Nearly 8 out of 10 homes in Toronto are selling below asking — and that’s more normal than you think

Skip to Content News Archives Economy Energy Oil & Gas Renewables Electric Vehicles Mining Commodities Agriculture Real Estate Mortgages Mortgage Rates Finance Banking Insurance Fintech Cryptocurrency Work Wealth Smart Money Wealth Management Investor Personal Finance Family Finance Retirement Taxes High Net Worth FP Comment Executive Women Puzzmo Newsletters Financial Times Business Essentials More Innovation Information Technology FP500 Podcasts Small Business Lives Told Tails Told Shopping Financial Post Store Obituaries Place a Notice Advertising Advertising With Us Advertising Solutions Postmedia Ad Manager Sponsorship Requests Classifieds Place a Classifieds ad Working Profile Settings My Subscriptions My Offers Newsletters Customer Service FAQ News Economy Energy Mining Real Estate Finance Work Wealth Investor FP Comment Executive Women Puzzmo Newsletters Financial Times Business Essentials This advertisement has not loaded yet, but your article continues below.HomeReal EstateNearly 8 out of 10 homes in Toronto are selling below asking — and that’s more normal than you think78.1% of homes sold below their final asking price in July, while just 18.7% sold above itLast updated 22 minutes ago Homes stand in this aerial photograph taken above Toronto on Oct. 2, 2017. Photo by James MacDonald/BloombergAsking prices are once again just that as Toronto area homebuyers take advantage of greater choice to negotiate with sellers or walk away from deals altogether.THIS CONTENT IS RESERVED FOR SUBSCRIBERS ONLYSubscribe now to read the latest news in your city and across Canada.Exclusive articles from Barbara Shecter, Joe O'Connor, Gabriel Friedman, and others.Daily content from Financial Times, the world's leading global business publication.Unlimited online access to read articles from Financial Post, National Post and 15 news sites across Canada with one account.National Post ePaper, an electronic replica of the print edition to view on any device, share and comment on.Daily puzzles, including the New York Times Crossword.SUBSCRIBE TO UNLOCK MORE ARTICLESSubscribe now to read the latest news in your city and across Canada.Exclusive articles from Barbara Shecter, Joe O'Connor, Gabriel Friedman and others.Daily content from Financial Times, the world's leading global business publication.Unlimited online access to read articles from Financial Post, National Post and 15 news sites across Canada with one account.National Post ePaper, an electronic replica of the print edition to view on any device, share and comment on.Daily puzzles, including the New York Times Crossword.REGISTER / SIGN IN TO UNLOCK MORE ARTICLESCreate an account or sign in to continue with your reading experience.Access articles from across Canada with one account.Share your thoughts and join the conversation in the comments.Enjoy additional articles per month.Get email updates from your favourite authors.THIS ARTICLE IS FREE TO READ REGISTER TO UNLOCK.Create an account or sign in to continue with your reading experience.Access articles from across Canada with one accountShare your thoughts and join the conversation in the commentsEnjoy additional articles per monthGet email updates from your favourite authorsSign In or Create an Account“The asking price has really returned to being part of a negotiation rather than an open bid in an auction,” said Cailey Heaps, president and chief executive of the Heaps Estrin Real Estate Team, who described the current market as “more rational” rather than “weak.”According to data from real estate listing website HouseSigma, 78.1 per cent of homes sold below their final asking price in July, while just 18.7 per cent sold above it. The median sale came in at 2.8 per cent, or $23,000 below list price. Among only those properties that sold below asking, the median discount was $30,000 or 3.7 per cent.SUBSCRIBER EXCLUSIVE: FP West: Energy Insider brings you behind the oilpatch’s closed doors with exclusive insights from insiders every Wednesday morning.By signing up you consent to receive the above newsletter from Postmedia Network Inc.A welcome email is on its way. If you don't see it, please check your junk folder.The next issue of FP West: Energy Insider will soon be in your inbox.We encountered an issue signing you up. Please try againIt’s a far cry from February 2022, when 86.1 per cent of Toronto area homes sold above their asking price, but according to HouseSigma July’s data is actually more in line with historical trends.In July 2011, for example, a nearly identical 78.1 per cent of Toronto area homes sold below asking and in July 2009 the tally was 78.7 per cent.HouseSigma data going back to 2003 shows July 2026 ranked 11th out of 24 years for the share of homes selling below asking — essentially the middle of the pack. During every July from 2003 through 2013, between 78 per cent and 89 per cent of homes sold below asking.The real outliers came with the housing boom, especially during the early days of the pandemic.Jason Mercer, chief officer at the Toronto Regional Real Estate Board (TRREB), said the balance between buyers and sellers was dramatically different during that period.“Back in 2021 and 2022, we were seeing record levels or near-record level demand and a crimped inventory of listings, which led to a lot of competition between buyers,” Mercer said. “Now the opposite is true.”TRREB’s own data points in the same direction. The average selling-price-to-listing-price ratio was 97.3 per cent in July 2026 compared to 103 per cent in July 2021.Condos were the most likely major housing type to sell below asking in July at 83 per cent, according to HouseSigma. About 78 per cent of detached homes sold below asking, compared with 72.6 per cent of attached homes which include semi-detached houses and townhomes.The gap becomes particularly pronounced at the top of the market. Among homes priced at $2 million or more, 86.4 per cent sold below asking and the median sale price was 5.55 per cent below list price — the largest discount at any price bracket.By comparison, roughly 75 per cent of properties between $800,000 and $1.5 million sold below asking, with median discounts ranging from 2.34 per cent to 3.01 per cent.Heaps pointed to a recent sale in Toronto’s Rosedale neighbourhood as an example of the price adjustments taking place at the higher end of the market. The home on Roxborough Drive was initially listed for $7.8 million in July 2025 and underwent a series of reductions over the following year, eventually falling to $5.399 million in July. It sold in August for $4.85 million.This advertisement has not loaded yet.This advertisement has not loaded yet, but your article continues below.Heaps said there are fewer buyers competing at the highest points while inventory is higher than the market has traditionally been accustomed to.Still, she cautioned against interpreting a below-asking price sale as evidence that a property necessarily transacted below its market value. Asking prices are part of a pricing and marketing strategy and can vary considerably even for comparable homes.Heaps gave the example of identical properties, one listed for $1.5 million and the other for $1.75 million. If the first attracts competition and sells for $1.6 million while the second sells for $1.65 million, the latter technically sold below asking while fetching $50,000 more.“’Did it sell below value?’ is really the question,” Heaps said.“The biggest source of buyer leverage today is their ability and willingness to walk away,” she said. “When they believe that there’ll be another property, they’re much less emotionally tied to the outcome of the negotiation.”There are already signs, however, that some of that leverage is diminishing. Toronto market conditions moved slightly in sellers’ favour in July as sales improved and new listings declined. Mercer said if listings continue to fall while sales remain steady or even increase, competition between buyers should increase and gradually erode their negotiating power.For now, sellers are navigating a market in which buyers are showing up but are considerably more selective. Sammy Kohn, a Toronto realtor with HouseSigma, said activity has picked up in certain pockets but that buyers are negotiating hard and acting only when the price feels right.Kohn recently represented the sellers of a 1,280-square-foot, two-bedroom-plus-den condo in Toronto’s Trinity Bellwoods neighbourhood. Listed for $1.098 million in May, the property drew just three or four showings in its first several days.The sellers cut the price to $995,000 less than a week later, in an effort to capture buyers searching below the $1-million mark. Kohn said activity and inquiries picked up dramatically and the condo sold several days later for $985,000.Kohn said his clients understood they were no longer operating in the seller’s market of 2021 and 2022 and needed to respond quickly when the original asking price failed to generate interest.“That’s really how deals get done in this market –– realistic pricing, a little humility and working with the market rather than against it,” Kohn said.Notice for the Postmedia NetworkThis website uses cookies to personalize your content (including ads), and allows us to analyze our traffic. Read more about cookies here. By continuing to use our site, you agree to our Terms of Use and Privacy Policy.