Here’s how much house prices are up in Mississauga
Published October 10, 2019 at 8:13 pm
The election is just around the corner and most parties are promising to address the country’s growing housing crisis, with both the Liberals and Conservatives focusing on getting first-time buyers into the market.
But while it’s no secret that younger people are struggling to afford homes, a newly released Royal LePage report says that residents should be wary of promises to essentially stimulate housing demand when prices are being driven by a persistent lack of supply.
In other words, the report implies something that real estate experts have known for some time–plans to get more people into an already tight market aren’t what people need right now.
People need more homes to choose from.
According to the Royal LePage House Price Survey, the aggregate price of a home in Canada has continued to post steady year-over-year gains during the third quarter of 2019.
The surge follows the downturn that accompanied the mortgage stress test that stipulated that borrowers had to qualify at rates higher than what they’d ultimately be paying.
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“It is encouraging to see our political leaders devote thought and time to housing issues during the federal election,” said Phil Soper, president and CEO, Royal LePage. “With the fastest-growing population among advanced economies worldwide, providing adequate shelter for Canada’s rapid pace of household formation presents an economic opportunity and a social challenge.”
“Well-intentioned election promises aimed at making housing more accessible and affordable to first-time buyers will fall flat if they trigger a surge in demand without a corresponding increase in the supply of homes. For example, lowering monthly mortgage payments by stretching repayment over a longer time period looks great on the surface, yet a surge in new buyers could cause prices to escalate, erasing the enhanced purchasing power.”
The Royal LePage national house price composite showed that the median price of a home in Canada increased 1.4 per cent year-over-year to $630,335 in the third quarter of 2019.
In Mississauga, two-storey home prices climbed from $842,361 to $882,435 from 2018 to 2019, marking a year-over-year increase of 4.8 per cent.
Bungalow prices climbed from $826,925 to $850,487, an increase of 2.8 per cent.
Condo prices climbed from $415,360 to $455,243, a jump of 9.6 per cent.
Overall, house prices are up from $739,985 to $778,590, a 5.2 per cent increase.
Across Canada, condominiums remained the fastest appreciating housing type, with the median price rising 3.4 per cent year-over-year to $457,911.
Royal LePage says a strong economy bodes well for the market going forward.
“Low interest rates and an outstanding employment picture continue to buoy consumer confidence and support our recovering real estate market,” said Soper. “The collateral damage from the trade war between the U.S. and China has been manageable to date. Barring a full-blown American recession, our outlook for Canada’s housing sector is for continued market expansion.”
Royal LePage forecasts that the aggregate price of a home in Canada will rise 1.5 per cent year-over-year to $632,226, which is a 0.3 per cent increase compared to the third quarter of 2019.
As far as Toronto and the GTA go, the survey notes that condos–once affordable to most families and single professionals in Toronto–have surpassed the $600,000 mark, rising to $618,391.
Since there’s no longer a huge price disparity between high and low-rise homes, demand for low-rise homes is creeping back up.
The survey says the median price of a two-storey home in the city centre rose 5.5 per cent, signalling that buyer demand has largely absorbed the mortgage stress test hurdle to homeownership.
Moving into the end of 2019, Royal LePage forecasts the aggregate price of a home in the GTA to be relatively flat quarter-over-quarter at $859,301, which is a 3.1 per cent increase over the fourth quarter of 2018.
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