Toronto home sales hit five-month low in November

By Fergal Smith

TORONTO, Dec 3 (Reuters) - Greater Toronto Area home sales fell to a five-month low in November and prices declined as an uncertain economic outlook kept homebuyers on the sidelines, Toronto Regional Real Estate Board data showed on Wednesday.

Seasonally adjusted sales declined 0.6% last month from October to 5,620 units, marking the lowest level since June.

The board's home price index was down 0.4% month-over-month, after seasonal adjustment, to C$971,100 ($694,536).

The Greater Toronto Area includes Toronto, Canada's most populous city, and four surrounding regional municipalities.

“There are many GTA households who want to take advantage of lower borrowing costs and more favourable selling prices," the board's president, Elechia Barry-Sproule, said in a statement. "What they need most is confidence in their long-term employment outlook."

The Bank of Canada has cut its benchmark interest rate to a three-year low of 2.25% to support the economy, which is contending with trade uncertainty.

On a year-over-year basis, the price index fell 5.8%, while sales were down 15.8% and new listings declined 4%.

($1 = 1.3982 Canadian dollars)

(Reporting by Fergal Smith; Editing by Leslie Adler)

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