With the growing popularity of real estate investment thanks to the HGTV Network, you'd be hard-pressed to find someone who hasn't fantasized about investing in one form or another. Whether it's having an accessory apartment in your basement to offset the cost of your primary mortgage, flipping, or providing short-term rentals on a second property, it's not necessarily a crazy thought to have. In fact, it could be an exciting and profitable journey.
Let's Keep It Simple. Here Are the Top Five Reasons Why You Should Invest in Guelph Real Estate.
#1 Population Growth
One of the main things that you should be looking for when investing in real estate is population growth. It's one thing if you can get a property for a low price, but if you buy in a community with a declining population, then who are you going to rent it to? You've now bought a house where you will potentially struggle to rent it because the population is declining.
According to Statistics Canada, Guelph's population grew by 8.3% between 2011-2016 vs the provincial growth rate of 4.6% during the same timeframe.
Guelph's council members are already planning for the projected increase in the city's population growth (GuelphToday.com). New housing and the increase of accessory apartments in the city were major topics of the meeting. The City of Guelph is anticipating 60,000 new residents by 2051. This shows us that your pool of potential renters will continue to grow.
#2 Annual Income
One reason why a population will consistently grow is if there are top-quality, high-paying jobs available in the community. Guelph is no exception. The median total household income in Guelph for 2015 was $77,984 vs $74,287 for the provincial median.
This is an indication that the community will continue to attract new residents and thus continue to increase the size of your potential rental pool.
#3 Ease of Commuting
With Metrolinx announcing a fully electric high-speed train with multiple trips to Toronto daily, it's becoming easier and easier to envision living car-free in the Royal City. Guelph Central Station offers GO Train and VIA Rail routes to Toronto and across Ontario.
Downtown Guelph, Exhibition Park, Old University, and St. Patrick's Ward are great neighbourhoods for commuters as they are close to Guelph Central Station. Learn more about Guelph's Go Train commute here.
#4 University Town
We are fortunate in Guelph to have a University and College campus within the city limits. This means that there is a pool of students who are often looking for rentals.
The best neighbourhoods for student rentals are Old University/Dovercliffe Park, Kortright East, Pineridge/Westminster Woods and Downtown Guelph.
#5 Ranked Number 1 by Moneysense
We're famous! MoneySense Magazine recently published an article using its own methodology of value, momentum, and expert insight. In this article, they posted the top 35 cities/towns to buy real estate in 2020, and Guelph was #1 (MoneySense.ca)!
Whether talking in terms of a place to raise a family or purchase a cash-flowing investment property, this definitely belongs in our top 5.
In conclusion, if you are thinking about real estate investing in Guelph, you can have peace of mind knowing that the Royal City checks all of the boxes that investors look for. Everything else, like our beautiful outdoor spaces, a trendy downtown, community centres and its people...well, that's just a bonus!
Contact me to start your real estate investment plan! Thanks for reading!
