Royal LePage: $1 million can buy you a mansion

$1 million can buy you a mansion—or a fixer-upper

By Special to MoneySense on March 6, 2017
Estimated reading time: 2 minutes

Winnipeg delivers the best bang for the millionaire's buck

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A million-dollar mansion in Canada may be anything but that, according to a report released today by a Canadian real estate company. Royal LePage says that while $1 million can score a renovated four-bedroom, waterfront home in Halifax, it may only buy a smaller fixer-upper in Vancouver’s suburbs. Toronto’s million-dollar market was a bit more accessible than Vancouver’s, according to the report, with deals on two-storey starter homes in `”up-and-coming neighbourhoods,” especially outside the downtown core in regions like Ajax, Pickering, Milton, Mississauga and Brampton. The report says Winnipeg delivers the best bang for the millionaire’s buck, where it bought an average of four bedrooms and four bathrooms.

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Saskatoon offered the largest lot size for $1 million, where it says homes for that price were virtually unheard of a decade ago. The study examined two-storey homes in seven Canadian markets in January 2017. “There are striking differences in the options available for those who are looking to purchase a $1 million two-storey home in Canada,” Dianne Usher, senior vice president of Johnston and Daniel, a division of Royal LePage, said in a news release. “However, significant value can still be found in the suburbs or city-centres like Saskatoon and Montreal, where homes are more affordable, landing you substantially more home with better features as a result.” Alberta’s recent economic downturn is good for buyers — and bad for sellers — in Calgary. The report says purchasers looking for $1 million two-storey properties in that city get about the same value they did 10 years ago.

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In January 2017, the average property selling for $1 million in Calgary had 3.3 bedrooms, 2.8 bathrooms, 2,477 sq. ft. of living area and a lot size of 7,004 sq. ft. In Toronto 10 years ago, the report says buyers got a lot more for seven figure. Home searches in the $1 million price range in 2007 often produced larger, fully upgraded homes in prominent areas like Rosedale, Leaside and Lawrence Park. It said Montreal’s prices have been rising since 2007, but the city still offered a substantial amount of home for $1 million. The profile of a $1 million buyer was also found to vary by region. Developers and first-time buyers dominated the $1 million two-storey property segment in Canada’s largest metropolitan areas. Wealthy young to middle-aged professional couples with children acted as the predominant purchasers elsewhere.