNIFER ROBERTS/The Globe and Mail
After a slow start to the spring market, Toronto's home sales bounced back last month, setting a record for May.
The number of existing homes that changed hands in the Toronto area came in 11.4-per-cent higher than a year earlier, and set a new high for the month of May, the Toronto Real Estate Board said Wednesday.
That comes after April's sales nudged up just 1.8 per cent from a year earlier, with many industry professionals saying that bad weather was causing potential buyers to hibernate.
What has not grown substantially is the number of houses listed for sale in Canada's most populous city, according to Jason Mercer, the Toronto Real Estate Board's manager of market analysis (the real estate board represents realtors in the city). The relative lack of supply is fuelling price increases.
The average selling price last month was $585,204, up 8.3 per cent from $540,544 in May 2013.
The average selling price of a detached home in the downtown area covered by the 416 area code was $943,055. For detached homes in the suburbs it was $648,439. Condos in the 416 area, in contrast, sold on average for $401,809. Condos in the regions surrounding the city had an average selling price of $307,307.