When discussing the various housing options available to Canadian households, single-family homes and standalone buildings are often top of mind. Real estate buyers and homeowners typically prefer to build their homes on their own land. An apartment building of five or more storeys is a rare occurrence if you consider the country as a whole.
However, having guided many clients through the bustling Toronto real estate market, I've noticed a significant shift towards condo living in urban areas.
Curious about just how many people choose the convenience and lifestyle of condo living in Toronto?
Let’s delve into the latest statistics and explore why condos have become a popular choice for many Torontonians.
Quick Summary
- Condos can be a solid investment, offering potential for rental income and property appreciation.
- Condos represent about 40% of all residential property sales in Toronto, underscoring their significance in the housing market.
- Approximately 35% of Toronto’s population lives in condominiums, reflecting the city's trend towards vertical living.
- From my experience, condos offer a more affordable entry point into the housing market compared to single-family homes, making them attractive to first-time buyers and young professionals.
Condo Living: A Growing Trend
According to Statistics Canada, condos have become the dominant choice for urban living in Toronto. While single-family homes are still popular nationwide, urban centers like Toronto show a clear shift toward high-rise and apartment-style living.
- In Toronto, 44% of housing units are apartments, surpassing single-unit homes, which stand at 40%.
- About 39% of Toronto’s population resides in apartments, with 29.4% living in high-rises and 10% in low-rise buildings.
This trend isn’t confined to Toronto—cities like Vancouver and Ottawa are also seeing a rise in condo living.
The Condominium Ownership
There are other census data sources too that give an estimate or provide figures about how many condo owners exist in Toronto and what the proportion of condominium ownership is, to the total ownership of private dwellings in Canada [1].
The census shows that there is a greater population of condo living people than those in single-detached housing.
Out of the total population of Toronto, 18% are condominium owners in apartment buildings that are fewer than five storeys. 9.9% are those with private dwellings in apartment buildings that are greater than 5 storeys tall.
In all of the 2,135,910 dwellings in Toronto, a combined 39.4% lived in apartments (29.4 per cent in apartments with greater than 5 storeys; the remaining 10 per cent in apartments having less than 5 storeys).
Now, let's talk about census data from Ontario. Here, a little more than half of the over 5 million household dwellings of people were single-detached homes or bungalows.
Obviously, its percentage is the largest. But the second most popular choice in Ontario too was a condominium. Around 27.3 per cent of owners have invested in apartment housing buildings in the city. So, it does seem that the condo lifestyle is gaining popularity here too.
Condominium Units and Condominium Owners
The Toronto Condo News has compared data related to condominium owners and condominium units in the city since the beginning of the last decade - 2011.
The percentage of condominium owners was 37.6 per cent then, with more than 975,000 condo owners out of a total population of 2.6 million.
This figure had increased by 53 per cent in 2015 and by 54.7 per cent by 2016, according to the Toronto Condo News.
Every year in Toronto, about 100K more people arrive. This population is only supported by new condominium development and more people becoming condo owners. Clearly, the Toronto Condo News concludes an ever-increasing number of the already high proportion of people of Canada (and Toronto, especially,) living in condominiums.
This trend of condominiums being the more popular option for dwellings of people in Canada is also reflected elsewhere, outside Toronto. In three of the 10 census metropolitan areas (CMAs), namely, Toronto, Ontario, and Vancouver were the largest number of condominiums.
The condominiums in these 3 CMAs accounted for a little over 53 per cent of all condos throughout Canada. Apart from Toronto, more than 30 per cent of the population lives in a condo in Vancouver.
The National Household Survey
The NHS (National Household Survey) data of 2011 shows that around 12% of homeowners even then lived in condos. Out of this, around 1.15 million people were condo owners and 461, 215 individuals were renters.
According to the 2016 Statistics Canada study, 1.9 million Canadian households lived in condominium units. Out of this, just over two thirds were the owner.
Structure of the Condominiums
There is also a study about the structure or construction of households across these CMAs.
Condominiums can be classified as low-rise apartment buildings, high-rise apartment buildings and row houses as per their structure.
As an average, the most common of condos were the low-rise ones (at 36.3 per cent). Then the high-rise ones at 30.9 per cent and finally row houses at around one-fifth (22.9 percent) of the total condominiums.
Of these, high-rise condominiums represented two-thirds of the apartments in Toronto. However, in Quebec, the proportion of low-rise condos was just over two-thirds (69.3 per cent).
Residents with children again find living in a condo building to be safer. Additionally, there are condo boards for every condominium complex located that oversees the management of day-to-day affairs.
This makes condo residents feel convenient, secure and comfortable. Since October, more than 20 developers have announced new condo project developments in and around Toronto.
Condos come at a more affordable price; and prices have been by and large stable in this part of the construction business. Since July 2021, a record number of condo units have been sold in Toronto.
To sum things up, the number of condo houses owned by Toronto residents has seen a significant rise in the last decade. A deal for a condo is what a prospective new home owner in Toronto looks forward to.
See Precondo for information on pre-construction condos, properties and lofts for sale in Toronto, Ontario.
Do you know there is a new shopping centre in Toronto? Check our article The Well Mall Toronto Canada Redefines City Shopping Experience
References:
- https://www.cmhc-schl.gc.ca/en/blog/2021/results-2020-condominium-apartment-survey
