Best places to buy real estate in Halifax in 2024

Table of contents: Best places to buy in Halifax (tap to open)

Methodology

How to read the results table

The table includes all 23 neighbourhoods in Halifax Regional Municipality.

Benchmark price 2023: An average of the composite benchmark price throughout 2023. It represents all property types, including attached and detached homes, townhouses/row units and apartment units.
1-year, 3-year and 5-year growth: The percentage increase or decrease in the composite benchmark price (all property types) over each time frame.
Value, economics and accessibility: These neighbourhood characteristics are each scored on a scale of 0 to 5, with 5 representing the most value for your money, high levels of income and education, and ease of travel by foot, bike and public transit.
Children: The neighbourhood’s percentage of households with kids.

Best places to buy real estate in Halifax

In the table below, you’ll find the top Halifax neighbourhoods for real estate purchases. To view all the data, slide the columns right or left using your fingers or mouse. You can download the data to your device in Excel, CSV and PDF formats.

wdt_ID	Rank	Neighbourhood	City	Benchmark price 2023	1-year growth	3-year	5-year	Value	Economics	Accessibility	Children (%)
1	1	Cole Harbour	Halifax	$505,774	13%	66%	69%	4.0	4.3	0.6	47%
2	2	Woodside-Eastern Passage	Halifax	$432,486	18%	64%	97%	5.0	3.2	0.4	45%
3	3	Waverly-Fall River-Beaver Bank	Halifax	$666,815	8%	62%	83%	3.0	4.7	0.1	48%
4	4	East Dartmouth-The Lakes	Halifax	$562,313	22%	59%	92%	4.5	3.0	0.8	41%
5	5	Timberlea-Prospect	Halifax	$630,067	10%	64%	98%	3.5	3.9	0.0	47%
6	6	Hammonds Plains-St. Margarets	Halifax	$741,291	4%	56%	77%	2.2	5.0	0.0	47%
7	7	Portland-East Woodlawn	Halifax	$498,215	12%	56%	73%	3.8	3.3	0.7	40%
8	8	Preston-Lawrencetown-Chezzetcook	Halifax	$536,177	5%	56%	74%	3.2	3.6	0.5	42%
9	9	Spryfield-Herring Cove	Halifax	$619,438	1%	61%	98%	2.9	3.7	0.0	41%
10	10	Middle & Upper Sackville-Lucasville	Halifax	$537,207	6%	48%	82%	3.1	3.4	0.6	48%
11	11	Fairview-Clayton Park	Halifax	$593,652	16%	62%	100%	4.1	2.1	0.7	29%
12	12	Lower Sackville	Halifax	$434,817	6%	58%	60%	3.6	2.5	0.4	42%
13	13	Eastern Shore-Musquodoboit Valley	Halifax	$362,347	5%	30%	75%	3.4	2.3	0.1	30%
14	14	Bedford	Halifax	$732,207	2%	31%	69%	1.4	4.1	0.1	42%
15	15	Dartmouth Centre	Halifax	$599,042	17%	56%	82%	3.8	1.3	3.3	25%
16	16	Clayton Park West	Halifax	$538,501	11%	76%	90%	4.2	0.8	0.1	29%
17	17	Purcell’s Cove-Armdale	Halifax	$621,126	5%	49%	68%	2.5	2.5	1.5	34%
18	18	Halifax North End	Halifax	$618,437	13%	51%	85%	3.3	1.0	5.0	19%
19	19	Albro Lake-Harbourview	Halifax	$554,225	4%	57%	88%	3.2	0.0	3.4	24%
20	20	Rockingham-Wentworth	Halifax	$672,376	3%	46%	61%	2.0	1.1	1.7	30%
21	21	Connaught-Quinpool	Halifax	$770,903	-3%	43%	64%	1.1	1.9	3.2	27%
22	22	Northwest Arm-South End	Halifax	$1,192,192	16%	38%	52%	0.0	2.2	4.3	17%
23	23	Halifax Downtown	Halifax	$658,276	-8%	23%	35%	0.4	0.7	0.1	8%

Source: Zoocasa

Top three neighbourhoods in Halifax

1. Cole Harbour

For the second consecutive year, Cole Harbour is the top place to buy a home in HRM. Located east of Dartmouth, Cole Harbour is named after a local harbour. It has easy access to Highway 107 and Highway 111, making it an attractive location. Cole Harbour’s 2023 benchmark home price was $505,774, and that’s the result of consistent price growth in recent years. The benchmark price was 13% higher than in 2022, 66% higher than in 2020, and 69% higher than in 2018, giving Cole Harbour a value score of 4.0. It also has a neighbourhood economics score of 4.3, the third-highest in HRM.

The area has several schools—a convenience for the above-average 47% of households with kids. Residents love the area’s beaches and trails, including the Salt Marsh Trail and Rainbow Haven Beach Provincial Park. Cole Harbour is also a popular tourist destination: the quaint Cole Harbour Heritage Farm Museum and Fisherman’s Cove are two must-see stops. However, with the neighbourhood’s accessibility score of 0.6, you’ll likely need a car to get around.

View Cole Harbour real estate listings on Zoocasa.

2. Woodside-Eastern Passage

Situated on the Eastern Shore of HRM near the Shearwater Canadian Air Force base, Woodside-Eastern Passage is a popular destination for military families due to its mid-sized community feel. Boasting a dozen eateries, convenient access to Halifax through the Woodside Ferry, the main Nova Scotia Community College campus and abundant character, this emerging neighbourhood proves to be a smart investment and a delightful place to live. Woodside-Eastern Passage’s benchmark home price was $432,486 in 2023, which was 18% higher than in 2022, 64% higher than in 2020, and 97% higher than in 2018. It’s the only neighbourhood in HRM with a perfect value score of 5.0.

The area features multiple recent subdivisions that provide a variety of housing options, including semi-detached and detached homes. There are many elementary, junior high and high schools that cater to the 45% of households with children. Like most places in HRM, you’ll likely need a car to live here, though.

View Woodside-Eastern Passage real estate listings on Zoocasa.

3. Waverly-Fall River-Beaver Bank

Located a mere 10 minutes from the airport and 30 minutes from downtown Halifax, the Waverly-Fall River-Beaver Bank area is renowned for its scenic landscape, featuring numerous lakes, expansive open spaces and generously sized lots. It also has the most expensive homes of the top three neighbourhoods on our list, with a 2023 benchmark price of $666,815. That was 8% higher than in 2022, 62% higher than in 2020, and 83% higher than in 2018. Notably, Waverly-Fall River-Beaver Bank has the second-highest economics score on our HRM neighbourhoods list.

All homes in this area use septic systems; some rely on wells for water, while others are connected to city water. Residential lots are spacious and feature a range of traditional-style homes. Many residences boast lake access, and some even enjoy a lakefront setting. The neighbourhood has many sought-after schools. While the area may have limited amenities, it boasts a well-established canoe and kayak club, multiple daycare facilities, a post office and a convenience store. Living in Waverly-Fall River-Beaver Bank may necessitate owning a car, given its accessibility score of 0.1.

View Waverly-Fall River-Beaver Bank real estate listings on Zoocasa.

What’s happened in the Halifax real estate market?

Unlike the ups and downs of 2022, Halifax real estate prices did not sharply increase or decrease in 2023. The benchmark price consistently rose from January through the end of the spring market and reached a late peak of $530,900 in August. Following this, home prices softened before experiencing a modest rise in December, settling at a benchmark price of $511,600.

“In the first quarter of 2023, prices and sales were up, but then the market really slowed down after the spring,” says local eXp real estate agent Richard Payne. (Zoocasa, the author of this study, is wholly owned by eXp World Holdings.) “Properties were lingering on the market longer, and we didn’t see multiple offers on a home anymore. By the second half of the year, buyers had shifted to a more cautious stance, preferring to wait on the fence to see how conditions would evolve.”

As interest rates rose in the summer, buyers experienced some frustration, which morphed into confusion about what to expect from the market, says Payne. “Once buyers got confused, they didn’t feel confident to make any decisions, and this contributed to the slowdown in market activity.”

The uncertainty also influenced buyers’ budgets. “A lack of affordable options, especially in the $400,000 to $600,000 range, pushed many buyers to look out of the core and into more of the suburbs,” says Payne. “Homes in that range were getting more attention as interest rates rose.”

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What’s next for real estate in Halifax?

The benchmark home price in Halifax has increased by a little more than 1% since December, reaching $518,500 in January. With demand expected to rebound, price growth will likely continue, though that will depend on the mortgage rate outlook.

Payne expects the opposite of 2023 to unfold in 2024—with a quiet start to the real estate market, followed by an active second half. “In the beginning of 2023, activity was fairly up, and then as interest rate hikes were announced, it put the brakes on momentum,” he says. “This year, I anticipate a surge in activity in the second half of the year as buyers catch on to falling interest rates and rush back into the market.”

Buyers who were sitting on the sidelines last year may be better positioned to join the market in 2024. An influx in buyer activity might also encourage more sellers to list their homes, leading to a much-needed bump in the number of homes on the market.

“Inventory so far seems unchanged from last year, but I think with the arrival of spring, we will see an increase in listings surpassing those of 2023,” says Payne. “As more buyers jump back into the market, it will be a vibrant time for new listings.”

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This article was created by Zoocasa.

This is an unpaid article. It was written by a content partner based on its expertise and edited by MoneySense.

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