Purchasing a home in Canada's largest metropolitan area isn't such an accessible option these days, and it's only getting harder to buy into the Greater Toronto Area housing market as prices climb ever higher.

And 2021 saw the market reach new highs, with a record level of sales average prices cracking the previous all-time high record.

The Toronto Regional Real Estate Board (TRREB) reports that over 121,000 homes were sold across the region in 2021, a 7.7 per cent jump over the previous 2016 high of 113K, and a massive 28 per cent leap over 2020's sales figures.

Though sales have increased, new listings failed to keep up the pace, only rising 6.2 per cent, and underscoring a supply issue that's been fueling rising home prices for years.

And oh, boy, did those home prices go up in December, with prices climbing 17.8 per cent against 2020 prices, rising to a new all-time high of $1,095,475 from the previous 2020 record of $929,636.

That's over ten times the region's average (mean) household income of $104,378 as measured in 2015.

JUST RELEASED‼️ Record GTA home sales & average price in 2021🏠. Last year saw record home sales, up 7.7% from the previous 2016 high, & an all-time high average selling price compared to the 2020 record. Access TRREB’s latest #MarketWatch Report HERE🔗 https://t.co/bPZLBiWNBy pic.twitter.com/M5kX99qUem

— Toronto Regional Real Estate Board (@TheReal_TRREB) January 6, 2022

TRREB President Kevin Crigger says attributes the impressive growth to "growth in many sectors of the economy supported job creation, especially in positions supporting above-average earnings," bolstered by low borrowing costs.

After demand for homes in the 416 saw declines in 2020, TRREB experts note a resurgence in demand for property in Toronto. Sales in Toronto proper rose by an annual rate of 36.8 per cent, outpacing the rate of growth of suburbs at 23.6 per cent.

Figures were also released for December 2021, though the picture isn't as rosy as the overall 2021 report. The over 6,000 homes sold last month failed to match the previous December, when over 7,000 transactions were recorded.

Still, tight supply — listings fell by almost 12 per cent in December — is contributing to skyrocketing prices, with the selling price rising over 24 per cent in December to $1,157,849.