Where to Buy Real Estate in Canada 2024: Halton Region, Ontario
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In the fast-growing region of Halton, home buyers have gravitated toward more affordable properties. These are the Halton neighbourhoods to watch for.
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Presented by
Ratehub.ca
In the fast-growing region of Halton, home buyers have gravitated toward more affordable properties. These are the Halton neighbourhoods to watch for.
In the table below, you’ll find the top neighbourhoods for real estate purchases in Burlington, Oakville, Milton and Halton Hills. 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.
Source: Zoocasa
Looking for a location in northern Burlington? Welcome to Palmer, a 1960s-era neighbourhood with moderate hills, old trees and spacious lots. In 2023, Palmer’s benchmark home price was $965,171, which was 1% higher than in 2022, 41% higher than in 2020 and 91% higher than in 2018. That gives Palmer a 4.7 value score—one of the highest value scores in Halton. It also ranks highly on neighbourhood economics, with a score of 4.1, indicating high levels of household income and education, and a high percentage of home ownership.
This area’s residences are largely colonial Revival and Tudor in style, with split levels, raised bungalows, townhomes and two-storey designs. Residents congregate at the playgrounds, tennis courts and baseball diamonds of Lansdown and Palmer parks. However, it’s worth noting that Palmer’s accessibility score of 1.2 is among the lowest in Halton, indicating that it could better serve pedestrians, cyclists and public transportation riders.
View Palmer real estate listings on Zoocasa.
Clearview is a family-oriented area located near Oakville’s eastern boundary. Beautiful parks, wooded regions and large green spaces surround this well-established neighbourhood. Clearview is popular with families wanting convenient access to both Mississauga and Toronto, and it’s known for having nicely sized detached homes on winding streets. In 2023, Clearview’s benchmark home price was $1,599,707, thanks to consistent growth over the last several years. The benchmark price was 4% higher than in 2022, 38% higher than in 2020, and 92% higher than in 2018—contributing to Clearview’s 3.7 value score. It’s one of only two neighbourhoods in Halton to have an economics score of 5.0, along with Eastlake.
One of Clearview’s best-loved features might be its access to parks and open green spaces. Locals spend time in Clearview Park, Wynten Way Park and Kingsford Gardens, which are all interconnected by the Avonhead Ridge Trail. The neighbourhood also has many schools to choose from, including eight public schools, five Catholic schools, two private schools and one alternative school. However, Clearview falls near the middle on accessibility, with a score of 3.1.
View Clearview real estate listings on Zoocasa.
Uptown Core is located in the heart of Oakville, with its centre at the intersection of Trafalgar Road and Dundas Street. This neighbourhood exemplifies innovative urban design, and the housing stock consists mostly of high-density modern townhomes and condos in low-rise and mid-rise buildings. In 2023, Uptown Core’s benchmark home price was $875,271, the result of consistent price increases in recent years: The benchmark home price was 6% higher than in 2022, 39% higher than in 2020 and 65% higher than in 2018. While Uptown Core has a lower economics score than Halton’s other top two neighbourhoods, it has the best value score among them—a perfect 5.0.
When designing Uptown Core, planners gave pedestrians and bikers special consideration. The area features a lot of easily accessible routes and hiking trails, which contribute to its 4.0 accessibility score. The vicinity has numerous businesses, health clubs and restaurants. Green spaces and pathways connect Memorial Park, Windfield Parkette and Town Centre Square, as well as two smaller parks with ponds. Uptown Core is full of small starter homes and homes suitable for raising children.
View Uptown Core real estate listings on Zoocasa.
Unlike most other real estate markets in Canada, where home prices reached their highest levels in the summer of 2023, Halton Region’s benchmark home price peaked in December at $1,302,551. Price growth was relatively steady throughout 2023. The benchmark home price was $1,122,501 in January and grew by about 15% to $1,294,251 in June, before cooling off for much of the fall.
“The Bank of Canada interest rate hike in July 2023 had a cooling effect on buyers,” says local Zoocasa real estate agent Kristian Canadic. “Sellers had the mindset that if they held on a little bit longer, prices would continue to go up. This ‘real estate always goes up’ mentality keeps sellers resistant to selling.”
High prices and interest rates also impacted buyers’ preferences. Though buyers in Halton Region are typically drawn to detached homes, demand shifted as interest rates went up and affordability tightened. “With prices for detached homes pushing the limits of affordability, townhomes have grown in popularity,” says Canadic. “Similarly because of affordability issues, people have been more willing to look at second-best options which are a little further out from core areas.”
The trajectory of home prices in Halton Region is largely dependent on when or if interest rates drop. In January, the benchmark home price of $1,143,518 was up about 2% year-over-year, but down about 12% month-over-month. Prospective home buyers are optimistic about a potential interest rate drop this year, but enthusiasm may cool if rates are held for longer than anticipated.
“I don’t think this year will be much different from last year,” says Canadic. “Coming out of the gate in January, there has been a lot of enthusiasm from sellers and buyers because of the expectation that interest rates are coming down, so we saw a pickup in activity. However, I think that headwinds have been building against more affordable conditions that lead the market [back] to the 2022 highs.” Barring significant changes in the economy, future rate drops “may be smaller and further out than people have been expecting,” he says.
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