You've probably noticed the headlines lately. More homes for sale. Sales picking up. Prices still down from last year. If you're trying to figure out what all of that means for your decision as a buyer or seller, here's a plain-language breakdown of what's actually happening in the GTA market right now — and what it means for you.
According to TRREB's April 2026 release, the GTA had 25,110 active listings — a significant supply base, though down 8.3% from April 2025. At the same time, sales rose 7% year-over-year to 5,946 transactions, and new listings came in at 17,097 — down 9.3% from a year earlier.
The result: a sales-to-new-listings ratio of 34.8%, which puts the market firmly in buyer's market territory. Months of supply sits at 4.2, meaning it would take just over four months to sell all current inventory at the current pace of sales.
The average selling price came in at $1,051,969 — down 4.9% year-over-year but up 3.4% from March 2026. Homes are selling at roughly 98% of asking price on average, meaning buyers are still securing a modest discount off list in most cases.
This is the question most buyers and sellers are asking. If there are still 25,000 active listings, why aren't prices falling faster?
The answer is that inventory has actually been declining. While supply remains elevated compared to the hot market years, active listings are lower than they were a year ago. Fewer sellers are listing, and more buyers are returning to the market. Those two forces are offsetting each other — keeping prices relatively stable rather than sending them sharply lower.
The TRREB data tells this story clearly: sales and new listings both rose month-over-month in April, but sales rose at a faster rate. When demand grows faster than supply, the downward pressure on prices eases — even if prices haven't started rising meaningfully yet.
You still have the upper hand — but the window may be narrowing.
With 4.2 months of supply and homes selling at 98% of asking, buyers have real negotiating room right now. You can include financing and inspection conditions, take time to compare options, and make offers below list without automatically losing. That's a meaningful shift from the bidding war conditions of 2021 and 2022.
The risk is that conditions are gradually tightening. If sales continue rising while new listings remain below last year's levels, the current negotiating leverage buyers have could shrink over the coming months.
Practical steps for buyers right now:
April was a better month for sellers than the first quarter — but it's not a market that forgives overpricing.
Detached homes showed the clearest strength, with sales up 23.4% from March and average prices of $1,372,688. Semi-detached homes also improved. Condo apartments are a different story — with months of supply at 5.4 and days on market averaging 34, condo sellers are facing more competition and less buyer urgency.
What works for sellers right now:
The GTA is in a transition. The correction from the 2022 peak has brought prices down meaningfully — average prices are still roughly 4.9% below last year. But the direction of travel is slowly changing. Sales are rising. New listings are declining. Months of supply is tighter than it was a year ago.
This is not a seller's market. But it is a market that is gradually moving toward balance. For buyers, the current window of relatively strong inventory and negotiating leverage is real — but it is not guaranteed to last indefinitely. For sellers, patience and accurate pricing remain the strategy.
The key takeaway: Buyers still have more choice and negotiating power than at any point in the past several years. That window exists because inventory is elevated and prices remain below last year's levels — but both of those conditions are gradually shifting. Check our monthly GTA market report to track when conditions change.
Data sources: TRREB April 2026 Market Report (released May 5, 2026), WOWA.ca, CREA Statistics. Updated May 2026.