Income required to buy a home in Ottawa drops $2,000

Un ménage doit gagner un revenu minimal de 122 440$ pour être capable d'acheter une maison à Ottawa.

The income required to purchase the average priced home in Ottawa dropped nearly $2,000 in January, as home prices and mortgage rates dropped during the first month of 2026.

A new report from Ratehub.ca shows the income required to buy the average priced home in Ottawa was $129,800 in January, down from $131,820 in December. In August, homebuyers needed an average income of $135,250.

Ratehub.ca looks at the income required to buy a home with a 10 per cent down payment, a 25-year amortization, $4,000 in annual property taxes and a monthly heating bill of $150. The mortgage rate was 4.40 per cent and the stress test rate was 6.40 per cent.

The report shows the average price for a home in Ottawa was $606,700 in January, down from $613,700 in December.

Ottawa was one of 12 cities to see a drop in the average income required to purchase a new home in January, with the income required dropping $3,600 in Vancouver and $2,320 in Toronto.

The average income required to buy a home in January was $223,700 in Vancouver, $192,100 in Toronto and $178,000 in Victoria.

“Home affordability improved in all except one of the cities we studied,” Penelope Graham, a mortgage expert with Ratehub.ca, said in a statement.“Home prices were the primary driving factor for the improvement. Mortgage rates decreased slightly month-over-month, but not enough to have a big impact on the income required to buy a home.”

According to Ratehub, the average income required to buy a home in Montreal increased $680 in January to $124,800. Montreal was the only city in the survey to see an increase in home prices.

Graham said the reason for the jump in income required in Montreal was the increase in the average home price by $6,600 to $579,000.

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