What income it takes to buy a home in Canada
The household income you’d need to buy a benchmark-priced home in 31 Canadian markets. Change the rate, down payment and stress test to see how the numbers move.
Prices as of August 2026
Key findings
- $116,000 is the household income needed to buy a home at Canada’s benchmark price of $657,500.
- Vancouver, BC needs the most: $192,000, or 3.1 times what buyers need in Regina, SK ($62,000).
- The stress test adds $25,000 to the national figure, because lenders qualify you at a higher rate than you’ll pay.
Income needed by market
Income needed so mortgage payments take 30% of gross household income · 20% down · 4.50% rate · 25-year amortization
| # | Market | Benchmark price | Monthly payment | Income needed |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Vancouver, BC | $1,081,900 | $4,790 | $192,000 |
| 2 | Oakville-Milton, ON | $1,044,000 | $4,623 | $185,000 |
| 3 | Toronto, ON | $925,900 | $4,100 | $164,000 |
| 4 | Mississauga, ON | $913,300 | $4,044 | $162,000 |
| 5 | Victoria, BC | $887,300 | $3,929 | $157,000 |
| 6 | Fraser Valley, BC | $869,900 | $3,852 | $154,000 |
| 7 | Hamilton-Burlington, ON | $728,400 | $3,225 | $129,000 |
| 8 | Guelph, ON | $715,700 | $3,169 | $127,000 |
| 9 | Barrie, ON | $695,400 | $3,079 | $123,000 |
| 10 | Cambridge, ON | $666,400 | $2,951 | $118,000 |
| 11 | Ottawa, ON | $637,700 | $2,824 | $113,000 |
| 12 | Kitchener-Waterloo, ON | $628,300 | $2,782 | $111,000 |
| 13 | Windsor, ON | $584,300 | $2,587 | $103,000 |
| 14 | Montreal, QC | $583,900 | $2,585 | $103,000 |
| 15 | Calgary, AB | $571,500 | $2,530 | $101,000 |
| 16 | Niagara, ON | $569,800 | $2,523 | $101,000 |
| 17 | Halifax, NS | $563,800 | $2,496 | $100,000 |
| 18 | London, ON | $553,500 | $2,451 | $98,000 |
| 19 | Kingston, ON | $550,100 | $2,436 | $97,000 |
| 20 | Sudbury, ON | $499,500 | $2,212 | $88,000 |
| 21 | Saskatoon, SK | $444,700 | $1,969 | $79,000 |
| 22 | Quebec City, QC | $436,100 | $1,931 | $77,000 |
| 23 | St. John's, NL | $425,400 | $1,884 | $75,000 |
| 24 | Edmonton, AB | $420,100 | $1,860 | $74,000 |
| 25 | Winnipeg, MB | $392,900 | $1,740 | $70,000 |
| 26 | Thunder Bay, ON | $384,900 | $1,704 | $68,000 |
| 27 | Moncton, NB | $378,700 | $1,677 | $67,000 |
| 28 | Prince Edward Island | $372,800 | $1,651 | $66,000 |
| 29 | Fredericton, NB | $364,200 | $1,613 | $65,000 |
| 30 | Saint John, NB | $355,700 | $1,575 | $63,000 |
| 31 | Regina, SK | $348,900 | $1,545 | $62,000 |
| Canada | $657,500 | $2,911 | $116,000 |
Thunder Bay, ON uses September 2026, the latest month published for that market. Prince Edward Island is a province-wide figure.
Check any home price
Enter a price and your terms to see the income you’d need.
$161,000household income needed per year
- Down payment
- $150,000 (20.0%)
- Mortgage
- $600,000
- Monthly payment at 6.50%
- $4,019
How we calculated this
- Home prices. We use the composite benchmark price from CREA’s MLS® Home Price Index for August 2026, not seasonally adjusted. A benchmark price describes a typical home in each market and isn’t pulled around by a few very expensive or very cheap sales the way an average is.
- Down payment and insurance. We take your chosen down payment or the legal minimum, whichever is higher. The minimum is 5% of the first $500,000 and 10% of the portion from $500,000 to $1,500,000. At $1,500,000 or more, you need 20% down. Below 20% down, the mortgage default insurance premium is added to the mortgage.
- Payment. The monthly payment uses Canadian semi-annual compounding at the rate shown, over a 25- or 30-year amortization. The default 4.50% is an assumption close to typical 5-year fixed rates, not a quote.
- Income. Income needed is the yearly mortgage payment divided by 30%. It leaves out property tax, heating, condo fees and other debts, all of which lenders also count, so treat the result as a floor.
Sources: home prices, mortgage rules 1, mortgage rules 2, mortgage rules 3, mortgage rules 4, mortgage rules 5. This is general information, not financial advice.
Questions
How much income do you need to buy a house in Canada?
About $116,000 a year in household income for a home at the national benchmark price of $657,500 (August 2026), with 20% down, a 4.50% rate and a 25-year amortization, keeping mortgage payments to 30% of gross income. Qualifying under the stress test raises that to about $141,000.
Where in Canada do you need the highest income to buy a home?
Vancouver, BC, where the benchmark price is $1,081,900 and the income needed is about $192,000. Oakville-Milton, ON ($185,000) and Toronto, ON ($164,000) follow.
Where is the most affordable place to buy a home in Canada?
Of the 31 markets we track, Regina, SK needs the least income: about $62,000 for a home at the $348,900 benchmark price.
What is the mortgage stress test?
Lenders check that you could still afford the mortgage at the greater of your rate plus 2 percentage points or 5.25%. That applies to both insured and uninsured mortgages. Turn on the stress test above to see the income lenders would want to see.
What is the minimum down payment in Canada?
5% of the first $500,000 and 10% of the portion from $500,000 to $1,500,000. At $1,500,000 or more, you need 20% down. With less than 20% down, you need mortgage default insurance, and the premium is added to your mortgage.
Why use 30% of income?
Housing is generally considered affordable when it takes less than 30% of a household’s before-tax income. We apply that to the mortgage payment alone, so property taxes, heating and condo fees would push the real figure higher.