Although the property market has been hurt by a shortage of buyer confidence resulting in home sales to cool worldwide, cities like Vaughan, Ontario the City Above Toronto,” are making a fast recovery, which is resulting in a rare’seller’s market.’ Over the past 20 years, the region has risen from a mostly rural region to a busy hub of communities that are all considered piece of the city of Vaughan. In just 10 years, the community of Vaughan expanded 276 percent and is predicted to rise to 1.5 million by 2031.
The census results from 2006 made public that Vaughan is attracting many young home owners, with 81 percent of the city below 55 years old with a median age of 35.9 years, which is significantly lower than the 39 year-old average for Ontario.~ Vaughan is attracting young residents, and based on the 2006 statistics the median age is 35.9 years with over 81 percent under the age of 55.} Although up to 65% of the homes in Vaughan are single-family detached buildings, upscale multiple-row houses and apartment condominium are becoming more sought after, according to studies by the York Region Planning Department.
The median family income is 31 percent higher than the national average, as a result Vaughan real estate ranges more than the average cost of residences in Toronto. Areas all over Vaughan are dealing with a heightened demand as home owners put up their Markham homes for sale all with the desire of making a profit.
One of the big attractions of Vaughan real estate is how close it is to Toronto’s services, however without the high pace of a metropolitan center. The area has tried to keep a small town local feel by focusing on lots of green spaces inside well-planned neighborhoods naturally sectioned into communities that have up-to-date schools and civic hubs. Purchasers are also enticed by the focus on public green spaces surrounded the well planned neighborhoods with civic hubs with modern schools. Unlike many ‘bedroom communities,’ Vaughan has a wealth of daycare and health care services– including a new regional hospital — and high end shopping centers, restaurants and modern public recreational centers.
As the population in Vaughan has climbed, the infrastructure has kept up with the demand for access to Toronto for the commuters, and there is a spectacular grid of four lane roads that connect the interstates and toll roads to city streets and main roads. The local Viva bus system has a fleet of sleek Van Hool buses that connect transit providers at the ‘Vivastation’ that features modern ticket dispensers and ‘smart’ monitor to notify passengers of all departures. The Vivastation provides modern ticket machines and ‘smart’ display notifications for passenger departures that link up to the Toronto Transit Commission (TTC) subway systems.
Unlike the heavily populated Toronto region, there is still lots of undeveloped Vaughan real estate available. Because Toronto has such a tightly packed population, there are less occasions to custom build houses and estates in the metropolitan area.
The wide open areas also mean there is room to build new attractions such as the Canada’s Wonderland theme park found in Maple, one of Vaughan’s communities, that pulls in a diverse range of visitors to inject money into the local economy. Agricultural land comprises a significant portion of open land and there is a plan to try and preserve it.
The other places that make up the city of Vaughan are Woodbridge, Klienburg, Markham, Concord and a portion of Thornhill. Every region has a unique feel– artfully mixing older homes, upscale neighborhoods and multi-family dwellings around industrial areas, retail malls and business districts.