By Fergal Smith
TORONTO -Greater Toronto Area home sales rose in April from March but were down sharply from April last year, as homebuyers weighed trade tensions between Canada and the United States, Toronto Regional Real Estate Board data showed on Tuesday.
Seasonally adjusted sales were up 1.8% on a month-over-month basis at 4,267 units, marking a modest recovery after declines of 4.2% in March and 24.3% in February.
The average selling price fell 0.7% to C$1,065,687 ($771,007.81). It was the fifth month in the last six of falling prices.
On a year-over-year basis, sales declined 23.3% and the average selling price was down 4.1%.
“Following the recent federal election, many households across the GTA are closely monitoring the evolution of our trade relationship with the United States,” TRREB President Elechia Barry-Sproule said in a statement.
“If this relationship moves in a positive direction, we could see an uptick in transactions driven by improved consumer confidence and a market that is both more affordable and better supplied.”
The Greater Toronto Area includes Toronto, Canada’s most populous city, and four surrounding regional municipalities.
Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney, whose Liberal Party won last week’s general election, is due to meet U.S. President Donald Trump in Washington on Tuesday. Canada sends about 75% of its exports to the U.S., including steel, aluminum and autos, which have been hit with hefty U.S. tariffs.
Seasonally adjusted new listings fell 0.7% in April from March to 15,214 units. On a year-over-year basis, new listings climbed 8.1%.
($1 = 1.3822 Canadian dollars)
(Reporting by Fergal Smith in Toronto; Editing by Nia Williams)
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