High incomes needed for home ownership
Report finds prospective GTA homeowners need to pull in high wages to afford buying
By Graeme McNaughton/The Oshawa Express
Looking to own a home of your own? You better have the cash flow to back it up.
According to a new report from TheRedPin, a regional real estate agency, those looking to purchase and one day outright own a home in the Greater Toronto Area are going to need to earn a fair amount of money in order to do so.
With the average price of a detached home in the GTA reaching above $950,000, according to TheRedPin’s report, a household would need to make at least $165,109 annually in order to make mortgage payments.
Things get a little more affordable – relatively speaking – once you move into smaller dwellings. For example, to afford an average semi-detached home would require a household income of $117,861, $108,372 for a townhouse, $86,933 for a condo townhouse and $74,827 for a condo apartment.
Income needed in order to afford a home in Oshawa was the lowest on the report, with a household needing an income of at least $87,801 in order to afford the average home price of $427,790, along with other fees. However, Oshawa’s property tax rate, 1.57 per cent, was the highest listed in TheRedPin’s report.
According to Statistics Canada, the median total income in the Oshawa census metropolitan area, which also includes Whitby and Clarington, was $89,430 in 2014.
The most expensive place to own a home is Richmond Hill, with a household income of $179,551 needed in order to afford the average home price of more than $1 million.
TheRedPin’s calculations are based on a 25-year mortgage with an interest rate of 2.49 per cent, monthly utility costs at $250 for homes and $80 for condos, plus a down payment of 20 per cent.