Why You Need To Move to Barrie
I searched all over Ontario to find my first investment property. As a Toronto native that didn’t have the budget to invest in the local market at the time, I travelled far and wide across the Province from Windsor to Belleville in search of a less expensive but high potential place to buy a property. My journey eventually took me to Barrie, which I found to be one of the best places to buy real estate not just in Ontario but in all of Canada. I’ll tell you why I bought my first investment property in Barrie and why I continue to invest here today.
IS BARRIE A GOOD PLACE TO LIVE?
Yes, Barrie is a fantastic city to live and is growing quickly for good reason. Barrie has a set of attributes that combine to make it one of the most unique cities in Canada.
Barrie offers a cottage-like lifestyle close to the city.
Barrie is often called “the gateway to cottage country”. Resting on the shores of beautiful Lake Simcoe, Barrie offers all the benefits of cottage life including boating, fishing and sandy beaches, while conveniently located only 45 minutes from Toronto. For enthusiasts of winter sports, Barrie is home to several ski resorts including Snow Valley and Horseshoe.
Barrie is highly connected to the GTA.
Home to two GO Stations, Barrie residents can hop on the train and have direct access to the entire GTA from Niagara Falls to Oshawa. The GO Train also makes it easy for people to live in Barrie and work in downtown Toronto, since it directly links Barrie with Union Station. Barrie is also easily accessible by car as it is located directly on Highway 400, making it a short 30-minute drive from Vaughan and 45-minute drive from Toronto.
The cost of living is lower.
Barrie offers proximity and easy access to Toronto at a much lower price point. In October 2022, the average price of a single family home in Barrie was $833,900 according to CREA. Compare that to the average price of a Toronto detached home which cost $1,200,494 for the same time period. Your dollar goes much further in Barrie, allowing you to buy a more spacious home on a larger property, for less money. Having a smaller mortgage means you have more disposable income to spend on the things you enjoy doing.
Barrie has a strong economy and diverse job market.
Contrary to popular belief, Barrie is not just a bedroom community for Toronto. In fact, over 65% of the residents of Barrie work locally in Simcoe County, an area represented by employers spanning a wide variety of sectors including education, health care, manufacturing, technology and financial services. Some of the county’s most notable employers include Simcoe County District School Board (6600 employees), Canadian Forces Base Borden (5000 employees), Honda Canada (4200 employees), Georgian College (2000 employees) and Napoleon Grills (800 employees). Barrie has one of the lowest unemployment rates in the Province of Ontario at 5%.
The Population of Barrie is growing.
The City of Barrie which has 153,215 residents as of 2022 is implementing a growth strategy with the goal of increasing the city’s population to 210,000 by 2031. City plans project Barrie reaching 298,000 residents by 2051. Investing in Barrie real estate today will allow you to get in ahead of the planned exponential growth.
Barrie has amazing healthcare.
Barrie is home to the state-of-the-art Royal Victoria Regional Health Centre, which is the largest hospital in Simcoe County and the Muskoka District. In 2022, RVH received the prestigious Green Hospital of the Year award for its commitment to environmental stewardship and carbon footprint reduction efforts.
Click below to ask our experts about the best projects in Barrie to invest in:
Is Barrie a Good Place to Buy a Rental Property?
Barrie is one of the best cities in Ontario to buy a rental property because the average rents are very high while the cost of buying a home is relatively reasonable. Barrie falls within the top 10 most expensive cities to rent in Canada and top 5 in Ontario. In November 2022, an average one bedroom apartment in Barrie rents for $1730 per month while a similar apartment in Toronto rents for $2130, a difference of just $400 per month (or 19%). In comparison, a condominium in Barrie sells for an average price of $463,713 while in Toronto the average condominium price is $744,380, which is $280,677 more (or 38%). Rental property investors in Barrie get more bang for their buck versus many other cities in Ontario because they make more in rental income per dollar spent on a property. The cap rates enjoyed by investors in Barrie (net operating income divided by property asset value) are higher than those earned by investors in Toronto and the GTA.
How Much Is Property Tax In Barrie?
The residential property tax rate in Barrie is 1.254822%. This means residents can expect to pay $6274.11 annually on a house with an assessed value of $500,000 and $12,548.22 annually on a house assessed at $1,000,000 in value. The city of Barrie has a property tax calculator on their website to help residents easily calculate their annual property tax expense.
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