Oshawa, Brock Township among most affordable places to live – Zoocasa report
Published January 28, 2022 at 2:32 pm
The most affordable place to live in southern Ontario is in Durham Region, according to a Zoocasa report that compared all the communities in the Toronto Regional Real Estate Board to see where you could find the most affordable options, based on your desired property type.
Orangeville is a good bet too, finishing first in two of the four categories.
Durham communities were one-two in the detached homes category, number one among condominium apartments and had four of the top five among condo townhouses.
For buyers looking to move outside of the city centre, Zoocasa Sales Representative Allyson Neves suggests it’s time to start looking outside their normal comfort zone.
“Lately when I’m working with buyers, they’re coming to me with their top budget and wish list for their home then asking me where they’ll need to move to marry the two. It becomes my job to help introduce them to new neighbourhoods or smaller towns that they may not have considered previously”
Key findings of the report showed Brock Township in the northern part of Durham was the most affordable place to buy a detached home at $774,500, followed by Oshawa at $964,000. Orangeville and Essa were third and fourth, followed by Scugog Township at $994,000.
Oshawa was discovered to be the best option among condo apartments ($382,000), followed by Orangeville, New Tecumseth, Brampton and Newmarket.
With condo townhouses, Orangeville was the most affordable at $570,000, with the next four all filled by Durham Region communities: Oshawa ($656,000), Whitby ($697,000), Clarington ($715,000) and Pickering ($750,000).
Durham also filled two spots in the semi-detached category, with Oshawa ($761,000) and Clarington ($818,000) following Orangeville ($715,000). New Tecumseth and Halton Hills rounded out the list.
“Usually buyers will come to me with a general bound for their location. This used to commonly be ‘no more than an hour from the office’. However, with work from home or hybrid options becoming the norm in many industries, I’m more often hearing ‘no more than an hour from my family’, or ‘I’d like to stay north of Toronto,’” Neves said. “I compare this request with their budget and talk about which areas would be a fit for what they’re looking for in a property. From there, we start our house hunt. If you’re a buyer with this mindset, it’s helpful to work with an agent who really knows the general area you’d like to purchase in, they’ll be able to introduce you to some of the best places to consider during your search.”
The full report is available here: https://www.zoocasa.com/blog/cheapest-cities-to-buy-gta/
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