{"id":596823,"date":"2026-04-11T10:34:15","date_gmt":"2026-04-11T10:34:15","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/596823\/"},"modified":"2026-04-11T10:34:15","modified_gmt":"2026-04-11T10:34:15","slug":"first-time-homebuyers-find-deals-in-toronto-spring-market","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/596823\/","title":{"rendered":"First-time homebuyers find \u2018deals\u2019 in Toronto spring market"},"content":{"rendered":"

Ashley Tortolano knew it was time to buy her first home.<\/p>\n

After observing Toronto\u2019s real estate market for years, she witnessed the unimaginable \u2014 prices rapidly falling.\u00a0<\/p>\n

More spacious condos suddenly became available in her price range; home ownership was finally in reach.<\/p>\n

\u201cMany condos sell for below asking price, interest rates have fallen, there\u2019s very little competition and I was able to save enough money to put down 20 per cent by living in a rent-controlled building and having a strict budget,\u201d said Tortolano, who began her search in December, just before the spring market.<\/p>\n

While it\u2019s still early days in the spring market, real estate experts interviewed by the Star all agree: the market is slow. Not only is it very muted compared the height of the market in 2021 and 2022, but it\u2019s quiet by pre-pandemic standards.<\/p>\n

But when the real estate market is down, it\u00a0presents opportunities for some, experts said.\u00a0<\/p>\n

Since the February 2022 peak, the average home price in the GTA has dropped 24 per cent. And interest rates\u00a0have remained relatively steady (although fixed-rate mortgages are rising<\/a> as oil prices soar).\u00a0<\/p>\n

Toronto\u2019s real estate generally remains unaffordable, but first-time homebuyers like Tortolano are emerging as the condo market continues to languish.<\/p>\n

Larger condo units around 650 square feet are cropping up in the $500,000 range or less, which is an attractive option for entry-level buyers.\u00a0<\/p>\n

<\/p>\n


\n \"More
\n <\/a><\/p>\n

It\u2019s not enough to pull Toronto\u2019s market out of its slump, but it\u2019s a meaningful change that gives those previously priced out of the market\u00a0a fighting chance.\u00a0<\/p>\n

\u201cToronto\u2019s real estate market is not off to a rolling start, but it\u2019s warming up slowly,\u201d said Amrit Walia, a Toronto-based real estate agent. \u201cThe biggest shift we\u2019re seeing is in the entry-level property, especially for condos.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u2018Now they can actually afford more\u2019\u00a0<\/p>\n

After looking for just one week, Tortolano\u00a0bought her first condo. The one-bedroom apartment,\u00a0located in the High Park-Swansea neighbourhood, had been on the market for more than a month with no competition\u00a0when she put in her offer.\u00a0<\/p>\n

\u201cI ended up falling in love with the first unit I saw and went for it,\u201d said Tortolano, who works in accounting project management.<\/p>\n

\u201cI did see many other units after that to make a more informed decision but I hired a realtor on a Friday, and the following Friday after that the sale agreement was already signed by myself and the seller.\u201d<\/p>\n

She closed on her property in February.\u00a0<\/p>\n

In March, sales saw a slight boost compared to the same time last year, with condo and detached home purchases up\u00a01.7 per cent and 5.2 per cent year over year, respectively.\u00a0<\/p>\n

Mortgage specialist Tuli Parubets said she\u2019s seen an uptick in first-time homebuyers over the last several months booking appointments to get their mortgage pre-approved, after allowing pre-approvals from the last couple of years to expire.\u00a0<\/p>\n

\u201cGoing into Christmas I saw more of an influx of first-time buyers coming through,\u201d she said.\u00a0<\/p>\n

\u201cIt\u2019s (the incentives) doing wonders,\u201d Parubets said. \u201cNow they can actually afford more.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n

<\/p>\n


\n \"Fixed
\n <\/a><\/p>\n

First-time buyers enter the freehold market\u00a0<\/p>\n

Olivia Warner was born and raised in Toronto and is beginning to house hunt with her husband for their first home. The couple, professionals in their 30s, are looking for a freehold property that they can hopefully live in long term.\u00a0<\/p>\n

\u201cIt feels like there\u2019s more of just a chance for us to even get in the door,\u201d said Warner.<\/p>\n

\u201cThere\u2019s not the same amount of stress as there was a few years ago.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n

She said\u00a0they still don\u2019t qualify for many listings, but it feels like \u201ca more balanced time to be looking.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n

And there are neighbourhoods where freehold properties are under $1 million.\u00a0<\/p>\n

\u201cRight now I\u2019m seeing young couples, first-time buyers who are getting into freehold market,\u201d said Dariya Zinchenko, a Toronto-based real estate agent who works with many first-time homebuyers.<\/p>\n

While the property might not be the ultimate dream home, young families can envision starting a family in the space, she added.\u00a0<\/p>\n

Mississauga, Vaughan, Etobicoke and Toronto\u2019s east end are areas where Zinchenko has seen freehold properties under $1 million, but the homes in Toronto at that price point likely need some renovations and upgrades.<\/p>\n

However, central and west end Toronto is still expensive.\u00a0<\/p>\n

In March, the top five neighbourhoods where homes went for over asking included Runnymede, Bloor West Village, Riverdale, Rouge Woods and Trinity Bellwoods, according to a recent report from Wahi Realty brokerage.\u00a0<\/p>\n

A home in Trinity Bellwoods listed\u00a0for $1.1 million sold for $1.5 million at the end of March\u00a0after receiving 10 offers, indicating the right property in a sought-after location still garners a lot of attention,\u00a0Parubets said.<\/p>\n

Bigger condos are trading\u00a0<\/p>\n

While slightly more condos are selling in Toronto this year compared to last, prices declined in C01 and C08 (both central downtown Toronto regions with neighbourhoods east and west of Yonge Street) by 7 per cent and 10 per cent respectively, over the past year.<\/p>\n

\u201cThere\u2019s a 60 per cent increase in sales under the price point of $500,000,\u201d Walia said, adding that the mortgage costs for potential buyers are starting to become bearable.\u00a0<\/p>\n

The average price of a GTA condo has dropped by more than 22 per cent since the 2022 peak.\u00a0<\/p>\n

\"Amrit<\/p>\n

Toronto realtor Amrit Walia stands in a condo for sale at 1 Bloor East in Toronto. Larger condos in the $500,000 range are attracting interest from first-time homebuyers.<\/p>\n

Steve Russell\/Toronto Star<\/p>\n

Shoebox condo units that were popular with investors still aren\u2019t selling but one-bedroom-plus-den apartments at around 650 square feet\u00a0sitting in the half-a-million-dollar range are a popular choice \u2014\u00a0a price point for the size that wasn\u2019t available\u00a0two years ago, he said. Two-bedroom condos are also sought-after but are more expensive in the $750,000 range, he added.\u00a0<\/p>\n

So far, Walia said investors are nowhere to be seen among condo buyers, and all of his clients are people intending to live in the home.<\/p>\n

Toronto real estate agent Sean Mayers said the majority of first-time homebuyers he\u2019s working with are looking into condos, where there are \u201cdeals to be had.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n

\u201cBuyers are getting condos for up to $60,000 less than they normally would,\u201d he said.\u00a0<\/p>\n

The market remains (mostly) stuck\u00a0<\/p>\n

But even as interest from first-time buyers builds, many prospective buyers are still on the sidelines and the market remains quiet.\u00a0<\/p>\n

\u201cThe economic uncertainty, joblessness, inflation, potential world wars, the stock market is down, there\u2019s just a general sense of dread,\u201d said Mayers, adding that buyers\u2019 main concern with a large purchase is being saddled with mortgage payments and expenses as the real estate market gets worse.\u00a0<\/p>\n

\u201cOil prices don\u2019t just impact the gas station,\u201d said Walia. \u201cIt also changes affordability in housing prices and has some influence.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n

A recent report from CPA Canada said more than half of homeowners (55 per cent) plan to stay in their current home for the foreseeable future, while just 10 per cent are looking to upsize. Meanwhile, 61 per cent of homeowners looking to move are sidelined, either waiting for prices to improve or facing financial constraints to sell.<\/p>\n

\u201cThe majority of sellers are hoping, wishing, dreaming that the spring market right now will change and a flood of homebuyers will come online and compete and raise the offer prices,\u201d said Mayers.<\/p>\n

\u201cThe reality is that\u2019s not the case. And so a number of home sellers, condo or house, still haven\u2019t quite come to terms with where market prices are today.\u201d<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"Ashley Tortolano knew it was time to buy her first home. After observing Toronto\u2019s real estate market for…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":596824,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[194291],"tags":[49,48,3302],"class_list":["post-596823","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-toronto","tag-ca","tag-canada","tag-toronto"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/596823","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=596823"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/596823\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/596824"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=596823"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=596823"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=596823"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}