Parking Adds up to $122,000 to Toronto Condo Prices: Wahi Study

Condo parking comes at a premium in the City of Toronto — it potentially adds six figures to the cost of a one-bedroom unit on the resale market — though as with all real estate, location is important.

By Josh Sherman | 3 minute read

Wahi looks at the gaps in pricing between one-bedroom Toronto condos based on whether or not the unit includes parking to estimate how much the amenity costs around the city.

Toronto condos with parking sell faster — and for as much as $100,000 or more — than units without parking, new Wahi analysis suggests.

In each of Toronto’s six former pre-amalgamation cities, units took less time to sell and commanded a higher price, although the extent to which this occurred varied considerably by location. 

“It isn’t a secret that parking in Toronto isn’t cheap,” says Wahi CEO Benjy Katchen. “However, Wahi’s latest analysis gives condo buyers a better idea of just how much more they may have to spend — or how much they can save — depending on whether or not they need parking,” Katchen continues.

Wahi’s data team analyzed condo sales over the first half of this year, comparing the median sale prices of one-bedroom units with parking against those without in East York, Etobicoke, North York, Scarborough, Toronto, and York, respectively.  

Units without parking generally took longer to sell, especially outside Toronto’s core. This is clear when comparing the average days on market — which reflects how long homes are listed before selling — for the first six months of the year.

The biggest gap in average days on market was observed in Scarborough, where it took an average of 25 days for one-bedroom Scarborough condos with parking to sell, compared to 41 for dwellings without — a difference of more than two weeks.

This suggests stronger demand for parking in parts of the city that are less well-connected to transit and cycling infrastructure. In the more centrally located areas, including Old Toronto and East York, condos with parking only sold three days faster on average.

However, when it comes to median prices, East York had the widest gap. The median price of a one-bedroom unit with parking was $532,000, while the median price for the same type of suite without parking was $410,000. That’s a difference of $122,000.

Since a substantial majority of condos with two or more bedrooms include parking, Wahi focused on one-bedroom condos for a more accurate comparison based on a larger number of transactions. Data is sourced from Information Technology Systems Ontario (ITSO) and the Toronto Regional Real Estate Board (TRREB).

The Toronto Neighbourhoods With the Most Expensive Parking 

Wahi also analyzed one-bedroom condo transactions at the neighbourhood level to pinpoint where there are the biggest price differences between units with and without parking.

Note that these differences don’t necessarily reflect the true cost of parking, since sales data isn’t analyzed at the building or address level. However, it is suggestive of where you may find the most expensive parking. For example, Yorkville — which has made headlines for six-figure parking costs — appears near the top of Wahi’s ranking.

Yorkville reflects more than one trend Wahi has identified when it comes to the neighbourhoods with the largest price gap between parking and non-parking units. The Toronto neighbourhoods with the most expensive parking were either centrally located, affluent — or, like Yorkville, both.

In these top-dollar neighbourhoods, units with parking sold for a median price of at least $98,000 more than those lacking a spot. Neighbourhoods had to have at least 15 sales of one-bedroom units with parking as well as 15 without to be included in the analysis.