Where to Find the GTA’s Most Affordable Detached Homes

Digital real estate platform Wahi analyzed GTA home sales data from Q1 2023 to find out which communities had the lowest median prices for detached houses.

By Josh Sherman | 3 minute read

The median price of a detached home is below $1 million in a handful of Greater Toronto Area communities. 

Whether it’s to have more privacy, additional indoor square footage, or access to a larger back or front yard, many Greater Toronto Area homebuyers prefer detached houses over any other property type. 

Of course, detached homes aren’t in everyone’s budget. The median price for this kind of dwelling in the GTA was $1,390,000 at the end of March. Depending on the community, though, prices vary quite a bit. Therefore, house hunters who are willing to expand their searches across the GTA have a better chance at finding a standalone home that they can afford.

To help homebuyers on their search, digital real estate platform Wahi analyzed median detached home prices for this year’s first quarter (from the start of January to the end of March) to see which communities were most — and least — affordable. The analysis spans 30 GTA communities, including six within Toronto proper (East York, Etobicoke, North York, Old Toronto, Scarborough, and York). Wahi chose to look at median prices because they are less skewed by extreme outliers, such as ultra-luxury property sales.  

The 5 Most Affordable GTA Communities for Detached Homes  

The most affordable GTA communities for detached homes in the first quarter tended to be located towards the outer edges of the region, with the exception of York (the former Toronto borough, not to be confused with the Regional Municipality of York):

1. Oshawa, Durham: $836,250 (-22.2% y/y)
2. Clarington, Durham: $878,000 (-27.3% y/y)
3. Georgina, York: $917,500 (-20.1% y/y)
4. Brock, Durham: $1,005,000 (-32.8% y/y)
5. York, City of Toronto: $1,010,000 (-18.7% y/y)

Oshawa, the most affordable area in the GTA for detached homes in the first three months of the year, was also the most affordable place to find condos in February, according to previous Wahi analysis. It’s one of three communities in Durham, an area known for lower-priced homes.  “The greater affordability in parts of Durham comes down to a combination of distance from Toronto and the availability of developable land,” explains Wahi CEO Benjy Katchen. Durham is also where you’ll find some of the largest annual price declines, by percentage decrease:

1. Caledon, Peel: -32.9% y/y ($1,265, 500)
2. Brock, Durham: -32.8% y/y ($1,005,000)
3. Clarington, Durham: -27.3% y/y ($878,000)
4. Pickering, Durham: -26.6% y/y ($1,075,000)
5. Milton, Halton: -26.4% y/y ($1,328,000)

• These declines, though sharp, represent a return to pre-pandemic norms, notes Katchen. Home prices outside the city were bid up amid remote-work arrangements and a desire for more space during lockdown, and now these trends are reversing in places like Caledon and Brock. 
• Only one community in the GTA saw Q1 detached home prices increase compared to a year ago: The median price of a detached home in Uxbridge was $1,375,000 in this year’s first quarter, up 4.2% from the same period in 2022. 

The 5 Most Expensive GTA Communities for Detached Homes  

On the flipside, three of the five most expensive communities in the GTA for detached homes were located in the Regional Municipality of York, led by the Township Of King. “The average home in the suburbs is larger than the average for downtown Toronto,” Katchen points out. “There’s estate-living in King — people have acreages,” he adds. Here’s a breakdown of the five GTA communities with the highest median price for a detached home through the first three months of the year: 

1. King, York: $2,090,000 (-21.7% y/y)
2. Old Toronto, City of Toronto: $1,825,000 (-20.8% y/y)
3. Richmond Hill, York: $1,809,500 (-5.7% y/y)
4. Oakville, Halton: $1,738,400 (-21.9% y/y)
5. Markham, York: $1,680,000 (-10.9% y/y)

Old Toronto, which includes downtown Toronto and many desirable central neighbourhoods, was the second-priciest place to buy a detached home during Q1. Prices have held up most in Richmond Hill, the area with the third-highest prices, and they’ve seen the biggest shock in Oakville, the fourth-most-expensive submarket. 

Looking to learn more about the GTA market? Check out Wahi’s Market Pulse tool, which reveals whether neighbourhoods are in overbidding or underbidding territory, or explore Wahi’s 2023 Where to Live rankings, a data-driven ranking of GTA neighbourhoods in 11 lifestyle categories, from foodies or nature lovers to seniors or families with young kids.