Brampton Neighbourhood Ranked One of the Last Affordable Areas in the GTA

Published October 30, 2017 at 6:35 pm

If you want to buy a home but you’re not a millionaire, there are only so many affordable neighbourhoods left in the Greater Toronto Area (GTA), and even then, becoming a homeowner is difficult if

If you want to buy a home but you’re not a millionaire, there are only so many affordable neighbourhoods left in the Greater Toronto Area (GTA), and even then, becoming a homeowner is difficult if not near impossible. Now, one neighbourhood in Brampton has ranked on a list of one of the last affordable in the GTA.

Brampton might not be the most affordable city to buy a home in general, but at a time when the housing market is still hot and it’s hard to find a reasonably priced home anywhere, one pocket of land in Brampton still hits the mark as a hot GTA neighbourhood.

“Theres hope for non-millionaires who just want a half-decent house in a nice area with good schools,” says Steve Kupferman of Toronto Life.

Can you guess where?

According to Toronto Life, Northwest Brampton is one of the last affordable neighbourhoods – of 20 – to buy a home, ranking number 20, so we just made it.

This suburban area is indeed an up-and-coming Brampton neighbourhood that sits at Mayfield and Winston Churchill, encompassing such pleasant, quiet areas as Heritage and Wanless, and Mississauga Road and Sandalwood.

What counts as a hot neighbourhood in the GTA, you ask? 

According to Toronto Life’s list of the last affordable neighbourhoods in the GTA, it’s “a good-sized house in a safe neighbourhood, with decent schools and leafy green space and a commute that isn’t soul-­crushing.”

Without breaking the bank on a million-dollar home, of course, because not all of us are millionaires (yet?!).

This list was curated based on real estate data across the GTA including information from brokers and residents, and access to parks, schools, shopping areas, and event transportation into downtown Toronto, all below a million bucks. Basically, it’s all about affordability and liveability in the modern GTA. 

“They’re the last best hope for the desperate house hunter—and the neighbourhoods everyone will be jockeying to buy into 10 years from now,” says Kupferman.

In Northwest Brampton, Toronto Life found the average sale price for a home is $777,823: 

“This is frontier town. While the area doesn’t have the usual amenities of a sprouting ­neighbourhood—new bars, boutiques and ­restaurants—it’s a gold mine of value and space, where pre-construction three-bedroom townhouses were recently selling for as low as $339,990. Driving up Mississauga Road is one of the best ways to understand the scale of development on the fringes of the GTA: every spare farmer’s field has sprouted a sales centre. Narrow lots make for limited yard space, but many of the area’s subdivisions are planned around parks. The Mount Pleasant GO station is accessible from anywhere in the neighbourhood, and trains to Union leave at least twice an hour during the morning rush.”

It’s true that the area is being built up, planned around parks, and located near Mount Pleasant GO, though it’s not packed with amenities like bars and restaurants. While the average sale price is nearing $800K, there is a range of house prices in Northwest Brampton if you’re okay with a quieter lifestyle in an area mostly populated by families.

Near Edenbrook Hill and Bovaird, a two-storey townhouse with three bedrooms and three baths (82 Monaco Court) sold for $545,000, while slightly north at McLaughlin and Wanless, a two-storey detached with three bedrooms and four baths (13 Abercrombie Crescent) sold for $835,000, according to Toronto Life.

A home is, of course, a huge investment, and you don’t want to be bogged down with a heap of debt just for a place to call your own. Though that might still be the case if you’re trying to buy a home in the GTA anytime soon, regardless of the neighbourhood.

But, some neighbourhoods are more affordable than others, so you might want to snatch up a home in Northwest Brampton while you still have a chance.

“Only virtual millionaires, or ­non-millionaires with millionaire parents, or non-millionaires willing to commit to a lifetime of crippling debt, could afford to break into the housing market,” says Kupferman on the last five years of the GTA housing market. “Everyone else had to settle for cramped condos and crumbling fixer-uppers.”

As for other hot GTA neighbourhoods, The Junction Triangle in Toronto topped Toronto Life’s list, with Mimico and West Rouge close behind. Hurontario (Mississauga), Central West Ajax, and Eglinton East sit at the tail end, with Brampton at the very end.

You can check out the other neighbourhoods on the list here

Map courtesy of Toronto Life

Cover photo courtesy of Google Maps

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