TORONTO -- July was a record-breaking month for Toronto real estate sales, as 11,081 homes changed hands.

The Toronto Regional Real Estate Board says existing home sales in the Greater Toronto Area jumped 29.5 per cent compared with July 2019, hitting a new high for the month.

Average home prices are also up 16.9 per cent from a year ago, at $943,710.

TRREB says low-rise homes, especially outside the downtown core, led the upward trend, with overall prices jumping most in Durham, Orangeville and South Simcoe county.

The board's president, Lisa Patel, said there is evidence the home market is tightening -- with buyers competing as homes are being sold faster than new listings are added to the market.

Patel suggested in the report that home buyers and sellers have put off summer travel and are playing catch-up on their housing plans, after the City of Toronto entered Stage 3 of reopening from COVID-19 restrictions.

This report by The Canadian Press was first published Aug. 6, 2020.