Canada's capital is the country's best-kept secret.
GETTY IMAGES/CAVAN IMAGES RFA bilingual city with a Francophone majority and an international flavor, Montreal offers vibrant culture, a booming business sector, and abundant green spaces, along with characterful neighborhoods and a beautifully preserved Old Port section.
A depressed economy kept real-estate prices low in the 1990s and early 2000s. No longer; the secret’s out, and the market reflects it. The average sold price of a detached home in greater Montreal was C$568,373 (US$442,615) in October, a 20% year-over-year jump. And while sales in the red-hot markets of Toronto and Vancouver have cooled a bit, Montreal keeps getting more competitive for buyers as properties sell faster and for higher prices.
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While Montreal’s unique in its French DNA, several Canadian cities offer a similarly appealing array of amenities, recreation and culture. Some even have more accessible home values and more options in a sizzling property market nationwide. Here are five alternatives to Montreal:
Ottawa, Ontario
As Canada’s capital, with a constant influx of newcomers, “Ottawa is one of the most cosmopolitan cities in Canada,” said Marilyn Wilson, owner of Marilyn Wilson Dream Properties/Christie’s International Real Estate in Ottawa. “But we’re also the country’s best-kept secret. People go to Montreal, and think… ‘This is it?’ They come here and think it’s the most beautiful place they’ve ever seen.”
Rockcliffe Park and Manotick are the city’s two most affluent residential neighborhoods; hip Westboro, Hintonburg, the Glebe and the Byward Market area have been attracting more residents. “It’s a value, even at the high end of the market,” she said. “What you can get for C$4 million here would cost you double that in Toronto,” Canada’s second-most expensive housing market.
“We’ve got world-class outdoors, the Unesco-recognized Rideau Canal, the National Gallery of Canada and beautiful waterfront properties everywhere,” she said. “Plus, you can get anywhere in 20 minutes.”
Moncton, New Brunswick
Moncton is New Brunswick's largest city.
Getty ImagesNew Brunswick is Canada’s only officially bilingual province, with the second-biggest number of French speakers outside Quebec. Moncton, its largest city, boasts a population of about 81,000—but new arrivals are swelling that number, said Matt Honsberger, president of the region’s Royal LePage Atlantic real estate agency.
“We’ve had a very significant influx of people from Ontario here, and across all of Atlantic Canada,” Mr. Honsberger said. “You get everything you’d get in an Ontario town, but the price points here are so appealing.” The benchmark price of a home was C$291,200 in October 2021—a jump of 34.8% year over year, but significantly less than larger markets. “But prices are moving up and inventory’s dropping,” he said.
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Price isn’t the only appeal, Mr. Honsberger said. “Moncton’s got theater, great restaurants and great culture. You can be at your seaside cottage in 30 minutes. It’s bilingual, so we’re attracting people from Ottawa and Quebec as well.” And Moncton is welcoming, he added. “Walk down the street in Montreal, and people are trying to avoid eye contact. Walk down the street in Moncton, you get a nod and a ‘hello.’”
Edmonton, Alberta
Edmonton is seeing tremendous investments in infrastructure.
Getty ImagesEdmonton is on sale. So says John Carter, broker/owner at RE/MAX River City Real Estate. “It’s not going to be on sale for long. Prices are going up. And we’re getting noticed internationally” among both investors and immigrants, he said.
The capital of Alberta in western Canada, Edmonton has endured a depressed market for nearly a decade, partly owing to a tanked oil economy. Prices still haven’t recovered to pre-crash highs, Mr. Carter said. “That’s where there’s opportunity. We’re the most affordable big city in Canada,” with average detached-home prices around C$457,000, he said. Downtown Edmonton also boasts a thriving condo market, where prices average C$226,000.
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There’s a lot going on in this city of 1 million, he said. “We’ve got incredible culture, tremendous schools and a real culinary scene,” much of it driven by immigrants and tech and cannabis entrepreneurs. “We’re now a multicultural city, and that’s attractive,” he said. “Our 250 brokers speak 26 languages. That speaks to why we’re doing so well.”
As the capital, Edmonton’s seeing “tremendous investments in infrastructure. And especially this time of year, our Parliament buildings are so beautiful. They light up this whole area.”
Hamilton, Ontario
The average price for a home in Hamilton is C$911,673.
Getty ImagesToronto’s loss has been Hamilton’s gain. As Canada’s largest city grew costlier and denser, many residents fled 40 miles west to this former steeltown, where jobs are plentiful, housing costs are lower and amenities keep blossoming.
“A lot of restaurateurs have relocated from Toronto to Hamilton, so dozens of new dining spots have opened in recent years,” said Blair Gillis, broker/manager at Royal LePage State Realty in Hamilton. “A lot of artists moved here, too. We’ve got beautiful theaters and a bunch of sports farm teams,” along with the Hamilton Tiger-Cats, a professional football team.
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The housing market reflects Hamilton’s heat. The average price here for a detached or semi-detached home is C$911,673. While detached-home prices have soared 27% over the same period last year—“and 40% higher, if not more, over five years,” Mr. Gillis said—they’re still lower than greater Toronto. “You get more for your million dollars here,” he said. “That won’t get you a detached home in Toronto.”
While Hamilton’s a convenient commuter base for Toronto, with a busy direct rail link and many buses, the city’s becoming its own corporate hotspot, with brands like Amazon establishing a presence here in recent months. “We’ve also got a large airport that’s a lot less congested than Toronto Pearson [International Airport], and we’re just 40 minutes by car to Buffalo [New York],” Mr. Gillis said.
Halifax, Nova Scotia
A luxury home for sale in Halifax.
Engel & VolkersHalifax, Nova Scotia, is welcoming. It’s friendly. “Unlike bigger cities, cars stop for you in the crosswalk,” said Alexandra Vallee, an agent at Engel & Volkers in Halifax. “It’s such a great place to live.”
But that doesn’t mean you can drop everything and move there. “We’re facing extremely high demand and low inventory,” she said. “It’s insane. As of two days ago, we had 319 homes for sale. Last year at this time, there were about 1,300 homes for sale.” Migration, much of it from high-priced Ontario, is the main driver, along with a lack of new homes and housing starts, she added.
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If you can find a place to live in this city of 415,000, “the lifestyle is pretty incredible,” Ms. Vallee said. “Our province is pretty much surrounded by ocean. There’s a lot of space. There are many places to hike, and a lot of parks. And every neighborhood’s like a micro-city, with everything you need within 10 minutes—you barely have to drive for conveniences.”
Wealthy newcomers are part of the reason arts are flourishing there, along with a restaurant scene “that’s starting to look like Toronto’s in terms of design.” A constellation of universities, including Dalhousie and Mount Saint Vincent universities, mean a constant infusion of student energy, too. “And a lot of parents are buying those kids condos, which is also factoring into the market,” Ms. Vallee said.
This article originally appeared on Mansion Global.
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