March’s extremely low new home sales in the GTA make clear the case for urgent action from all levels of government

/EIN News/ -- Toronto, April 24, 2025 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Greater Toronto Area, April 24, 2025 – Greater Toronto Area (GTA) new home sales remained extremely low in March, showing little change from earlier months and marking a sixth consecutive month of record all-time lows, the Building Industry and Land Development Association (BILD) announced today. With year-over-year housing starts in the GTA down over 50 per cent, governments must urgently and rapidly take action.

There were 385 new home sales in March which was down 68 per cent from March 2024 and 87 per cent below the 10-year average, according to Altus Group*, BILD’s official source for new home market intelligence. Historically, new home sales for a typical March in the GTA would be 3,311 units based on the previous 10-year average.

“March 2025 new home sales across the GTA reached another low for the month,” said Edward Jegg, Research Manager at Altus Group. “Housing prices have stabilized, which is a reflection of the current cost to build and they are likely reaching their low point. This, combined with economic uncertainty, driven largely by tariff concerns, is keeping buyers on the sidelines.”

Condominium apartments, including units in low, medium and high-rise buildings, accounted for 160 units sold in the GTA in March, down 75 per cent from March 2024 and 92 per cent below the 10-year average.

There were 225 single-family home sales in the GTA in March, down 61 per cent from March 2024 and 75 per cent below the 10-year average. Single-family homes include detached, linked and semi-detached houses and townhouses (excluding stacked townhouses).

Total new home remaining inventory in the GTA decreased slightly compared to the previous month, to 21,707 units. This includes 16,803 condominium apartment units and 4,904 single-family dwellings. This represents a combined inventory level of 14 months, based on average sales for the last 12 months.

“New home sales in the GTA have plummeted to catastrophic lows, and without urgent government action, we risk long-term damage not just to housing supply, but to the broader economy. If this were the auto sector, governments would be lining up with support,” said Justin Sherwood, Senior Vice President of Communications, Research, and Stakeholder Relations at BILD. “Let’s not forget: the housing and development industry in the GTA directly employs 285,000 people, results in $16.9 billion in wages, and creates $60.8 billion in economic activity. This is not a fringe issue – it's a cornerstone of our economy. And with the GTA recently recognized as the fastest-growing metropolitan region in North America, it’s critical that policy aligns to get home sales and construction moving again. A clear opportunity is to address the 25 per cent of fees, taxes and charges (such as development charges and HST) that governments levy on a new home in the GTA, which add hundreds of thousands of dollars to prices and slow industry activity. Now is the time for governments of all levels to implement solutions so that the sector can deliver the jobs and housing that the GTA needs.”

Benchmark prices decreased in March for both single-family homes and condominium apartments in the GTA compared to the previous year. The benchmark price for new condominium apartments was $1,020,864, which was down 3.2 per cent over the last 12 months. The benchmark price for new single-family homes was $1,532,279, which was down 3.9 per cent over the last 12 months.

Sales numbers for Simcoe County were not available at the time of publishing. Please check bildgta.ca/march-2025-new-home-sales for the latest numbers as they become available.

With more than 1,000 member companies, BILD is the voice of the home building, residential and non-residential land development and professional renovation industries in the Greater Toronto Area. The building and renovation industry provides 256,000 jobs in the region and $39.3 billion in investment value. BILD is affiliated with the Ontario and Canadian Home Builders’ Associations.

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For additional information or to schedule an interview, contact Janis McCulloch at jmcculloch@bildgta.ca (416-617-7994)

*Altus Group should be credited as BILD’s official source of new home market intelligence.

Attachment

• Altus Data Solutions media backgrounder March 2025 GTA - FINAL

Janis McCulloch
                    Building Industry and Land Development Association (BILD)
                    416-617-7994
                    jmcculloch@bildgta.ca