Rock bottom sales in Canada’s housing market make 2025 ‘one for the history books’: expert

Adrian Ghobrial examines where the once red-hot housing markets in Toronto and Vancouver are heading as sellers struggle to find buyers.

Real estate sales in 2025 reached a historic number – but for sellers, it was for all the wrong reasons.

The number of home sales in Toronto reached a 25-year low in 2025, dropping to around 62,400. In 2021, that number was more than 127,000.

To find another year when home sales were lower, you have to flip the calendar back to the turn of the millennium, when nearly 61,000 transactions took place in 2000.

“Imagine how many more people are (living in Toronto) now than there was 25 years ago? These are spectacularly low numbers,” said Ron Butler of Butler Mortgage.

Homeowners like Hossein Khodadadi have been on the receiving end of slumping sales. Khodadadi bought and moved into a home in Stouffville, Ont., north of Toronto in July 2022. Mortgage rates spiked shortly after he finished renovations. For the last two years, he’s listed the property twice, but it still hasn’t sold.

“I’m afraid I won’t be able to cover my mortgage and living expenses. My mortgage is up for renewal this summer, and I need to sell the property before then. It’s been really frustrating,” shared Khodadadi.

In Vancouver, the number of new listings in 2025 hit a record not seen since the mid ‘90’s, but sales remain at historic lows.

Residential sales in Metro Vancouver bottomed out at 23,800 in 2025, marking the lowest annual sales total in more than 20 years.

“This year was one for the history books,” said Andrew Lis, chief economist for Greater Vancouver Realtors. “Although the sales total was the lowest in over two decades, Realtors were still busy listing properties.”

While prices have come down, many believe they simply haven’t decreased enough for some potential buyers.

“Vancouver’s still extremely expensive real estate, more expensive than Toronto. Even people who are well off are sitting back and waiting to watch the market in 2026,” said Butler.

It’s a predicament for two of Canada’s most lucrative housing markets that has some shaking their head in disbelief.

“Borrowing costs and selling prices have trended lower and that’s across most major market segments yet at the same time sales were off,” shared Jason Mercer, chief market analyst for the Toronto Regional Real Estate Board.

The deteriorating market has left some wondering what 2026 will bring for debt heavy homeowners like Khodadadi, desperate to offload their pricey properties.

Butler believes the stagnant sales will continue “for at least the next six months,” as uncertainty around the economy and interest rates linger.