{"id":15962,"date":"2018-11-22T03:00:49","date_gmt":"2018-11-22T08:00:49","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.zoocasa.com\/blog\/?p=15962"},"modified":"2018-11-29T16:41:26","modified_gmt":"2018-11-29T21:41:26","slug":"alberta-home-affordability","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.zoocasa.com\/blog\/alberta-home-affordability\/","title":{"rendered":"Here\u2019s How Much You\u2019ll Need to Earn to Buy a Home in Alberta"},"content":{"rendered":"

Good news for home buyers\u00a0in wild rose country: Housing affordability is relatively healthy in all markets across the province, as wages have kept pace with home values.<\/p>\n

According to recent data compiled by Zoocasa<\/a>, an Albertan earning at least the median household income would be able to afford a home in any of the province\u2019s 25 major markets.<\/p>\n

To determine home affordability in each city, Zoocasa sourced the average home price as reported by local real estate boards, and calculated (assuming a 20-per-cent down payment, a 30-year amortization, and mortgage rate of 3.33 per cent) how much a borrower would need to earn in order to qualify for a mortgage on that home. That calculation was then compared to actual median incomes earned in each municipality\u00a0as reported by Statistics Canada.<\/p>\n

Alberta Affordability Outranks BC, Ontario<\/h2>\n

The findings are in sharp contrast to the affordability picture in the priciest provincial housing markets. For example, using the same criteria, only four of 19 markets can be considered affordable in neighbouring British Columbia<\/a>, with all located away from large urban centres: Prince George, Kamloops, Campbell River, and Langford. In the Vancouver real estate<\/a>\u00a0market – BC\u2019s most expensive – home buyers face an income gap of $97,866 when purchasing the average-priced home with the median income.<\/p>\n

Ontario buyers<\/a>\u00a0fare better in 19 out of 28 markets, though a total of nine \u2013 located within the Greater Toronto Area \u2013 remain beyond the realm of affordability with the most expensive market, Richmond Hill, commanding an income gap of $47,972, followed by Toronto with a gap of $41,282.<\/p>\n

Most Expensive Markets Still Affordable<\/h2>\n

In comparison, even home buyers in Alberta\u2019s most expensive urban markets can swing the average home price on a median income with cash left over. In Canmore, a luxury mountain community where the average home costs $696,421, a buyer earning the median of $98,906 would have a $3,908 surplus after qualifying for their home purchase. Calgary real estate<\/a>\u00a0buyers would have considerably more, with a $33,409-surplus with an income of $97,334, and an average home price of $468,634. That balloons further to $37,558 in the Edmonton real estate<\/a>\u00a0market, where the median income is $87,225, and the average home costs $364,102.<\/p>\n

Check out the infographic below to see how much income a buyer would need to earn to afford a home in each Albertan housing market.<\/p>\n

\"Zoocasa<\/a><\/p>\n

Top 5 Most Affordable Housing Markets in Alberta<\/h3>\n

1 \u2013 Fort McMurray<\/strong>
\nAverage Home Price: $374,360
\nRequired Income: $51,066
\nActual Median Income: $195,656
\nAffordability Surplus: $144,590<\/p>\n

2 \u2013 Beaumont<\/strong>
\nAverage Home Price: $408,391
\nRequired Income: $55,708
\nActual Median Income: $134,443
\nAffordability Surplus: $78,735<\/p>\n

3 \u2013 Cold Lake<\/strong>
\nAverage Home Price: $248,888
\nRequired Income: $33,950
\nActual Median Income: $110,575
\nAffordability Surplus: $76,625<\/p>\n

4 \u2013 Sherwood Park<\/strong>
\nAverage Home Price: $420,070
\nRequired Income: $57,302
\nActual Median Income: $124,239
\nAffordability Surplus: $66,937<\/p>\n

5 \u2013 St. Albert<\/strong>
\nAverage Home Price: $414,668
\nRequired Income: $56,565
\nActual Median Income: $119,905
\nAffordability Surplus: $63,340<\/p>\n

Methodology:<\/em><\/span><\/p>\n

Average home prices for each region were sourced from the Calgary Real Estate Board, Realtors Association of Edmonton, Lethbridge and District Association of Realtors, Medicine Hat Real Estate Board, Central Alberta Realtors Association and the Canadian Real Estate Board. Home prices are from October 2018, except for Camrose, Red Deer and Sylvan Lake where September 2018 figures were the latest available.<\/em><\/p>\n

The income required to afford the average home price was calculated using the Ratehub mortgage affordability calculator (www.ratehub.ca\/mortgage-affordability-calculator) assuming a 20% down payment, a mortgage rate of 3.33% and a 30-year amortization. The calculation does not factor in carrying costs such as property taxes and heating.<\/em><\/p>\n

Median household incomes for each city are sourced from Statistics Canada.<\/em><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Good news for home buyers\u00a0in wild rose country: Housing affordability is relatively healthy in all markets across the province, as wages have kept pace with home values. According to recent data compiled by Zoocasa, an Albertan earning at least the median household income would be able to afford a home in any of the province\u2019s […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":39,"featured_media":15968,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"jnews-multi-image_gallery":[],"jnews_single_post":[],"jnews_primary_category":[],"footnotes":""},"categories":[1107,33],"tags":[1110],"class_list":["post-15962","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-infographics","category-real-estate-news","tag-alberta"],"yoast_head":"\nHow Much You\u2019ll Need to Earn to Buy a Home in Alberta | Zoocasa<\/title>\n<meta name=\"description\" content=\"How much income do you need to earn to buy a home in Alberta? 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