GTA Housing Market in March 2025: Sales Down, Listings Up, Prices Softer

In March 2025 the GTA housing market was slower and slightly cheaper than a year earlier. Sales fell 23.1% year over year, new listings rose 28.6%, and the average selling price slipped 2.5% to $1,093,254. With Trump's tariffs in the headlines and a federal election coming, that outcome was predictable.

I'm Moe Asgarian, a real estate broker in Toronto and ranked 47th at RE/MAX worldwide. These are the Toronto Regional Real Estate Board figures for March 2025, alongside what I was seeing in my own deals at the time.

The March 2025 TRREB numbers

According to the Toronto Regional Real Estate Board, 5,011 homes sold across the GTA in March 2025, while the figure for March 2024 was 6,519. Compared with February 2025, sales on a seasonally adjusted basis were down 2.4%. Over the same month, new listings came in at 17,263, which is 28.6% more than March a year earlier. Total inventory in the GTA rose strikingly, up 88.8% to 23,462 properties.

On price, the average selling price in March 2025 was 2.5% lower than a year before at $1,093,254, and the benchmark price was down 3.8%.

Low sales plus heavy supply means buyers set the pace

So what do weak sales and a pile of listings actually mean? In March 2025 a lot of families who wanted to buy were in wait and see mode, because the economy was still sitting under trade uncertainty and the atmosphere of a federal election. That is how people behave. They wait to find out where they stand. My own view at the time was that if the trade problems between Canada and the United States were resolved, or if public policy could soften the effect of the tariffs, sales would very likely pick up again. It makes sense: people need to feel settled about their jobs before they take on a long commitment like a mortgage.

What I was seeing in my own deals matched the data. Buyers had far more choice than a year earlier, and more choice means more room to negotiate.

The tariffs behind the hesitation

Even though Canada had been spared some of the heavier American tariffs as of early April 2025, several of its large industries were still under serious threat. Trump said imported cars would face a 25% tariff even if the car was built in Canada. Canadian steel and aluminum were still carrying 25% tariffs, particularly on goods that are not aligned with the Canada, United States and Mexico agreement.

We know that when people are unsure, they do nothing unless something forces their hand. In March 2025, even buyers who had work, were in decent shape, and were paying a lower borrowing rate than the year before were holding off, because nobody knew what these tariffs were going to do. Once people are confident again about the economy and their own job security, buying and selling comes back.

Toronto compared with the rest of the GTA

Inside the City of Toronto, March 2025 sales were 16.9% lower than a year earlier. Across the rest of the GTA the drop was steeper at 26.5%, down to 3,103 transactions. Every property type in the region lost ground. Detached homes had the worst of it with a decline of roughly 25%, condos were down about 23%, townhouses 23%, and even semi detached sales were off 15.9%.

If your job is secure, this was your market

Because interest rates had come down compared with the year before, buying a home in March 2025 was easier than it had been in March 2024, and my own expectation at the time was that rates would fall further through the spring. With lower rates, I was genuinely optimistic about the spring market. Everything was going well until the tariff war started. And it is not only the tariffs themselves, it is the feeling of uncertainty that put people in doubt. Families are worried about what happens to their future.

Every household's situation is different. But if you had job security in the spring of 2025 and you were looking to buy, I thought it was genuinely good timing, because the competition was thin. You could take your time, look properly, and make sure the option you picked suited you and your family. I know how hard that is psychologically. Moving when everyone around you has stopped feels wrong, even when the numbers are on your side. I hope that once this uncertain stretch ends, calm comes back and low rates let the market breathe again.

If you want to go through what the March 2025 numbers mean for your own purchase or sale, fill out the form at the bottom of this page or book a free consultation. Stay well and take care.