Buying single? Here’s how much it’ll cost you in the GTA

Mid-February has set in, and the air is rife with paper sentiments and candy promises. Those who are romantically uncoupled could likely do without Valentines Day’s mushy consumerism – but as it turns out, one remains the loneliest number, especially in the Greater Toronto Area (GTA) housing market.

With housing prices rapidly appreciating throughout the region over the past five years, single-budget buyers are increasingly coming up short, even in the most affordable GTA markets. In fact, according to new data, solo buyers must contribute more than double the recommended amount to shelter, no matter where they buy.  

On a single shoestring budget

This buying power is determined by the home-price-to-income ratio in a given region, an affordability measure that gauges how long it would take to pay off a home on the median household income.

Using average January 2018 condo prices from the Toronto Real Estate Board (TREB), and median income amounts from Statistics Canada, it’s determined it would take a single-income household at least seven years of putting an entire annual salary towards housing costs, even in the most affordable markets (Milton and Clarington, respectively).

Considering the oft-touted wisdom that shelter costs should not exceed three times a household’s before-tax income, these results are hardly warm and fuzzy.

Inner city remains most expensive for single condo buyers

Low-rise and detached homes were out of the picture altogether for solo buyers, though the steepest condo affordability was also found within the city; purchasing a home in Toronto Central, for example, would cost such a buyer 16 times their income.

A Mississauga condo would command 10 times the median single income, while pricey Richmond Hillwould set them back 12 times their take-home pay.

Wondering which GTA region you’d get the most bang for your buck in? Check out the infographic below to see which markets are most affordable for both single- and dual-income buyers.

Penelope Graham is the Managing Editor of Zoocasa.com, a leading real estate resource that combines online search tools and a full-service brokerage to empower Canadians to buy or sell their homes faster, easier and more successfully. Home buyers can browse Toronto houses, as well as the Mississauga real estate market, including houses in Mississauga, condos, and townhomes.