Posthaste: Sales dwindle in luxury real estate market — but don’t blame a lack of buyers

Luxury home sales retreated across much of Canada this past winter, but a lack of buyers isn’t to blame for the pullback and the market is expected to pick up this spring, according to Sotheby’s International Realty Canada.

Sales of luxury real estate properties were slower in the first quarter of 2023 compared to the same time last year, with Toronto, Vancouver, Montreal and Calgary all registering declines, says Sotheby’s latest report on the state of high-tier housing.

Toronto and Vancouver, the most expensive housing markets in Canada, bore the brunt of the slump in sales. In Toronto, sales of luxury homes priced $4 million and higher fell 64 per cent from the first quarter of 2022. Transactions of houses above $1 million also slowed, declining 57 per cent over last year. Vancouver sales of residences over $4 million were down 53 per cent year over year, and sales of dwellings above $1 million fell by 51 per cent.