Zolo: Most Affordable Cities To Buy a House in Ontario

Vancouver, Canada, May 06, 2021 --(PR.com)-- Canada's average home selling price has climbed to a new all-time high, according to CREA. Prices rose by 31.6% year-over-year in March, despite a recent surge of new housing supply. The average selling price of a Canadian home in March 2021 was $716.828, leaving many prospective buyers wondering, can I afford a home?

To offer clarity, Zolo created an in-depth guide highlighting the most affordable cities in Ontario, which is home to 39% of Canada's total population. Many down-sizers, first-time buyers, and move-on-uppers in Ontario are seeking an affordable home — but the question remains, where can I find an affordable home?

Zolo evaluated 200 cities and towns of varying sizes and considered the following elements when creating its list of the most affordable cities in Ontario:
● Affordability - Calculated in each city using the home-to-price ratio. This calculation helps determine how long it would take the average earner to pay off an average-priced home.
● Unemployment rates - Focusing on each city's current and potential economic health.
● Population growth - Based on Statistics Canada Census data. The assumption is that a higher growth rate supports more employment opportunities which makes it easier to find a job and buy a house.

For the purposes of this analysis, small cities are those with a population under 30,000, medium cities have a population between 30,000 and 100,000, and large cities have a population of over 100,000.

According to the data, these are the most affordable cities in Ontario by size:

Top 5 Most Affordable Large Cities in Ontario

Windsor
London
Barrie
Kanata
Guelph

Top 5 Most Affordable Medium Cities in Ontario

Sarnia
Thunder Bay
Sudbury
Stoney Creek
Sault Ste. Marie

Top 5 Most Affordable Small Cities in Ontario

Deep River
Rainy River
Smooth Rock Falls
Englehart
Marathon

Refer to this Zolo post to learn more about the figures (average home price, population, average household income, etc.), as well as the features of each city.

Crunching the numbers? One of the first steps is to learn how big of a mortgage you can afford, as well as the actual costs of owning a home.

About Zolo
Zolo is one of Canada's most popular and trusted national real estate marketplaces. Each month, over 10 million home shoppers use Zolo to level up the way they buy, sell, rent, finance, and learn about real estate.

Press Contact:
Nicole Sullivan
Outreach specialist
Nicole.sullivan@zolo.ca
416-895-5407