Prices in Toronto's ever-exasperating housing market still won't budge despite plummeting sales numbers and a surge of homes hitting the market, a trend that persisted through last month, according to the latest stats from the Toronto Regional Real Estate Board (TRREB).

The board reported 6,213 purchases of condos and single-family homes across the region June, 11 per cent fewer than the month earlier and a substantial 16.4 per cent less than during June 2023.

Meanwhile, there were 12.3 per cent more new listings hitting the market compared to the same time last year, and a bewildering 67.4 per cent more active listings in general, with 23,613 properties now available.

That glut of homes has also been sitting on the market longer, with averages for both the average length of a listing and the average length of time a property has been on the market overall up by 42.9 per cent and 50 per cent year-over-year, respectively.

The data TRREB shared for June 2024 shows a continuing trend of ample supply but low sales volumes in the Toronto area's housing market. Chart from TRREB's Market Watch report.

TRREB's president stated in the Thursday release that the recent interest rate cut has only appeared to provide "some initial relief" for current and prospective homeowners that are dealing with an invariably overpriced and unaffordable market.

"The June sales result suggests that most home buyers will require multiple rate cuts before they move off the sidelines. This follows Ipsos polling for TRREB, which suggested that cumulative rate cuts of 100 basis points or more are required to boost home sales by any significant amount," she wrote.

But, despite abundant supply and comparably dead activity levels — which the firm says has provided buyers "substantial choice and therefore negotiating power on price" — the MLS® Home Price Index Composite benchmark was down by just 4.6 per cent compared to this time in 2023.

The average selling price was a mere 1.6 per cent lower year-over-year, and both figures were up month-over-month.

Even with huge declines in sales and a drastic jump in new and active listings compared to last year, the average selling price of a home of any type in the region has only dropped a comparatively minimal 1.6 per cent. Chart from TRREB's Market Watch report.

TRREB doesn't expect prices to give, either, but gradually increase as activity does when further rate cuts improve mortgage affordability somewhat, though the report says that "as sales pick up alongside lower borrowing costs, elevated inventory levels will help mitigate against a quick run-up in selling prices."

But with bill delinquency and mortgage debt in Ontario at an all-time high and the cost of the typical property of any type across the GTA still at a ridiculous $1,162,167 per these latest numbers, it's a wonder anyone is still purchasing property in and around the city.

It's also hard to grapple with the concept of a housing crisis that leaders and stakeholders insist requires far more supply to assuage, when the market already seems rich with available properties that are simply not affordable for the average person.