$1 million still buys a luxury home in Edmonton

Article content

Luxury real estate isn’t necessarily in the eye of the beholder. Rather, it’s relative to pricing in Canada’s resale market, and a new report examining what $1 million purchases today reveals luxury homes in Edmonton continue to offer deep value.

“I am just amazed that a starter house in Toronto is $1 million and the same for Vancouver,” says Ed Lastiwka, associate realtor with Royal LePage Noralta, speaking about the recent report for Royal LePage.

Article content

Article content

The study investigated what $1 million purchases in major Canadian cities, and Edmonton ranked the highest value per square footage at 2,675 square feet.

“Edmonton’s still good value for that price,” Lastiwka says, adding it remains the entry-point for luxury homes.

“You can probably live in just about any neighbourhood in town.”

By contrast, $1 million purchases a 900-sq.-ft. home in Vancouver, and a home covering about 1,200 sq. ft. in Toronto.

“I don’t understand how young people in those cities can survive,” he adds, noting the benchmark prices for all housing types in both cities exceed $1 million.

In Greater Vancouver, the January benchmark price for a condominium was about $752,000, Canadian Real Estate Association statistics show. For a single-family detached home, the benchmark was nearly $2 million.

In Edmonton, the benchmark for a condominium was about $180,000 in January and $434,800 for a single-family detached home, Realtors of Association of Edmonton statistics show.

Taken altogether, statistics show $1 million still purchases a lot in Edmonton, says John Carter, broker/owner of Re/Max River City.

Article content

Article content

“These are typically new (in the suburbs) or newer infill homes” in older neighbourhoods for that price. Carter further points to one recently listed home near the University of Alberta, an infill with more than 2,300 sq. ft., priced at $1.05 million with four bedrooms and four bathrooms, built in 2023.

Pricing around the $1-million threshold, however, can be tricky due to federal borrowing rules, requiring at least 20 per cent for a down payment. In short, buyers cannot leverage Canada Mortgage and Housing Corp. and other mortgage insurance providers.

“So pricing properties around that point can have a big impact,” Carter says.

Still, many buyers at the $1-million-plus range usually have more cash to purchase and are often less affected.

Yet pricing below $1 million is much more active, Lastiwka says.

“Between $800,000 and $1 million is sort of the move-up market here.”

He further notes these buyers have growing families that have outgrown their existing homes. Homes they often consider are illustrated by one recent listing in Terwillegar Towne in Edmonton’s southwest — among the more desirable in the city.

Article content

It came onto the market at $1.1 million with four bedrooms and four bathrooms at 3,200 sq. ft., built in 2003, and renovated in the last few years.

In more mature areas, land values are somewhat higher, leading to infills exceeding the $1 million price tag, Lastiwka notes.

Yet even in communities like Riverbend, again highly desirable, two-storey homes that need updating still sell for less than $1 million.

Even those could see strong price appreciation, however, due to growing demand if interest rates fall later this year, Lastiwka notes.

“A lot of people gravitate toward older communities where they grew up,” he adds, noting these are often move-up buyers more apt to purchase near the $1-million range.

“Of course, that is, if the homes are large enough for their family.”

Article content