Windsor-Essex is being listed as one of the most affordable areas in Canada, which, according to a new survey, is being seen as an attractive option for big-city residents looking to find a new or first home.
A recent Royal LePage survey of Canadians living in the greater Toronto, Montreal, and Vancouver regions, conducted by Burson, found 51 per cent of respondents say they would consider buying a primary residence in one of Canada’s 15 most affordable cities if they were able to find a job locally or work remotely.
Out of the 15 most affordable cities in Canada, only two are in Ontario; Thunder Bay is third, while Windsor-Essex ranks eleventh, where 28.7 per cent of a household’s monthly income would be required to service a mortgage payment, down significantly from 36.4 per cent two years ago.
Amber Pinsonneault, broker of record with Royal LePage Binder Real Estate in Windsor-Essex, says affordability across Canada has reached new heights where people are unable to purchase their first home, which now sometimes means relocating to places like Windsor-Essex.
Pinsonneault says the survey looked at the average home sales and household income to determine affordability, with the goal of less than 30 per cent going to your mortgage.
“For Windsor-Essex it’s saying just over $90,000 for household income. Your aggregate price is $480,000,” she says. “So it would maintain a payment of around $2,100, so that is 28.7 per cent of your average household income to be able to afford a house.”
Pinsonneault says she’s very optimistic about the real estate market in this area, and there’s lots of opportunity.
“For people that have been sitting on the sidelines, I think there’s a lot of purchasing power out there right now, and it’s improved significantly. I think people don’t see that quite yet, but we’re very much in a market where buyers have a lot of choice,” she says. “This reports that back up-that not only is there choice but affordable options-and I think that’s a great picture for Windsor-Essex.”
Pinsonneault says they know there is a lot of opportunity here, but residential sales are not really showing this right now.
“Everyone, I think, has a different idea of what affordability means, but to see these numbers and see that it’s attainable for people in Windsor-Essex gives us great hope that people will start to have more confidence in our marketplace because, unfortunately, confidence across Ontario and Canada has been so low in the housing market recently,” she says.
Among respondents in the Greater Toronto Area, 55 per cent say they would consider purchasing a home in a more affordable city, with their top choice being Edmonton (16%), followed by Thunder Bay (15%), Charlottetown (14%), and Windsor-Essex (14%). Respondents were able to select more than one answer.