After Toronto real estate prices hit new highs in February, many agents predict that the market may have already plateaued. Odeen Eccleston of WE Realty explained that the rush to purchase a home before the COVID-19 restrictions were lifted may have caused buyers to become exhausted and that this could lead to a cooling off of the market.

One semi-detached home in North Riverdale on roughly 2,000 square feet of land was sold on February 28 for $3.1 million. The property's sale price was more than double the average price of a semi-detached home in the 416 area. 

The average price of a home in the Greater Toronto Area was almost $1.4 million in February, a 27.7% jump from last year. “Having the interest rate looming could have also driven more desperation in buyers,” says Meray Mansour, team leader at Meta Realty Group, as a possibility for the spike in February home prices.

Both Eccleston and Mansour agree that buyer fatigue may finally be setting in. “I’m seeing more and more listings not sell on the offer presentation date,” says Eccleston. “People are getting a grip, and they’re saying, ‘Okay, these numbers are ridiculous.’”

The two realtors also believe that with the March Break coming and the loosening of COVID-19 restrictions, more people will start avoiding Toronto real estate and spend more time out and about instead of at home. “Last summer, when the weather got warmer and the restrictions lifted, we saw prices level out because people were traveling for the first time in a while, people were enjoying their lives. Semis might very well be worth $3 million on average in the next several years,” Eccleston says. “But for now, I really do think that we’ve reached a plateau.”