It’s So Expensive To Build A Home In Toronto & It Even Costs More Than Paris

It’s no secret that prospective homeowners in Toronto have seen a massive jump in house prices over the last few months.

To put a wrench in the plans of hopeful homebuyers, the 6ix just cracked the top ten list for one of the most expensive cities to build a house in the whole world. Yikes.

According to a recent study from a UK-based finance company, Capital On Tap, it's more affordable to build yourself a house in Paris than it is in Toronto.

So, with the 6ix’s famously expensive prices, moving across the world to live on the romantic streets of Paris sounds pretty nice right about now.

Currently, Toronto sits eighth on the top ten list for most expensive places to build a home per square metre around the world.

Hong Kong reigns supreme as the priciest city to build a house at £3,392 (or $5,778.73, Canadian) per square metre, while London snags the silver medal at £3,163 (or $5,388.60, Canadian.)

Here’s how the rest of the top list stacks out (based on how much it costs per square metre, alone, with currency conversions done at 3:30 p.m. on January 21):

1. Hong Kong, £3,392 (CA$5,778.73)
2. London, £3,163 (CA$5,388.60)
3. Tokyo, £3,099 (CA$5,279.57)
4. New York, £2,331 (CA$3,971.17)
5. Singapore, £2,288 (CA$3,897.92)
6. San Francisco, £2,161 (CA$3,681.56)
7. Seattle, £1,883 (CA$3,207.95)
8. Toronto, £1,879 (CA$3,201.13)
9. Vancouver, £1,870 (CA$3,185.80)
10. Dublin, £1,820 (CA$3,100.62)

When not counting the costs of land, taxes, and fees, the average price Torontonians should expect to pay £264,011 (or $449,778 Canadian) to construct their homes in the city.

Capital on Tap

It’s a far cry from costs in Paris where prices are under half the cost of Toronto, at around £115,601 ($197,089.30, Canadian)

So, how do construction fees add up?

Based on the report, constructions costs from building houses depend on the availability of space and labour, in addition to the demand for materials.

According to Capital on Tap, the prices of important materials like copper pipes, timber, and rebar have seen as much as a 40% increase as a result of the pandemic.

Sadly, this expensive housing fiasco seems to have no end in sight.

In August of last year, the city’s housing market was reported to have risen the highest compared to all cities around the world.

If that wasn’t enough to crush your home-buying dreams, homes soared another 18.3% in September of 2021 alone.

To make matters worse, in a report late last year, RE/MAX Canada estimated a 9.2% increase in average home sales prices across the country.

Time to say “au revoir” to Canada?