[URBAN NOTE] "Shrinking inventory making Toronto home buyers even more aggressive"
The Globe and Mail's Carolyn Ireland looks at the effects that increased competition between Toronto real estate buyers over a shrinking pool of available real estate is having on the psychology of agents and buyers alike.
It seems so long ago that $200,000 above the asking price was a shocking amount to pay for a comfortable house in Toronto. In reality, it was early 2016.
As the year crept on, the amounts above asking became more jaw-dropping. By about the end of May, deals for $500,000 above a $1.4-million list price became commonplace. The outliers stretched toward a $1-million premium as the spring market drew to a close.
And still, the dynamic hasn’t changed: The number of properties for sale shrinks, which in turn makes buyers more ravenous.
Real estate agent Matthew Regan saw the market encapsulated in one deal recently: He listed a house, built in the 1970s, in the coveted Lorne Park area of Mississauga with an asking price of $1.489-million. The house drew 11 offers and sold for $1.92-million.
He had two bully offers within six hours of the house hitting the market, four offers after 24 hours and 11 by the deadline they set for the third day.
It seems so long ago that $200,000 above the asking price was a shocking amount to pay for a comfortable house in Toronto. In reality, it was early 2016.
As the year crept on, the amounts above asking became more jaw-dropping. By about the end of May, deals for $500,000 above a $1.4-million list price became commonplace. The outliers stretched toward a $1-million premium as the spring market drew to a close.
And still, the dynamic hasn’t changed: The number of properties for sale shrinks, which in turn makes buyers more ravenous.
Real estate agent Matthew Regan saw the market encapsulated in one deal recently: He listed a house, built in the 1970s, in the coveted Lorne Park area of Mississauga with an asking price of $1.489-million. The house drew 11 offers and sold for $1.92-million.
He had two bully offers within six hours of the house hitting the market, four offers after 24 hours and 11 by the deadline they set for the third day.