TORONTO (Reuters) – Home prices in the Greater Toronto Area (GTA) fell in November as rapidly rising interest rates weighed on the city’s once-red-hot housing market, data from the Toronto Regional Real Estate Board (TRREB) showed on Tuesday.
The average price of a GTA home fell to C$1.08 million ($794,527) in November, down 1% from October and down 7.2% from a year ago. Prices were about 19% below February’s peak.
Sales nearly halved from a year ago, while listings were down 11.6%.
“Increased borrowing costs represent a short-term shock to the housing market,” TRREB President Kevin Crigger said in a statement.
The Bank of Canada has raised its benchmark interest rate by 350 basis points since March to 3.75%, its highest level since 2008.
Money markets expect at least another quarter-percentage-point of tightening when the bank meets to set policy on Wednesday.
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($1 = 1.3593 Canadian dollars)
(Reporting by Fergal Smith in Toronto; Editing by Matthew Lewis)