Ajax Ontario is a great town that is close to plenty of amenities and attractions. It's near the city of Toronto Ontario, so if you’re working inside Toronto and need to commute to work then Ajax would be great for you. You also get to enjoy the affordable real estate and lots of family friendly activities in Ajax. 

Today, I’ll take you inside Google Maps and show you where Ajax Ontario sits on the map and what types of food, fun, and housing you can enjoy inside the town. Let’s explore Ajax Ontario today! 

Watch this video to learn what you need to know before moving to Ajax Ontario.

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Let's talk about one of the top cities to live in in Canada! Whitby Ontario was ranked top 25 out of 415 cities in the entire country!

In this video I break down - in great detail - the highest ranking Whitby Ontario neighborhoods that people are moving to. Discover average prices of homes, schools in the area, safety ratings, plus the most popular places to eat and play.

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So you’re thinking about moving to Whitby Ontario? Well in this video I’m going to show you the top 5 neighboourhoods in Whitby Ontario and we’re gonna make it really exciting for you because 1st we’re going to hop in my car and I’m going to take you for a ride. I’ve taken extensive footage of each of these neighbourhoods so you can see them up close and personal. Then I’m gonna show you some of the different styles of homes, different price points, so whether you’re looking for a starter home or a forever home, you get a full picture of how far your budget can take you and get a better picture of what it’s like to live right here in beautiful Whitby Ontario. So without further ado, let’s get right in to it!

Hey if this is your first time to the channel and you want to know everything there is to know about living in Toronto and the surrounding areas like Whitby then subscribe below. Also tap the bell for notifications so you can be the first to know about the current market in Toronto. My name is Rochelle Manguino I’m a local real estate agent right here in Whitby and the surrounding Greater Toronto Area. For the last 7 years I’ve been helping people just like yourself move to the GTA and I absolutely love it. So whether you’re looking to move in 9 days or 90 days I’d love to hear from you! Give me a call, shoot me a text, send me an email, or even schedule a Zoom call down in the description below. I’d be happy to help you make a smooth move to Toronto. 

So let’s get in to this let me show you what Whitby is all about! Hop in my car and the first spot on our top 5 list that I want to show you is Taunton North. If you take a look at our map here you can see that Taunton North is closer to the north end of town. And just like its neighbours Pickering Ajax and Oshawa, the northern part of the city is primarily rural. But with this neighbourhood specifically, Taunton North it’s seen a large increase in population over recent years because of a large number of builders coming in to the area and transitioning it from a rural countryside to an urban community. That said there are quite a number of newer subdivisions being built, newer homes. So let’s head over to the area and see what the neighbourhood looks like. 

Welcome to Taunton North! You may’ve noticed from the drive thru here that the neighbourhood has  a lot of large detached executive homes, but also a bunch of more modest detached houses and townhomes in the mix too. The average price of a home here is $1.071 million dollars.

This home is at the average price point it sold for $1 million dollars even and it has 2+2 bedrooms and 5 baths. Whenever you see a listing that has +1 bedrooms, +2 bedrooms, that means they’re referring to either a den or a bedroom in the basement for example. Officially, in order to call a room a bedroom it has to have a closet and a window large enough to escape from if there’s a fire. Those are the rules about what constitutes a bedroom and so this house is a good example of that because it is a bungalow, where on the main floor you’ve got the 2 bedrooms. And then the +2 bedrooms those are actually in the finished basement of this home where because they are below grade level you don’t have the appropriate sized windows you need to actually call it a bedroom officially, but still added value because at the end of the day you still have a total of 4 bedrooms in the whole house so there’s your fun fact for the day!

And so that is also what a cool round million dollars can get you in this neck of the woods. But now I want to do is just drive up a little further up north, directly north actually of where we’re at now just about 5 minutes away I want to take you to the neighbourhood of Brooklin. Brooklin In my humble opinion is one of Whitby’s hidden gems. Not too many people have heard of this area which is good and it’s bad I mean it’s good because it might get overpopulated and won’t be a little secret anymore how beautiful and relatively affordable it is there but bad because everyone should know about it it’s very underrated and you’ll see why when I show you so that’s what I want to do is let you guys in on this charming little neighbourhood in Whitby. It’s the #2 spot on our top 5 list come hop in the car with me and let me show you Brooklin.

Isn’t Brooklin just beautiful? I love it here and what’s really unique about this neighbourhood here is its strong sense of community, because first of all that downtown core that we drove through with all the charming little shops and restaurants? That’s called Brooklin Village. And that whole area is designated an Ontario Heritage Conservation District. That means that property owners need a permit to make certain changes to their home, like if they want to extend their front porch or add an addition to their property, they’ll need permission from the city because they wanna make sure that the homes in the area and the overall look and feel of the community is consistent so they’ve done a great job of preserving its historical charm and you really do get a good sense of community with that. There are actually tons of events are held here throughout the year right here where I’m standing is where they host the Brooklin Christmas festival and the Brooklin Spring Fair. And then the Brooklin Farmers Market is a really popular weekly thing that goes on that brings everyone together as well which is really fun. Now in terms of housing, I’m going to show you what your average home here looks like. It is helpful to know that the newer section of Brooklin which is east of the downtown core where I’m at now, it has a more modern look to the homes there yet they’ve somehow managed to blend in that contemporary look of homes with the historic charm of the area it’s really unique I’m excited to show you so let’s go take a hike up the road and I’ll show you exactly what I’m talking about, let’s go.

So here’s where I’m talking about you get a nice mix of new and old. The homes in this subdivision are relatively newer around 20 years old but they’ve got this Victorian revival style to the brick and mostly siding exterior with Victorian accents like gingerbread trim you can see at the tops of the roofs there, and and gabled, triangular pitched roofs which were the predominant style from that time as well. 

This one here behind me it also has that whimsical charm you’ve got an inviting front porch and all siding clad exterior. This one is actually a townhouse, it has 3 beds, 3 baths, and recently sold for $744,000 dollars. What’s really beneficial about this set of townhouses unlike most townhomes in Whitby is that it is not a condo townhouse you don’t pay condo fees. So normally when you think of a condo you think of a unit inside a building and you have monthly condo fees you pay for the pool, security, building insurance, etc. What a lot of ppl don’t know though is that many townhomes are usually condos as well in that you have to pay your monthly condo fees to pay for things like water and garbage and whatever shared amenities are part of the complex say the the inner street for example or visitor parking you’re paying to have the snow removed and just to keep the overall aesthetic of the complex more uniform. But like I said this townhouse specifically does not have any condo fees. It’s a freehold which means you are responsible for the upkeep of everything on your property, the lawn, the roof, the backyard. But at the same time that does give you more control of any improvements you want to make to your place you know a lot of times condos will have rules about oh you can’t paint your door this colour or you can’t hang these objects from your window. That’s not the case here with a freehold and on top of that you do get to have more direction in terms of your budget and where your money actually goes. Now in terms of budget if you wanted to stay below the million dollar price point then I have a great area for you. The next neighbourhood on your top 5 list is where you’ll find a lot more options between the $750k and million dollar price range. You’ve got a good selection of a variety of different homes - what’s been selling the most most recently are townhomes that’s the most popular style here that’s been selling like hot cakes, but they do have larger sized semi detached and single family homes under the million dollar mark as well so let’s hop in my car and I’ll show you what this homes look like. Come with me and let’s head on over to the neighbourhood of Rolling Acres. 

Welcome to Rolling Acres! Quick breakdown on this lovely neighbourhood it’s actually the smallest neighborhood in Whitby in terms of land size but what it lacks in size, it makes up for in nearby amenities. Here you’ll find tons of shopping like grocery stores restaurants gas stations and big box retailers. There are also 3 schools in the neighbourhood including 1 catholic school and 2 public schools, but note that they’re all elementary schools offering kindergarten to grade 8 but there are several high schools just outside of the neighbourhood that are available to you as well.

Now I mentioned that here in Rolling Acres is where you’ll find a lot more affordable homes that are at a lower price point compared to other neighbourhoods in Whitby. The average home here is $1.02 million dollars which is about average for the city but like I said you can still find a lot of great options under the million dollar mark, a perfect example being this charming house behind me here. This one recently sold for $807,000. It’s a detached home as you can see with 3 bedrooms and 2 baths. The homes in this area are great for growing families because this one here for example has a finished basement so that gives you extra room for the kids to play or for additional storage space if you need it, I mean we could all use more storage right. But then like a lot of the homes here you can also see that house has an extra long driveway where you can park 3 cars which is convenient for larger families as well. In terms of location you’re close to great schools. There’s a website out there called areavibes that ranks schools in Canada based on student test scores. Here in Rolling Acres the average school score they gave a rating of 77.8. That’s higher than the overall Whitby schools score of 74, the overall Ontario schools score of 67, and that’s also 18% higher than the national average so great place to raise a family, you’ve got tons of amenities nearby and you get to benefit from more affordable housing compared to nearby neighbourhoods in the area.  

By the way if you are getting value out of this video so far then please don’t forget to give me a thumbs up and make sure you also subscribe to my channel as well so you get all the insider info you need to make your move to Whitby or anywhere in the GTA an easy and informative one. Alright next stop on our top 5 list is Williamsburg. It’s a great neighbourhood for growing families as well because it’s more densely populated a community which means you’re naturally going to have more kids in the mix which is nice if you have kids yourself it’ll be easy for you to just step outside your front door and have a bunch of playmates for your kids to hang out with and you’re going to see a lot parks and recreational activities in the neighbourhood as well so let’s go for a ride there right now. Hop in my car and I’ll show you #2 on our list, the community of Williamsburg. ich makes the location ideal for commuters. So let’s go for a ride in my car again and I’ll take you for a tour let’s go.

Location wise Williamsburg actually sits along the Lynde Creek Greenbelt so that forms sort of a green buffer around this neighbourhood. And then the Heber Down Conservation Area is just up north that’s where you’ll find plenty of nature trails, you can go out for a picnic, and even go fishing or camping on the grounds as well. You’ve also got Highway 412 and the 407 are close too making it easy to hit your 400 series highways if you’re wanting to travel in to Toronto or elsewhere in the GTA. Now Let me flip my phone around and i’ll show you the residential pockets in this neighbourhood. 

Welcome to Williamsburg! Like I mentioned this area is ideal for families because you’ve got a more densely populated community. If you’re looking at the population per square km then Williamsburg actually has 3322 residents per square km, and that’s compared to 943 residents per square km in all of Whitby so that’s more than triple. That said you are going to find a lot of multi-family dwellings in the neighbourhood, like towns and semi-detahced houses. But again you also have a lot more homes with kids in the family. Just to throw a few more stats at you that are helpful to know. Williamsburg in fact in terms of families with kids at home they’re sitting at 61%, whereas in the rest of Whitby only 55% of families have kids at home so you’ve got a slightly higher percentage here. You’ve also got more married couples in this neighbourhood, 77% compared to 74 and 71% in Whitby and Ontario. And you’ve got a slightly younger population here as well, the median age being 38, compared to 39 and 40 in Whitby and Ontario.   So again, great place for younger families and you’ve got a range of housing styles to choose from. 

The street that I’m on now has a good mix of singles, semis, and towns. On this side here you’ll find your single family detached houses. These homes in the last few months have sold for an average of $1.1, 1.2 million dollars. And then on the other side of this street literally just right across the street you’ve got a good, long row of townhomes that’ll likely go for anywhere between 850 and a million dollars, depending of course on its size, features, and finishes. But again, great variety of homes to choose from, you’ve got a ton of great options available to you. But now, it’s time to head over to the #5 spot on our top 5 list. I’m gonna take you to the beautiful shores of Lake Ontario. I want to show you Whitby’s lakeside community we’re going to head down south to the neighbourhood of Port Whitby. Just so you know we are going to pass by an industrial pocket of the city on the way there. Port Whitby is also bordered by parkland and conservation areas to the east and west which will make for an interesting drive so  let’s head on over there right now I’m excited to show you Whitby’s lakeside community let’s check the place out together. 

Welcome to Port Whitby! I’m at the Port Whitby Marina and if you want to capitalize on being in a lakeside town, then this area is for you. Situated next to the shores of Lake Ontario, housing around here comes with beautiful views of the water and access to a number of fun activities and amenities. Whitby actually has over 10 kms of waterfront trail so you can enjoy daily sunrises and sunsets along the water. The port itself is actually an award-winning facility with over 400 boat slips on the harbour so you can dock your boat there after you’ve enjoyed some rides on the water. There’s the clubhouse around the corner with a bunch of restaurants and shops you can walk to. And the marina also hosts a bunch of different events throughout the year, their biggest one being their Canada Day celebration where they throw fireworks, live music and have activities for the kids. Now let’s go check out some of their real estate. 

The dominant housing style here in Port Whity are high rise condo units. Over the last 12 months over 80% of the real estate sold here has been 1 and 2 bedroom condos in these buildings here that overlook the water. So a typical unit in your average building in this neighbourhood is going to run you anywhere between 5 and $600,000. The most recent sale in the neighbourhood was in this building. It was a 1 bed, 1 bath between 5 and 600 sqft on the 4th floor that sold for $535,000. So that’s quite typical in today’s market you’re looking at about $100 per square foot. Parking is included in that price and that unit I’m talking about specifically sold after 2 days on the market. 

Here’s the thing guys pre-pandemic the Toronto market was seeing average days on the market around 20-25 days. But now you guys know that homes are selling like hot cakes it’s a totally different market, the average number of days on market for a home in Whitby is 8. Homes are selling for anywhere between 10 and 20% over asking, often times even more so it can be a tricky market to navigate if you haven’t been in the scene in a while. You want to make sure you’ve spoken with a lender and have your pre-approval in place so that you come in with a strong offer as soon as you find a place. You want to be ready to make moves and decisions quick because of the short number of days on market competition is quite fierce these days as there are a bunch more buyers than there is inventory and that’s why you’ve got short days on the market for any given home because people want to buy a house and they want to buy now. So if you’re one of those people, whether you’re looking to move in 9 days or 90 days give me a shout. I’d be happy to help you through the process beginning to end everything from making sure you have your mortgage letters in place to showing you the best homes in the best neighbourhoods for you and your family.  Whether it’s Whitby or elsewhere in the GTA give me a shout I’d love to hear from you. 

Give me a call, shoot me a text, send me an email or schedule a Zoom all my contact info will be down below. I want to make sure your next move is a smooth and easy one. Until then thanks for watching everyone! My name is Rochelle Manguino your local greater Toronto area Realtor. I can’t wait to see you around town!

Moving to Whitby Ontario but you don't know where to start? In this video I cover all the pros and cons of living in one of Canada's top rated towns. Learn everything from housing affordability to ethnic diversity... a must watch before moving to Whitby Ontario!

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Hi there. This video is all about the pros and cons of living in Whitby Ontario. So stay tuned. Hi there. My name is Rochelle Manguino I'm the founder and creator of living in Toronto. I am also a local real estate agent with EXP Realty right here in Whitby Ontario. So if you're new to my channel, then welcome. I am here to let you know everything that you need to know about living, working, and even having fun in the greater Toronto area. So make sure you subscribe to my channel and hit the notification bell as well, so that you get notified every time I drop a new video, I do so every week where I give you guys all tips and strategies for purchasing or selling your next property. Anything that has to do with real estate in the greater Toronto area, I've got that for you. So let's get right into it. I'm about to drop the top three pros and cons of living in Whitby Ontario. So today I'm gonna give you everything that you need to know about moving to Whitby whether you're relocating for work, you're raising your family. You're retiring here. Or you're just looking for a change of scenery, then I'm gonna break it all down for you, the good, the bad and the ugly so that you have everything that you need to know before moving to Whitby.

So let's get right into it. I'm gonna start with the pros of living in wi me starting with number one, which is that housing is affordable. So when I talk about affordable housing in Wii, I'm talking in relative terms, I wanna make that really clear because if anyone knows anything about affordability in housing, in the greater Toronto area, you guys know that the GTA is very expensive. And so home prices in Whitby, which is part of the GTA will also be expensive as well. But we want to look at it in relative terms. So Whitby compared to other areas is relatively less expensive than other areas in the GTA. So that's your number one pro. And now I wanna talk about a little more about that in terms of the distance of Whitby from Toronto. So if you're looking at downtown Whitby to downtown Toronto, that's an easy 50 kilometer distance, which is about a 40 minute drive, but that also makes it very attractive for commuters who live in Whitby who want or need to to commute to Toronto for work. It is a very affordable option because you still have that sort of slow pace, suburban lifestyle where housing is less expensive than other areas in Toronto. You're still close to the city of Toronto. Yet you get to benefit from affordable housing in Whitby. If you are one of those commuters who are traveling from Whitby to Toronto or vice versa, the best way and what a lot of the residents in Whitby are doing is they're taking the go train because that avoids all of the traffic and congestion on the 401, the 401 being your main highway or direct access point from Whitby to Toronto. So despite its ideal location to Toronto people are really flocking to Whitby to purchase real estate. And the reason why is because you are so close to Toronto, but you still have affordable housing options. And that's the number one pro of living in Whitby is that you got to benefit from all of the city amenities, but still remain, you know, relatively less expensive in price in terms of your housing options.

Now with that said, I do actually have a video right over here that you can check out that outlines all of the different neighborhoods or all of the more popular neighborhoods in Whitby. You get an idea of the different price points in today's market, so that you get a good overall picture and actually a real street level view of what it's like to live any given neighborhood inside Whitby Ontario.

All right. So my number two pro of living in whitby Ontario is that it is very family friendly. Whitby is a really, really safe city to live in. So according to area vibes.com Whitby is actually 89% safer to live in than all other cities in Canada. So even despite Whitby's proximity to cities like Oshawa, so Oshawa is its neighboring city. They share a border and Oshawa is really known for having a high crime rate. And I actually talk about that in another video that I did about Oshawa Ontario, but despite being really close to that city the crime rate in whitby is actually really extremely low. In fact, the city's average crime rate is actually 37% lower than the national average. So that's how safe this city is. So that being said, it is a really great place to live and even raise a family. Because when you talk about what's nearby in whatever neighborhood you live in and Whitby, you are going to be surrounded by tons of trails and recreational activities, parks, and splash pads and all of that good stuff.

But what I wanna talk about next with you is actually the education system in Whitby because that just speaks to how family friendly and how safe Whitby is. So when it comes to safety and your kids specifically Whitby has a great school system. The Fraser Institute, they do a whole bunch of studies about different schools and different areas and what schools are good and what aren't. So they actually rank Whitby schools outrank these schools compared to their counterparts in all other parts of Canada. So for example, Fallingbrook public school, which is located in Whitby was actually rated by the Fraser Institute as one of their top 100 schools. In Ontario, there are two school boards in Whitby there's the Durham district school board, and then the Durham Catholic district school board. So you have both options there. And in fact, the Durham district school board headquarters are actually in Whitby giving the local schools in the area a lot more oversight, making them even more safe. And if you are looking to send your children to private schools, then there is actually a very prominent boarding school called Trafalgar Castle which is in Whitby. It is internationally recognized for having a really reputable university preparation program.

So I don't even know where to begin, but I think I'm gonna start at, uh, the Port Whitby Marina because that area is just magical and there's so much to do there because you are at the port so you're along the shores of lake Ontario.Whitby is a Lakeside city and you get access to there's a launchpad. If you wanted to bring your boat in the warmer months. Golfers can go out and hit the links at a number of different courses in and around the town Whitby is also home to the Whitevale Golf Club which is a world class members only golf club. If your interests lie more in the slopes rather than the courses, then you'd be happy to know that whitby has a lot of great skiing options available for you as well. You've got ski dagmar which is located in Whitby. They have a 12 run hill and they also have a charming, small, little cozy cottage sort of chalet that you can warm up in as well. Now there's also Ski Lakeridge which is also a year round facility. So you can do the skiing, snowboarding tubing in the winter time, but in the summer months or when the weather is, uh, you know, a little bit warmer then you also have access to hiking trails, cycling trails.
So no matter the weather, the season winter, spring, summer, fall, Whitby has you covered when it comes to enjoying the outdoors.

All right. So next I'm going to get into the cons of living in whitby because I think it is important, even though there are negative aspects about the city. I do want to touch on them and I think it's important to do so, because if you are considering a move to wi Ontario, then it would be good to know everything about it, the good, the bad and the ugly, just so that you know what to expect moving forward. But before I get into that, I do want to say that if you liked what you've watched so far, you're getting a lot of value from this video. Then please subscribe and like this video, but subscribe to my channel and also hit the notification bell as well, because then you'll get no notified every time I drop a new video as it relates to living and working and having fun in the greater Toronto area. All right, let's go.

So now I want to talk to you guys about the cons of living in Whitby Ontario. The first con that you guys need to know about are high property taxes. In fact, Whitney actually has one of the top five property taxes in all of Ontario.So sitting at 1.12%. So that was a property tax rate in Whitby in 2021, 1.12%. That's compared to 0.6% in the city of Toronto. So pretty much double what you would pay for the same home in Toronto, but there is a trade off there because if you are purchasing, you know, apples for apples, the same home in Toronto, you're gonna spend a lot more on the price of that home, but it compensates even though homes in Whitby are a lot more affordable.You are paying that significantly higher property tax. So again, while this may not be a factor that'll make or break your decision to move to Whitby, it is something that is important to consider with that said your best plan of action is to actually speak with a mortgage broker so that what they can do is actually they'll take a look at your budget and what they can do is lump some your monthly mortgage payments. So your monthly mortgage payments, your insurance and your property taxes into one payment. So that you know what to expect, you know how much is coming out of your account every month and you can budget accordingly. Okay.

So the second con about living in Whitby is that there isn't a lot of ethnic diversity. So the population are primarily white English speaking residents, but you do have, so statistically 17%, it's kind of a low number, but 17% of whitby residents are a visible minority. And so while it may, you know, it may not be a con to everyone, but if you are looking for ethnic diversity, then wihitby you might find lacking in that. However, and this is a big, however, regardless of your race, your ethnicity, whatever the case is, Whitby does aim to make all of its residents feel welcome. So if you plan on calling Whitby home, rest assured that no matter what your background is, you will feel safe. You will feel secure and included. And you will feel welcome to whitby.

So that sort of correlates with my third con of living in Whitby is that because there isn't a huge diversity in ethnicity, you aren't getting a lot of ethnic food options either. So con number three, There's a lack in food diversity. So, I mean, there are a lot of great restaurants. Um, I'm not putting wihitby you down as a foodie city at all, but if you are a foodie like me, then you might find yourself a little disappointed in the lack of food options available to. So there are a lot of great restaurants, dining, cuisines to choose from, but it isn't that diverse, you know, the odd Italian restaurants here and there, Chinese restaurants here and there, you know, the more popular cuisines, but in terms of diversity, in other cultures and exploring their cuisines, you aren't gonna get a lot of those options in Whitby. So what a lot of residents are doing, who are looking for more diversity, they're actually traveling to outside of Whitby so to neighboring areas like Oshawa, um, which is right next door to Whitby, or even a little further west out to Pickering or even Scarborough. It is a bit of a commute, which is why this is a con, but there are other options available within a good, like 15 kilometer radius that we can go to so that we can explore those different cuisines and suit your taste buds.

So there you have it. Those are your three cons of living in whitby and truth be told they aren't really that bad. And if you agree and you're considering moving to Whitby then I would love for you to give me a call. I can tell you everything that you need to know about moving to Whitby. So give me a shout. I would love to hear from you.And like I said before, if you found value from this video so far, then like this video, subscribe to my channel. I drop new videos, helping buyer, sellers, and investors every single week. If you're looking for more information about what it's like to live anywhere in the greater Toronto area, and you want to make a move to the GTA, then give me a shout.Subscribe to my channel, hit the notification belt, and I will see you at my next video.

Do you want to know the pros and cons of living in Pickering Ontario? I give you all of the pros and cons of Pickering Ontario so you know before you move.

If you’re looking to move to Pickering Ontario, you definitely need to have the right Real Estate Agent working with you to secure your home. Be sure to reach out to me before you make that move to Pickering!

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[Transcript]

Hey everyone. This video is all about the pros and cons of living right here in Pickering, Ontario. So stay tuned.Hope you're doing well. My name is Rochelle Manguino. I'm the creator of living in Toronto, and I'm also a local real estate agent with EXP Realty right here in Pickering Ontario. And if this is your first time to my channel, and you want to know everything about living, working, and having fun in the greater Toronto area, then make sure to hit that subscribe button and notification bell so that you get notified every time I drop a new video. So today I'm gonna keep it brutally honest with you. I'm gonna tell you all about the pros and the cons of living in Pickering, Ontario, which is part of the greater Toronto area. I have lived in the GTA my whole life. And so I'm excited to share it with you, all of the positives and the negatives about living in Pickering, Ontario. I'm gonna that be completely honest with you. I'm also gonna tell you about a personal hidden gem of mine that nobody ever talks about. I can't believe nobody's ever mentioned this place before in other YouTube videos that I've watched. So make sure you watch all the way till the end, because I'm gonna expose this hidden gem of mine at the end of this video, but for now, let's start off with the cons of living in Pickering.

So the first con about living in Pickering Ontario is that there is no real downtown area, at least not in your traditional sense. So there's no, you know, collection of restaurants and shops with a whole bunch of people where you can walk to different places. It's not like that. What Pickering does have is a, an inner city center essentially is a main shopping mall, which is the Pickering town center. And then right across the street from that is the city hall. So that is what sort of makes up the city center of Pickering. But you don't have that traditional downtown area that you think of one, someone says, oh, downtown, however, The city of Pickering does have developmental plans to transform the city center into the state of the art modern revamped city center. So they have plans to develop three condo buildings, including a 50 story apartment building. So right now in the city center, you don't have any high rises that are that tall. So that's gonna be a huge addition. You're gonna see an influx of a lot of new residents in Pickering. There might be a buildup of traffic, which is another con that you can add to the list. But it's really going to revamp and transform the city center. There's also going to be a combined seniors and youth center so that if you have seniors or youth in your family, you can drop them off. There are gonna be programs that they can partake in lots of activities for them to do. Just basically keeping them busy and social and active, but they also have building a performance arts center. So if you're into the arts, then that'll be the place for you and connecting these three buildings. So the senior and youth center, the library and the performing arts center, right in the middle of that, they have a public square. So this public square is going to be sort of like a meeting space, a gathering space.You're gonna have events there, any parties that you wanna host, or if you just wanna meet up with your friends or family at somewhere central, then this public square are, is where you want to go. And what the city also wants to do is make use of all of the public space that they have that hasn't been developed on. So it's not like Toronto where you have no more land and is a reason why home prices are so high is because there's nothing to build on. Whereas in Pickering, which is not too far from Toronto here, you've got a lot of usable land. And so builders, developers, the city's basical going to develop on that land. So that you can thereby create a more bustling, connected and vibrant, actual downtown area. So even though there is no downtown area right now in Pickering, the developmental plans are really a promising vision for Pickering and is going to allow the city to have that central downtown space where people can come together, get connected party, eat well, live well, and just have on together.

All right. Number two, the second con of living in Pickering is that Pickering really does have high property tax. So compared to Toronto or other parts of the GTA housing in Pickering is generally more affordable. However, the property tax rates are kind of ridiculous because if you look at the 2021 tax rates in Pickering, it was at 1.8%.Compared to only 0.6% in the city of Toronto. So almost double the property or even more than double the property tax rates in Toronto. So it's a give and take, you know, you're gonna spend a lot more on housing in Toronto. But you're gonna spend a lot more on property taxes in Pickering. So while this may not be a factor that makes or breaks your decision to actually move to Pickering, it is an important consideration, especially if you're looking to buy a home in Pickering.

Now, the third con of living in Pickering is that there is a nuclear power plant in Pickering. It's right on the water. And even though part of the good thing about having a power plant in the city is that it creates a lot of jobs for the residents and outside of Pickering as well. But it really is an eyesore because it's located right on the pickering waterfront. So on the shores of lake Ontario, and it can be kind of an eyesore it's, you know, aesthetically, it's not that pleasing to look at. Say you're enjoying a day at the beach with your family, or you're just going for a walk on the waterfront trail, that site of the Pickering generation plant isn't the most pleasing, but if you can just sort of ignore it and put it on the side of your eye and really go about enjoying your day, then it really isn't that big of a deal.

Now I'm gonna get into the pros of living in Pickering, which I'm really excited about because I do still have that hidden gem that I wanna tell you guys all about all the way at the end of this video. So make sure you keep watching, but for now, if you are getting value out of this video so far, then make sure you subscribe to my channel. And like I said earlier, hit the notification bell as well, so that you get notified every time I drop a new video. All right, now let's get into the pros of living in Pickering. So the number one con of living in Pickering is that housing is affordable. So anyone that knows anything about housing and affordability in the greater Toronto area knows that the city of Toronto is very expensive. The average price of a home in Toronto right now is over a million dollars, which is insane. However, when I talk about affordability in Pickering, I'm just talking in relatives terms. So yes, I'm saying that Pickering is generally more affordable than other parts of the GTA. But, I mean, we can all agree that altogether it's pretty expensive to live in the greater Toronto area. So I'm just talking about Pickering and the home prices relative to other cities in the area. So keep that in mind. So I do have this other video up here that talks about the different neighborhoods inside Pickering and the different average price points inside those neighborhoods. So that if you are looking to move to Pickering, then check out that video be because it'll give you a really good breakdown of the types of homes that you can get depending on your budget, what they look like. You get a visual view of the streets, the styles of homes, and you really get a good feel of what it's like to live in Pickering and sort of housing options available to you.

Now, the second pro of living in Pickering is your proximity to Toronto. And in terms of actual distance, Pickering is only 40 kilometers away from Toronto. So highway 401, that's gonna be your direct route from Pickering to Toronto, that would be your fastest route regularly, but there are, there's always traffic there that causes major delays. And it doesn't matter. Like it's not just during rush hour where you can come across this traffic. I've driven down highway 401 several times. And every single time there's always traffic. I could be driving on a Monday afternoon at 2:00 PM or it could be a Sunday night at two o'clock in the morning. And there's still gonna be traffic, especially around the Yorkdale mall area. So that part of the 401 that's where you can really see a lot of delays. So that's just something to keep in mind. That is a con. And I know that I'm talking about the pros right now, but a small little caveat, like I said, is that even though you are close to Toronto, It's still gonna be a ways to get there because of all the traffic on the 401.

So the largest employer in the city right now is, um, and I actually mentioned the before is the Pickering nuclear generating station right now. They actually employ over 4,500 people. So there's a ton of opportunity there. If you were looking to work in that field, there's also, and it's not in Pickering, but it's a very, very short distance away, which is the Amazon warehouse that they just recently built in Ajax. So Ajax borders Pickering, it's another small town, not too far from the city where you can easily access so that if you wanted to work in that industry, there's a lot of job opportunities at Amazon. And then in terms of future employment opportunities, what they're building right now in the heart of Pickering is called Durham live. This is something that's going to be huge for the city. It's going to attract a lot of tourists because it is such a big project that is happening right now. Inside Pickering, Durham live is a casino. It's a five star hotel. It's an amphitheater. It's film studios, an indoor water park, residential apartments, including 150 affordable housing units. There's gonna be restaurants shops. An office tower, a convention center, you name it, the list goes on and on and on. It is a huge multiplex commercial area that they're really going to try and expand and bring in more tourists to Pickering, which is great because if you want to come to Pickering and start your own business, then on the Durham live grounds, they are going to offer over a million square feet of leasing opportunities so that you can expand your business. You have a place to grow altogether. They're predicting that Durham live is going to create over 10,000 jobs for residents in the area. So it's really exciting.

All right. And I have a bonus for you guys. This is my number four or my bonus pro of living and Pickering that I really wanna address, which is the outdoor living in Pickering. So Pickering is actually located on the shores of lake Ontario. And so naturally you're gonna get a lot of recreational activities that you can do. Living on a waterfront city. So for example, along the shores, there's an area called Frenchman's bay, which is really popular. There's a boardwalk, there's a launch pad where you can bring your canoes, your kayaks, and just take it for a ride out on the water.There's also a lot of biking and hiking and walking trail else in the area. I like to go very regularly. It is a very, um, you know, I take my family with me. We go on these trails all along the city. If you wanna walk along everywhere, if you wanna take your bike, if you wanna go rollerblading, if you wanna walk your dog, you wanna walk your kids.You wanna walk for yourself, enjoy the outdoors. Enjoy the natural beauty. There are tons of trails everywhere. Now my personal hidden gem that I wanted to tell you guys about is Petticoat Creek. So this is my bonus place that only you guys are gonna get to know about, because honestly, I don't think this place is talked about enough. It is very underrated in my opinion. And so I'm so excited to share this place with all of you guys, if you are thinking about moving or living in Pickering then this is definitely a place that you wanna check out. So Petticoat Creek is this conservation area where they have a huge pool and slides, and it's just like a mini wild water kingdom. If you guys know that amusement park, it's just really nice. And it's really affordable to get in there, to spend the day with your family, with your kids, or even just hang out by the pool on your own, their picnic areas. I believe there are volleyball nets where you can even, you know, catch a game, bring some people together and play some sports there. But like I said, it is a conservation area, but one of the nicest conservation areas that I've seen in the greater Toronto area, nobody ever talks about it. I have no idea why, but I'm here to tell you guys all about it because I really think that it is underutilized. I don't want too many people to know about it because I don't want it getting too crowded. But honestly, it's just, it's my hidden gem. I love it. Definitely check it out. It is absolutely gorgeous. So although there are some cons to living in Pickering, which I already mentioned. If the pros outweigh those cons for you, when you're considering moving to the city, then give me a call. I would love to help you out and show you all the benefits and the disadvantages more in detail. I can answer any questions that you have about living in Pickering. I would love to help you purchase your next home inside pickering or wherever in the greater Toronto area you decide to move. Also, don't forget to subscribe to my video so that you can learn everything that you need to know about buying or selling in the greater Toronto area. I drop a new video every single week. So make sure you also hit the notification bell so that you get notified every time I do drop a new video. I've been helping buyers, sellers, and all over the GTA for the last seven years. And I would love to help you purchase your next home as well. So give me a call again my name is Rochelle Manguino. Thank you so much for watching this video and I'll see you guys at the next one.

So you're thinking about moving to Pickering, Ontario. Well, do not do it, absolutely don’t. Just kidding no if you're thinking about moving to Pickering, there's a lot you need to know, especially what's going on with this market right now. It is absolutely crazy here in the Toronto, Ontario area, especially in Pickering where everybody wants to move.

So if you're thinking about moving to Toronto or even Pickering more importantly, then you're going to want to watch this video and definitely stick around till the end, because I'm going to give you. Great things that you need to consider before moving here or even Pickering. And we're going to get out. Right now,

Hey, if this is your first time, the channel, and you want to know everything there is about living, working, eating, sleeping, playing the good and the bad of living in Toronto, Ontario, or even Pickering like we're talking about today, then subscribe below, tap the bell for notifications. So you can be the first to learn about the current market in Toronto.

My name is Rochelle, for the last 7 years I’ve been getting calls and emails from people just like you looking to make a move to Toronto. I absolutely love it. So whether you're moving in nine days or 90 days, just give me a call, shoot me a text, or send me an email, happy to help you out and make a smooth move to Toronto.

So, as I mentioned, you know, a lot of people are considering moving to Toronto and Pickering. Of course, Pickering's one of the most popular suburbs in eastern Toronto, and we are getting a huge influx of people from the city and elsewhere in Ontario these people are moving in left and right. And Hey, I’m happy to help in any way we can.

However, that has caused quite a bit of, uh, activity you could say in the market. And I know other markets are experiencing this as well, but Pickering in particular because of its more affordable real estate considering it’s so close to the city but, so that really complicates things.

And what we're seeing right now, just so you know, we're heading into February right now, 2022. But I don't foresee this to let down anytime soon, especially because, you know, things always pick up in the real estate market. Things always tend to pick up in the spring and summer and as we head in to that market that’s usually when you have your highest volume of activity.

And we're seeing is that demand for housing and homeownership is gonna grow even stronger this year, even moreso than last. Uh, we're seeing multiple offers and I know this is the same in a lot of areas as well, but in particular, in Pickering, We're seeing multiple offers. I’ve seen as high as 40 offers on a home. I’ve seen homes go for 100, 120,000 over asking price. Now I'm not saying this to scare anybody away but I just want you to be aware of what’s going on right now. Is that the case every single time? No, but it's, it's pretty close to it. So it’s important that moving forward, you don’t make any moves, unless you know how to navigate the market and I’m going to teach you how to do that. 

So first thing’s first, what we’ve been seeing a lot of recently - specifically during this hot market - is waiving of financing conditions, because you know it makes your offer stronger and people are tryina get these houses. Now, something I just want to caution you on, because this is what we need you to understand before you get started let's just take a financing waiver for example. What that means is, is that if a home is priced at $1.1 million. But you’re gonna offer 1.15, to try n win the bid. Well, if that home only appraises for 1.1 mill, that means you’d be responsible for paying, the 50,000 that's over the ask price.

Now normally, in a buyers market let’s say - when that happens, you would see the seller would adjust the price accordingly. That's how it would normally happen if you had a house that was at 1.15 and it only appraised at 1.1 you would be on a very strong side of the negotiation table to say, well, we need you to reduce the price to 1.1. That's how it would normally work. 

But in this market, what that means is, you offer 1.15 you waive your financing condition and it only appraises for 1.1, you need be willing to pay $50,000 difference. And then you think about that if you’re doing a conventional loan, or even one with 5, 10, or even 20% down, you’re still going to put that down payment on your home. So that's a lot of cash that you're going to need in hand. But if that’s what you wanna do you wanna go that route, you know it’s not something I necessarily encourage, I do wanna help my buyers in any way possible and I’ve been able to find creative ways to still get the deal done which doesn’t necessarily involve that, although be fair warned that in Pickering in this market, it almost has to happen to at least give you an opportunity to even be considered so, that’s just something we want you to be aware of and mindful of, that understanding your budget is absolutely critical.  

Something else that’s really helping us is if you're moving here and again, I work with a lot of out-of-town buyers, so if you're coming from Toronto, Mississauga, even out of the GTA or elsewhere in Ontario, which is where we're seeing the biggest influx, that you know we do everything we can to make your move as smooth as possible.

One of those things is, is what I like to do to get my clients set up, is start looking for properties ahead of time. It's likely those properties, if you like any of them will not be available when you get here or when you visit. But what that allows us to do is to actually see what you like and what fits your style, so that we can narrow down your search and whenever you get here, that way if you only have a day or two or three here, we don't want to drive all over the place to the wrong neighborhoods the wrong houses right so we want to try to really narrow down on what's gonna fit your needs your style and your lifestyle - beforehand - so that we can utilize your time wisely and only visit communities that actually make sense for you. That also allows us to check out the inventory ahead of time, look at the agents that have those listings, maybe make some phone calls on top of that. And so you know we start to work ahead of time before you get here. That's what's really important is that we do all the pre-work.

Then once you do get here, I help you navigate the system but on top of that, we want to also get you pre-approved. A lot of people tend to have pre-approvals from the state or province that they're in right now, but you ha, one thing you gotta understand is that it's always better to work with a local lender, especially the ones that we’ve partnered with is that they have a name in the Toronto area, and on top of that, our lenders will call for you on your behalf. And that's an extra phone call that we're really seeing helps out a lot whenever they call the other agent and let them know, Hey, you know, I've vetted this person they're solid their financials are in place. We can close quickly. And that just adds an additional level of credibility. 

And plus when it's a broker that’s known here in Toronto that offers is gonna look a lot stronger to that seller. Than if you had a pre-approval from another like, local bank or something like that - and I'm not saying anything's wrong with that - I'm just saying - you know - doesn't look as strong as an offer and so, that's just something that you want to keep in mind. 

Another thing that you want to have in place in the market right now is a decisive mindset because when offers are going left and right and decision need to be made quickly, speed is your friend in this market. So once you get here,then if we find a house that you like, then you’re gonna submit an offer.

If we don't put in an offer that day and have the pre-approval in place then we’re likely not gonna get the house. Okay so that's just something that we also want to prepare you for is that, you know don't want to rush anybody or pressure anybody into anything, but at the same time, we need to urge to you to, make a decision a lot quicker, because before it was kind of like, Hey, let's think about it. Let's go to lunch. Let's have dinner, we'll sleep on it that sort of thing. That was the old market. The new market today, the winning strategy hopefully you got a good understanding of what you like and what fits your style. And if, whenever you see it, you say, okay, this is the house, you know, let’s make a move. You’re not sitting in indecisive mode because time is of the essence.  

And something else that I tend to stress with my clients is that, you know I know everyone's always looking for their forever home, but at the same time you know worst case scenario, even if you find something here and it’s not you know a hundred percent,  it doesn't meet everything that you're looking for in your dream home, Well, at least you get here you got to the point where you’ve saved enough and you can build some equity in your home, and at least you get a place, and there's likely going to be some appreciation - I mean I can't guarantee that -  but I'm saying that even if you were to hold onto it for two years or live there for two years, you're going to get a better feel for the area. You're going to get to know everything so much better. You might find that after some time you may wanna be in another area -  and I understand you don't want to move all the time - but at the same time you know you could always sell that home -  which by the way I could help you out with too - but the reality is hey, even if you ended up selling that home and then moving into another neighborhood, a lot of people are coming here, they're working from home or they're getting training. Sometimes they don't even know if they're going to be here for another two years. So at the same time if that's an option and you -  there's a possibility you may end up moving or selling or going somewhere else - then if you have some wiggle room, not finding the absolute perfect home, but at least something that's going to meet your needs and is going to be really good for you and your family for the time being, then also keep that in consideration.

So at the end of the day being flexible is really going to help out as well. And then here's the, here's another key point. We're actually finding a sweet spot with new construction. Now, if you have flexibility on your timeline and, or you're trying to get here within a certain timeframe, we can understand that as well. What we'll do is we can show you some new construction projects,  because the key thing with new construction is that we don't have to get into bidding wars with other buyers. You’re dealing directly with the builder and it's normally a first come first serve basis. Therefore we can find you a home that meets your needs, maybe it's gonna be ready in a month or maybe it's ready now, maybe it's ready in 60 days or 90 days which is more along the lines of whenever your timeline is to move as well, we’ve got great relationships with a lot of builders in the area and, we've been pretty successful at finding new construction homes for clients, plus…you get a brand new home, right? Who doesn't want a brand new home.

And so even with new construction communities or especially new construction they’re always good they normally always appreciate. So even if you buy that and you're only there for a couple of years, then you're likely gonna be able to sell that later without any problem, plus the community and the area is going to be built up around you, and you could possibly make a little money on that as well. And so that's just something to keep in mind as well. But overall, what we wanna do is help you the best way possible, in any way we can and so to do that, we really do our best to get to know you ahead of time and really understand your needs set you up on a, on a broad search. Then we can work together to try to narrow that down, so whenever you get here we can maximize your time wisely, get you pre-approved beforehand so that when we do find something we can move quickly to land you that home. Then from there, all you gotta do is just move in, get settled in, and I can help you with that as well. So I hope you found this helpful. Don’t want you to be concerned about everything that's going on, I mean it definitely is a crazy market. But I want you to know that I’ve got your back no matter what, and we're going to do everything we can to meet your needs the best possible way, and to get you the home that you're looking for.

So again hope you found this helpful. If you did, please comment, let me know if you have any questions again, the market is a little crazy, but it's navigable, with the right help. So if you’re looking to move to Pickering give me a call I’d love to help you out. Just give me a call, shoot me a text, send me an email or even schedule a zoom call all down in the description below. We can schedule a a zoom call if you want to meet in person before you get here too I always love to put a face to the name as well. So until then make sure to check out this video on the top neighborhoods to move to in Pickering. Thanks for watching everyone hope to see you around town!

So you’re thinking about moving to Pickering Ontario? Well in this video we’re going to be talking the top 5 neighboourhoods in Pickering Ontario and I’m going to do a couple things for you. First we’re going to hop in my car and I’m going to take you for a ride. I’ve taken extensive footage of each of these neighbourhoods so you can see them up close and personal. Then I’ll show you some of the different styles of homes, different price points, so whether you’re looking for a starter home or a forever home, you get a full picture of how far your budget can take you and get a better picture of what it’s like to live here in Pickering. So without further ado, let’s get right in to it!

Hey if this is your first time to the channel and you want to know everything there is to know about living in Toronto and the surrounding areas like Pickering then subscribe below. Tap the bell for notifications so you can be the first to know about the current market in Toronto  My name is Rochelle Manguino I’m a local real estate agent right here in Toronto. For the last 7 years I’ve been helping people just like yourself move to the Greater Toronto Area and I absolutely love it. So whether you’re looking to move in 9 days or 90 days just give me a call, shoot me a text, send me an email, or even schedule a Zoom call down in the description below. I’d be happy to help you make a smooth move to Toronto. 

Pickering is also great for investors as well because of all the new developments going on here. We’ve actually got 3 huge projects well underway that are going to bring in some huge and exciting opportunities for investors. I’m going to talk about those at the end so make sure you watch all the way til the end so you don’t miss out on these massive new developments that are easily going to put Pickering in the Greater Toronto Area spotlight. But for now like I mentioned we’re covering the top 5 neighbourhoods in Pickering. 

Pickering is not that big, there’s only about 91,000 people, but it’s a growing suburb of Toronto that people are flocking to. People want to be in a growing area that’s relatively affordable but still close enough to downtown Toronto. Plus it sits on the shores of Lake Ontario so you get the benefits and beauty of lakeside living here as well. 

So let’s get right in to it let’s zone in on some of the more popular neighbourhoods in Pickering. The first area I want to show you is actually where I’m at right now. It’s called Bay Ridges, and not only is it one of Pickering’s signature residential neighbourhoods, it’s also known for being a waterfront community home to Frenchman’s Bay, a popular waterfront community that includes marinas, lakeside parks and restaurants, boutique shopping, and beach style homes right off Lake Ontario. I’m really excited to show you what it’s all about, so let’s hop in my car and I’ll give you a tour.   

 Welcome to Bay Ridges! A new collection of nautical themed homes that have been developed just in the last 20 years or so. Very quick background on this area - so back in the 1950s when highway 401 was first built, a lot of Torontonians who initially built their cottages here in Pickering winterized them so they’d become year round primary homes. So that’s what you see here, development of this area really took off in the 60s and 70s, and then more recently these newer nautical themed white clad townhouses came in to the mix and created this picturesque water village type of community that you see today. 

But what I’m standing in front of right now is your typical home here on Wharf St. which is the main road that takes you to the heart of Frenchman’s Bay. You can see that it has a cape cod exterior design which is common in this part of Bay Ridges. This is a 3 bed 4 bath 3-storey semi-detached home that sold for $905k last year right by Lake Ontario but what’s really unique about the homes along this road is that they are a residential commercial mix. All along Wharf St here you’ll see a bunch of shopping and restaurants. Downstairs on the ground floor you can run your business, whether it’s an ice cream shop, a boutique clothing store, this type of property allows you to have commercial space downstairs so even if you don’t have a business you can rent the space out to tenants who can run their shop. Or another option is to not make it a commercial space and just use the space as a living room instead. Meanwhile upstairs would be your other living areas, kitchen, bedrooms, and any given unit along this road here you can find a handful of balconies on your home, and you get a lot of lake and marina views as well which is the real highlight of moving in to this community.

So Bay Ridges does have a diverse housing mix not just these white townhouses but you could see from the drive thru brick and siding clad semis, contemporary style townhouses, ranch bungalows on wide lots, and a growing number of custom designed homes too, with the average price point hovering around the 1 million dollar mark. And then if you walk further along the waterfront, you’ll eventually hit the neighbourhood of Rosebank which also made the top 5 list as well, primarily because it’s home to some of the most exclusive homes for sale in Pickering. Let’s go take a look there.

Like I mentioned Rosebank is home to some of the most exclusive homes in Pickering. They are at a higher price point than most other neighbourhoods in Pickering. People move here because of its prime location to the water, you’ve got a more affluent community with a lot of homeowners purchasing older century homes and  restoring them with interior upgrades and renovations. What I like about Rosebank personally is that because it is an older community, you get that  variety of different styles of homes that you don’t get in newer subdivisions. Here the housing stock is quite varied in that you’ve got a good mix of colonial style homes, ranch-style bungalows, even townhouses and duplexes. But even moreso here there’s a lot more individuality, each home is different and unique from the one next to it, you won’t see two houses that look alike which makes for a great walk around the neighbourhood. And at the same time a lot of them have kept their historic charm, and so they’re all really unique in their own way. You also may have noticed from the drivethru a really pretty streetscape as well, you’ve got a lot of winding, tree-lined streets which are especially beautiful this time of the year, not too long ago you get a lot of nice colour from the autumn leaves. The trees are bare now because it’s the end of November but even in the warmer months the foliage is really full and green so it’s very attractive in that sense as well. 

But what I really wanted to show you is your typical home here in Rosebank. Many of the homes here have either a ravine lot or some sort of waterfront view. This home behind me is one of them. It’s got a nice stone exterior with wonderful curb appeal which is common in this neck of the woods. There’s a great sense of pride of ownership in Rosebank which you can see from the nicely manicured lawns and well maintained exterior. This one you may not be able to tell on video but it’s on a huge lot, close to 1 acre and you’ve got the home sitting on the Rouge River so you’ve got this little wildlife paradise right in your own backyard. There is a pricetag to it though, this home sold for $2.1 million recently, it’s a 4 bed 4 bath with an attached nanny suite as well. 

Now I want to keep walking a bit here because in Rosebank specifically and in the last 10, 15 years especially we’ve seen a lot of large custom infill properties being built here. An infill is any type of home that’s been built in an already established neighbourhood, so say you’re demolishing a single-family home and building a new one on the same lot, or even building a duplex on a lot that used to have a single-family home. What I’m standing in front of is a prime example of an infill home here in Rosebank. It’s custom built and you can see you’ve got a more contemporary design on the exterior, I’ve been inside and I can tell you the home has been extensively renovated with really modern finishings and the main floor is all open concept. This one is actually 4 beds 3 baths and sqft and sold for 1.8 million dollars. So if you were wanting to move in to a more established community but in a newer home, Rosebank offers a lot of infills that would likely suit your tastes and lifestyle, as well as more historic homes with a lot of character, many of which have been restored or updated. Alright now let’s change it up and take in a new change of scenery. If you’re looking for more affordable housing but still be close to good schools, shopping and amenities, then I’ve got a ton of different options for you. I also have 3 huge new investment areas that are up and coming including a revitalized city center, casino and entertainment complex, and 7000 acres of developing land that you need to know about. I’ll show you those at the end and by the way if you are getting value out of this video so far then don’t forget to give me a thumbs up and subscribe to my channel. And follow me while I take you to #3 on our top 5 list which happens to be to one of Pickering’s most popular and largest neighbourhoods, Liverpool.

Fun fact: I’m now standing at one of Liverpool’s main intersections, Kingston and Liverpool, in front of a popular neighbourhood bar called Liverpool John’s. This restaurant used to be an old hotel, the Liverpool Arms Inn that was built way back in the early 1800s. A lot of old travelers from Kingston Ontario coming to Toronto would stay here because back then before the major highway the 401 was built, this street Kingston Rd was the main route between Kingston and Toronto. At the time the hotel was offering rooms at $1.00 a day, and it’s said that one of their most prominent guests there was Canada’s first prime minister, Sir John A. MacDonald. So there is a lot of history to this neighbourhood, and they started to develop it a lot more by building residential homes, this was in the 70s and 80s. So there’s a lot of older homes, around 40, 50 years old, but it’s still really popular with families as it has lots of schools, plenty of parks and access to shopping right here on Kingston Rd. And there’s also a good variety of houses to choose from, including entry level townhomes, semi-detached homes and large single family homes. So come with me for a ride and you can see what exactly those homes look like. 

If you’re looking for a quieter, more rural setting, then look no further. I’m going to take you up to the next neighbourhood on our top 5 list, which is northern or rural pickering. Rural pickering takes up pretty much everything north of concession road 7 which is the first major road north of highway 7. So basically the northern half of Pickering would be considered rural that’s where you’re going to find a lot of farmland and greenspace. And if you’re looking to move to this area, then you’ll likely find yourself in one of the smaller hamlets or villages. So let’s go for a ride through one of those hamlets, Claremont, because this is where you’ll see the widest variety of homes to choose from.

On the way here to Claremont we did pass by a number of agricultural farms. These farms provide a lot of the locally sourced produce for the Pickering Farmers’ Market. And then once you get here and even passing through the nearby hamlet of Brougham you’ll see a few local shops and essential services, as well as a few restaurants. In terms of living here and the neighbourhood, I’m actually standing in front of your typical beautiful country home here in one of the most sought after neighbourhoods in Claremont. This recently sold for $1.3m and what you get for that price is 3+1 bedrooms, 3 baths, and a really good sized lot. This one is sitting on a 72 foot frontage, 132 feet deep. Which is typical here in the country you’re afforded a lot more space, a lot more lawn - which could be a good thing or a bad thing depending on how you look at it. It’s more to maintain but you get the privacy, you get lots more area for your kids to play or for you to fit a garden, a pool. Now because you are out in the country homes like these typically have well water as their main water source. So this house does run on well and septic but you do have access to municipal hydro and gas, so this home specifically does have central air and heat. In terms of location you’re extremely close to the Tomlinson Community Center, it’s literally a 7 minute walk there which I actually don’t recommend because you’d be on Brock Rd. which is a pretty major Rd that isn’t safe for pedestrians. But hop in your car and 2 minutes in you’re there - that’s how close it is and that’s where you have a large gym and community hall. Then next to that is a large park with sports fields and tennis courts, it’s beautiful. If you did want to enjoy some outdoor exercise then cyclists would be happy to know that you can enjoy this countryside setting if you go along the Greenbelt Route - which in fact - fun fact, the Greenbelt in Ontario is actually the largest in the world, it’s 2 million acres of protected land so you get to take in the scenery of farmland, forests and rivers. Then on the opposite side of the spectrum if you were wanting to access city amenities and be closer to town, then you’re not too far from highway 407 maybe a 5 minute drive which full disclosure is a toll highway. But to get in to town and the busier parts of Pickering is only a 10 minute drive.

Now here’s the thing, in recent years, a lot of attention has been given to the southern portion of Pickering because of the fact that it sits on Lake Ontario and it’s so close to the 401. But there’s a huge new development coming to the north and central part of the city that’s going to change the area dramatically. The city is developing on over 3,000 acres of land for residential and commercial use. They’re going to turn north-central pickering in to a new urban community, that’s going to create a lot more housing, jobs, and investment opportunities… so listen up because this is an up and coming neighbourhood that’s going to blow Pickering out of the water, they’re already in development and I’ll show you what that project is starting to look like right now.

So this area, I’m still in northern Pickering, just between Brock and highway 7 is one of Pickering’s newest developments called Seaton. The Seaton community is going to be massive you’ve got the city and 5 private builders building six different neighbourhoods here. And those neighbourhoods are gonna include a good mix of detached and semi detached homes, townhouses, and apartments. So there’s a good range of housing to choose from here. And they’re really developing it in that there’s also going to be 3 high schools, a bunch of elementary schools i think the last I checked the number was 13 or 14, you’ll have a couple of rec centres, a bunch of parks, a bus station, and of course you’ll get your city services like police fire and EMS. the list goes on and on so this is a massive project that’s going to transform the city, and what’s especially unique about this project is that the plan is to develop each of these neighbourhoods as its own urban pocket centered around a natural setting. So what I mean by that is that the streets and homes themselves will be tight knit but each neighbourhood will be surrounded by open space so you’ve basically got that urban setting, but tucked away in nature. The city’s aim is to revitalize the area but still keep the natural agricultural landscape that northern pickering is known for. It’s going to be a thriving community,  they’re estimating that this’ll open up about 35,000 new jobs in the area, most of which will be centered around the Highway 7 corridor. And most importantly for investors, the goal is to build enough housing to support around 70,000 new residents. So it’s an exciting new opportunity for investors and something you definitely want to be a part of, so if you’re planning to move to a brand new build in Pickering or simply looking for up and coming investment opportunities in new construction, then contact me, all my info is in the description down below, and I’ll show you different price points, different options with different builders, new home warranties and design plans, and all of that good stuff when purchasing a new home. 

Alright last but not least now I’m here at the #5 spot on our top 5 list which is the City Center. I’m going to show you a range of other housing options there because so far we’ve only been looking at single family homes in the million dollar price range. But now I’m going to show you other options at lower price points so that you get a full picture of how far your budget can take you elsewhere in Pickering. But before I get in to that let me give you a quick breakdown on Pickering’s city center. You can see here I’m standing in front of Pickering Town Centre, this is one of the largest shopping malls in Durham Region. Just across the street you’ve got city hall, and across the street from there you’ve got the Chestnut Hill Rec Centre which is the largest rec centre in Pickering, and not too far down the street from there is the Pickering Go Train station.Now here’s the thing guys I do need to tell you about some very important changes that’ll be happening right here in the next few years. The city has major major plans to revamp this entire City Center in to an upbeat, contemporary, and thriving downtown core. So what their plans are are I don’t even know where to begin so first off they’re going to build 3 condo buildings here, including a 50-storey high rise. That’s going to create a lot more housing here obviously but also an influx of new residents. They’re expanding the library which is amazing because and in my humble opinion the central library is big enough I mean right now it’s already 2 stories with a great selection of books and resources. But they’re going to make it even bigger, and updating the whole look of the library to make it more fresh and modern. They’re also  adding in a youth and seniors center, and a public square now I don’t want to get in to too much detail about that in this video. I do have another video here that talks more about this project and the investment opportunity that exists here, but if the city center is a place where you’ve been considering moving, then give me a shout so I can get you in early before demand really pics up and house prices start to really shoot up too. Alright now let’s go for that drive and see what the City Center housing looks like currently. 

So here in the Pickering City Center, as with any city center, you’ve got a really dense population. That’s because this is where you’ll see a whole bunch of high rises, office towers, and tons of amenities nearby as well. So you can see from the drive through that that we passed by a good number of condo and apartment buildings, newer townhouses, entry level towns, semi-detached homes right here off Valley Farm Road. Behind me in the heart of town you’ve got a typical condo building where you can find units 3 bedrooms 2 baths at an average of around the $620k price mark. Condo fees which include water, parking, and building insurance average about $450 a month. Great location, walking distance to the mall and public transit. I’m just going to walk a little further up the street and show you some townhouse options as well.

Alright I’m in a Gated Community here With 24 Hour Security not too far from the last building so again I’m walking distance to all the nearby amenities. What you’re looking at is a townhouse complex designed for small families, young and growing families, downsizers and retirees. Here you can find a typical 3 bed 3 bath town just over 1600 Sqft for about $700,000. Your condo fees are going to be about $700 a month roughly and that would include 24 hr Security, underground parking, water, among other things but the really nice thing about living in a space like this is that not only do you have more interior space, you’ve got your own backyard as well. It’s not the largest, but you can host BBQs enjoy a picnic outside. You can’t do that in most apartment buildings because you’re not allowed to bring propane tanks in to elevators. So if entertaining is your thing then you’ve got plenty of space indoors and outdoors to do so in a townhouse like this. So with that said, that wraps up our tour of the top 5 neighbourhoods in Pickering Ontario. I hope you found this helpful - as you can see Pickering is primarily a residential community, with all the services and attractions common in suburban areas. No matter where in the city or what neighbourhood you choose to move to you’ll find that it’s very family-friendly with parks and lots of outdoor recreational activities. It’s an up and coming part of the GTA that investors are more recently getting their hands in. So whether you’re moving or investing in 9 days or 90 days feel free to give me a call, shoot me a text, send me an email, or even schedule a Zoom call all in the description below. I’d be happy to help make your next real estate move a smart and successful one. Until the next video, hope to see you around town.