An 1880s worker’s cottage in Toronto’s Leslieville neighbourhood was listed for less than the owner purchased it for two years ago.Supplied
A slight stirring in the Toronto area real estate market in June has turned to a spurt of sales in July as buyers respond to freshly cut asking prices.
Gradually in 2025, sellers are adjusting to the state of the current market, says Scott Hanton, broker with Hanton Real Estate.
“People are becoming a bit more level-headed.”
Rishi Sondhi, economist with Toronto-Dominion Bank, recently lifted his sales growth forecast for the second half of the year across Canada.
Mr. Sondhi expects some of the buyers who hovered around the sidelines during the weaker-than-expected first half of the year will return in the remaining months of 2025.
The next move: Toronto sees new wave of listings in July and a pricing pull-back
The economist cautions, however, that uncertainty remains high and job markets are deteriorating.
Even if sales improve, they are likely to remain subdued – particularly in British Columbia and Ontario, Mr. Sondhi says in a note to clients.
Mr. Sondhi adds that the numbers suggest too little demand is chasing too much supply in B.C. and Ontario, giving buyers power in negotiations.
Mr. Hanton says the largest pool of house hunters in the GTA has a budget in the $900,000 to $1.3-million range. They are also the most cautious, he says.
“The practical part of the buyer’s brain is in charge right now.”
He has heard first-hand from aspiring homeowners who worry about the economy and their own jobs.
And, as lenders have tightened their standards, most consumers don’t have the same access to easy money they had in the past.
“Every $10,000 makes a huge difference to buyers today,” he says.
In the upper echelons, many buyers have deep pockets, but they are wary of overpaying.
“In Toronto, a lot of people have a lot of money,” he says. “They still want a deal.”
As buyers wield their strength in negotiations, a significant challenge for all real estate agents now is managing the expectations of sellers, Mr. Hanton says.
Homeowners who bought several years ago are selling for more than they paid, but some feel chagrined nevertheless. They are aware of the rich price they might have fetched if they had posted a “for sale” sign at the top of the market in 2022, Mr. Hanton says.
Mr. Hanton points to the example of an Oshawa, Ont., bungalow he sold for $867,500 in late June.
The sale price was $300,000 higher than the homeowners paid for the two-plus-two bedroom home in 2019.
But that math was of little comfort to the disappointed couple, who had watched similar houses sell for up to $1.2-million three or four years ago.
Mr. Hanton says it’s sometimes a struggle for sellers to grasp they have not “lost” the difference in value. In fact, they never had it.
“When a number sticks in a seller’s head, it’s tough to get it out,” he says.
The seller of the Leslieville property is realistic about current prices.Supplied
In mid-July, Mr. Hanton listed an 1880s worker’s cottage at 79 Knox Ave. in Toronto’s Leslieville neighbourhood with an asking price of $899,000. The homeowner paid $950,000 for the two-bedroom home on a corner lot two years ago.
In this case, the seller is well-versed on the market and realistic about current prices, he says.
From Mr. Hanton’s experience, many people in the GTA have forgotten that real estate is an asset class subject to swings in value.
“You sell it for whatever it’s worth at the time,” he points out.
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Mr. Hanton says the belief that prices would only continue to escalate took hold during the decade between 2012 and 2022.
That sentiment encouraged move-up buyers, spurred on investors and instilled “fear of missing out” in those trying to get into the market.
“In 2015 they were just happy to get a house with a door,” says Mr. Hanton. “The buyers would wildly overpay.”
During those years, it was all about securing a property for future value, he points out.
The average price in the GTA fell 5.4 per cent in June from the same month last year while sales dipped 2.4 per cent in the same period.Supplied
But now buyers are more practical, weighing whether they might lose their job and if they can carry the property if they do.
“They’re doing a lot more research than I’ve ever seen them do before,” says Mr. Hanton.
Some people who bet on an unstoppable real estate market are forced to sell in the current doldrums because of a change in circumstances, such as a divorce or the death of a spouse.
“People are bitter – especially if their retirement depended on it,” he says.
Luke Dalinda, real estate agent with Royal LePage Real Estate Services, sees the same dynamics in Brampton, Ont., where swollen supply stood at 2,731 listings for houses and condos at mid-June.
His number crunching shows the median price in the area dropped about 21 per cent between January, 2022 and May, 2025, when it reached $1,035,000.
Mr. Dalinda recently sold a four-bedroom detached house with a backyard swimming pool for $1,365,000.
Comparable houses were selling for $1.9-million between 2021 and 2023, the agent says.
Mr. Dalinda listed the house at 6 Dawnridge Trail with an asking price of $1,599,000, but after four days, only two buyers had been to see the property, which sits next to a conservation area.
Mr. Dalinda cut the asking price to $1,399,000 and the house sold a few days later.
“In this market, sellers succeed by closely tracking market trends and adjusting strategies quickly – like traders capitalizing on a fluctuating market,” Mr. Dalinda says.
The average price in the GTA fell 5.4 per cent in June from the same month last year while sales dipped 2.4 per cent in the same period. Active listings stood about 31 per cent higher last month compared with June, 2024, according to the Toronto Regional Real Estate Board.
The more generous supply – combined with the slide in prices – appears to be drawing some buyers back to the market as sales rose 8.1 per cent on a seasonally adjusted basis in June compared with May.
TRREB president Elechia Barry-Sproule points out that buyers are negotiating discounts from asking prices while borrowing costs are lower than they were one year ago.
Mr. Hanton has also noticed movement in the moribund segment for high-end condo suites. Units which had been sitting are now selling. This is thanks to a drop in asking prices drop in the $2.8-million to $4-million range.
The buyers tend to be downsizing from large homes or making a parallel move.
Those who feel they are getting a deal on the condo are less reluctant to part with their larger family home in a soft market.
“Whether they sell it for $2.5-million or $3-million doesn’t really matter to them – they bought it for $300,000.”