A condo versus semi choice got clearer in September, and the two averages did not move together. Condo apartments were down hard from a year ago. The GTA semi average was almost flat.

July was a different month. Semis were the segment that had fallen. If you are still using that story in October, you are shopping with the wrong print.

The figures below are from TRREB’s September 2026 Market Watch, released October 6. Averages are not benchmarks, and the City of Toronto is not the 905.

September condo versus semi averages

The September condo versus semi split starts with the counts, because a percentage on a few hundred sales is not a percentage on the whole market.

GTA condo apartments: 1,316 sales, average $605,257. Sales were down 7.8 per cent from September 2025. The average price was down 7.7 per cent. In the City of Toronto, 884 of those sales averaged $640,248, with sales down 5.5 per cent and the price down 6.1 per cent. In the 905, 432 sales averaged $533,654, with sales down 12.4 per cent and the price down 12.0 per cent.

GTA semis: 459 sales, average $1,015,202. Sales were down 8.2 per cent. The average price was down 0.2 per cent. In the city, 211 semis averaged $1,207,884. Sales there were down 0.9 per cent and the average price was up 2.1 per cent. That city price increase is a couple of hundred sales, not a boom. In the 905, 248 semis averaged $851,266, with sales down 13.6 per cent and the price down 4.8 per cent.

Of the 1,316 condo apartments, 893 sold under $600,000. That is the $200,000s through the $500,000s in the Market Watch price-range table: 23, plus 181, plus 390, plus 299. About two-thirds of condo apartment sales were under $600,000, and 594 of them, about 45 per cent, were under $500,000. The $1,006,409 all-homes average is the wrong starting price for that buyer. The table is in the September Market Watch.

July’s semi average was $964,922, down 7.3 per cent from July 2025. I wrote that up in July semi prices. September’s semi average was $1,015,202, down 0.2 per cent from September 2025. July’s condo apartment average was $636,323, down 2.3 per cent from July 2025. September’s was $605,257, down 7.7 per cent from September 2025. Same board, two months, and the weak segment flipped. The July condo detail is in July condo buyers.

City price versus a 905 price

A city semi at $1,207,884 and a 905 condo apartment at $533,654 are not substitutes. They are different commutes, different fees, and different buildings. The 905 condo drop, 12 per cent on both sales and price, is the steep one. The city condo drop, 6.1 per cent on price, is real and milder. City semi prices were the only one of these four lines that rose, and it rose on 211 sales.

I would not stretch a city semi budget into a 905 detached just because the GTA semi average looks calm. The GTA semi line mixes those 211 city sales with 248 suburban ones. The suburban semi average was down 4.8 per cent, and far fewer of them sold.

Townhouses are a third product, and TRREB’s single “townhouse” average blends freehold rows with condo townhouses. I separated that blend for August in townhouse versus condo. Do not drop the September combined townhouse average into this comparison and call it a freehold house.

How to use a condo versus semi shortlist

On a condo versus semi shortlist, compare sold prices on the same street or the same building, then the payment, then the fees. The board average is the context, not the offer price.

• If the condo is under $600,000, you are in the range where most September condo apartments actually sold. Still read the status certificate and the fee.
• If the semi is in the city, 211 sales and a 2.1 per cent price increase is not permission to bid as if it were 2021. Check sale-to-list on that street.
• If the semi is in the 905, the average was down 4.8 per cent and sales were down 13.6 per cent. There is more room to negotiate, and less proof that every house will draw a crowd.
• Do not compare a semi’s average to a condo’s benchmark, or the other way around. Both figures above are selling-price averages.
• Run the mortgage on the price you would actually offer. The stress test still uses the contract rate plus 2 percentage points, or 5.25 per cent, whichever is higher. That is covered in the stress test guide.
• If you are a first-time buyer using the condo number because the semi is out of reach, the down payment and land transfer tax still have to be cash. The resale path is in the first-time buyer guide.

Final Thoughts

September’s condo apartment average was $605,257, down 7.7 per cent. September’s semi average was $1,015,202, down 0.2 per cent. The city semi price was up on a small sample. The 905 condo price was down 12 per cent.

If you are stuck between a condo and a semi, contact me with the two addresses. I will tell you which of these September figures applies, and which one I would ignore.