Article content

TORONTO — Canadian home prices will likely expand this year at “their fastest annual pace since 2016,” says a new report by TD Economics.

“Price appreciation now resembles what it did prior to the implementation of the B-20, Bank of Canada rate hikes, and Ontario’s Fair Housing Plan,” TD economist Rishi Sondhi says in the report, released Tuesday.

We apologize, but this video has failed to load.

tap here to see other videos from our team. Try refreshing your browser, or 'This is not a good sign': Toronto housing price surge resembles sky-high gains of 2016 Back to video

“Affordability is now the poorest it’s been since the frenzied days of 2017. And, while affording a home remains a difficult proposition in the single-detached market, robust price growth in recent years has also eroded condo affordability to a massive extent,” the report said.

A similar report last week by RBC Economics notes that the Toronto housing market is picking up steam at an “uncomfortable” magnitude, one that resembles the sky-high gains of 2016 that subsequently led to a slew of regulatory measures to tame markets.

“It’s looking more and more like early-2016 all over again. This is not a good sign,” wrote RBC senior economist Robert Hogue.