Gatineau, Que. one of the most affordable real estate markets in Canada, report finds

A new home is displayed for sale in a new housing development in Ottawa on Tuesday, July 14, 2020. Prospective buyers have lamented the torrid pace Canada's real estate market has moved at in recent years, but many feel 2023 may be the year their luck changes. THE CANADIAN PRESS/Sean Kilpatrick

If you are looking for an affordable home in the national capital region, you should shop in Gatineau, Que., according to a new report.

The Royal LePage survey finds Gatineau is one of the top 15 most affordable cities to buy a home in Canada, based on the percentage of income required to service a monthly mortgage payment.

Homeowners in Gatineau need to spend 36.8 per cent of their monthly income on a mortgage for the average priced home in the city, which is $438,700.

Royal LePage says the average monthly mortgage payment in Gatineau, based on a three-year fixed term of 5.171 per cent over 25 years is $2,287.99.

“Many regions of the province have seen property values rise since 2020, but the majority remain more affordable than other major cities in Canada,” Dominic St-Pierre, senior vice-president of Business Development at Royal LePage, said in a statement. “The Gatineau region is a good example; it's one of the markets to have seen the biggest price increases in the province, but when compared to the neighbouring Ottawa market, prices remain almost half as high.”

Thunder Bay is the most affordable city in Canada, with a mortgage payment accounting for 22 per cent of the monthly income, according to Royal LePage. Saint John, N.B., is second at 25 per cent, followed by Red Deer, Alta. (25.7 per cent), Trois-Rivieres, Que. (28.5 per cent) and Edmonton, Alta. (28.9 per cent).

The only other Ontario city on the list is Windsor, with a mortgage payment accounting for 36.8 per cent of the monthly income of homeowners.

The Royal LePage survey finds many people living in Canada’s largest cities would consider moving to one of Canada’s most affordable cities to buy a home. Fifty per cent of respondents in Toronto, Montreal and Vancouver said they would move to one of the most affordable Canadian cities, if they were able to find a job or work remotely.

“Among renters in these regions, 60 per cent say they’d be willing to relocate, while 45 per cent of current homeowners say they would consider it,” Royal LePage says in a statement.

Ottawa vs. Gatineau

The report shows the average aggregate price for a new home in Gatineau was $438,700 in the first quarter of the year.

In Ottawa, the aggregate price for a new home was $757,700 in the first quarter. The average price for a singe-family detached home was $869,300.