Metro Toronto home sales rose in February compared to the same time last year, but adjusted sales fell from a month earlier, the Toronto Area Board of Real Estate said Tuesday.

Sales in February rose 17.9 percent from a year earlier to 5,607. Population growth and the likely end of interest rate hikes have contributed to the growth, board president Jennifer Pierce said in a statement.

Currently, consumers anticipate rate cuts in the near future. A large number of homebuyers have faced rising mortgage rates over the past two years.

But on a seasonally adjusted basis, sales in February fell 12 percent from January. The number of homes listed for sale in February increased by 33.5 percent from last year to 11,396.

The average sales price increased 1.1 percent year-over-year to $1.11 million, up from January.

In 2024, an increasing number of buyers will re-enter the market. Also, in the second half of the year, the interest rate reduction will increase the housing demand.

news source