Buying a detached home in Toronto right now would cost you significantly less, on average, than it would have one year ago – but does that mean we're in a buyers' market?

Not exactly, says the real estate website and brokerage Zoocasa.

The number and value of house sales in Toronto has been declining, it's true, with most analysts blaming government regulations like the Ontario Fair Housing Plan and new federal mortgage rules for the dive.

But a buyers' market isn't defined by how affordable things are. Instead, it refers to how competitive things are in terms of purchasing homes. 

Using a metric called the sales-to-new-listings ratio, Zoocasa broke down neighbourhoods in Toronto by whether they could be considered buyers', balanced, or sellers' markets.

"The ratio is calculated by dividing the number of sales by the number of new listings within a certain time frame in that region," reads a blog post on the company's website. 

"As overall market sales and prices can fluctuate over time, monitoring the sales-to-new-listing ratio is an accurate way of determining just what is happening in a specific region."

Anyone looking for a house right now would be well-advised to check out properties in the following municipalities, which went from a sellers' or balanced market to a buyers' market over the last year.

• Willowdale
• Leaside, Thorncliffe
• Centennial Scarborough, West Hill
• Eglinton West, Rockcliffe-Smythe
• Bedford Park, Lawrence Park South
• Mount Pleasant East
• Banbury-Don Mills, Victoria Village
• Willowdale East
• The Beaches, Woodbine Corridor