Toronto-Area Home Sales Fell 9% in September as Buyers Stayed on Sidelines

Why it matters

Greater Toronto Area home sales lost more ground in September as buyers waited for clearer signals on jobs, inflation and borrowing costs before committing, according to the Toronto Regional Real Estate Board (TRREB).

GTA REALTORS® reported 5,040 home sales through TRREB's MLS® System in September 2026 — down 9 per cent from 5,540 a year earlier. It was the third straight month of annual declines and the steepest drop since January. New listings fell 14.4 per cent to 16,500, while active listings slipped 9.3 per cent to 26,131.

Prices kept sliding. The average selling price was $1,006,409, down 5.1 per cent from $1,060,036 a year earlier, and the MLS® Home Price Index composite benchmark fell 4.7 per cent year over year to about $917,600. On a seasonally adjusted basis, sales fell 5.2 per cent from August to 5,174 — the second straight monthly decline and the steepest since February, Reuters reported.

Condos were the weakest category: 1,316 condominium apartments sold, down 7.8 per cent, with the average condo price falling 7.7 per cent to $605,257 — the largest average-price decline among the major housing categories.

"We know there is substantial pent-up demand in the GTA, with many households fully intending on purchasing a home in the months ahead," said TRREB Chief Information Officer Jason Mercer. "These would-be homebuyers want to take advantage of today's more affordable housing market, but they need to be confident that their employment situation will remain solid and inflation will not put pressure on borrowing costs over the long term."

TRREB President Daniel Steinfeld tied the outlook to the October 26 municipal elections, saying the next mayors and councillors' decisions on affordability, housing supply and the costs of buying a home will influence buyer demand and confidence across the GTA and Simcoe County.