Wahi data shows overbids fading even as borrowing costs stabilized
The Greater Toronto Area’s long‑awaited spring housing revival instead arrived as a cold snap, with new numbers from digital real estate platform Wahi pointing to the weakest March for bidding wars since it began tracking the market in 2022.
Buyer competition already softened through the winter, but March marked a clear step down.
Just 6% of the 213 GTA neighbourhoods with at least five sales were in overbidding territory, Wahi reported. That's down from 7% in February and far below the 20% level seen in March 2025.
Some 92% of neighbourhoods sold below list and 2% at asking, underscoring that buyers, not sellers, held the upper hand.
“Just when it seemed like the effects of economic uncertainty may have been fading, emerging geopolitical conflict appears to be spooking markets,” Wahi economist Ryan McLaughlin said.
“Add to that the unseasonably cold weather to start spring and challenging‑albeit‑improved affordability, and there’s a recipe for subdued housing activity,” he said.
Single‑family homes still drew more heat than condos. Fourteen percent of neighbourhoods with at least five detached or other ground‑oriented sales were overbid, compared with just 1% of condo communities.
Overall, 23% of all March transactions closed above list, down from nearly one‑third a year earlier.
Mortgage broker Micky Khaneka says appraisal gaps, weak investor demand, and affordability pressures are keeping activity muted even as GTA condo prices slide and units reappear in the $300,000 range.https://t.co/DQcDHzHqVJ
— Canadian Mortgage Professional Magazine (@CMPmagazine) April 6, 2026
Lower‑priced regions saw the most action: in Durham, 31% of sales traded above asking, versus 15% in Halton.
West‑end pockets led what bidding there was. Runnymede posted a median overbid of about $196,500, followed by Bloor West Village, Riverdale, Rouge Woods and Trinity Bellwoods.
At the same time, affluent central areas such as Rosedale, Forest Hill and Summerhill were among the most underbid, with sellers accepting discounts of roughly $140,000 to $180,000 off list.
The Toronto Regional Real Estate Board already flagged a “quieter, more buyer‑friendly landscape” to start 2026, with only 22% of GTA households planning to buy this year, down from 27% in 2025.
The Bank of Canada, contending with global tensions and soft domestic demand, kept its policy rate at 2.25% in March and noted continued weakness in the housing market, concentrated in Toronto and Vancouver.
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