GTA Homeowners-How are you able to afford a home here?

I live in a major metro area in Ohio in a 1,100 SF two bedroom townhouse, with a 1-car attached garage and a full basement that cost $120k USD when I bought it brand new six years ago. Looking at many real estate listings I think the equivalent in suburban GTA would cost me at least $350k CDN today. In the city it would be obviously more.

How are those of you who are home or condo owners able to afford a $350k townhouse/condo or a $500-700k single family home? Is there a salary/cost of living adjustment for living in the GTA or if a newcomer moved here from a much more affordable area would it take several years to become a homeowner once again at the previous level that he/she left?

If you are a home/condo owner, what type of home do you live in and what/how long did it take for you to get it?

Yes, for several years I have seriously thought of moving here. Sounds like to me even as a sales and marketing professional with a degree, it would take a lot to get back to what I already have now.

Skip the discussions on the disadvantages of moving here, believe me where I am now you have a lot of good things going for your area than you realize. Even the good areas have their warts and no place is perfect. And I already am aware and have researched of the long process of obtaining citizenship. I figure if hundreds of thousands of Asians can emigrate here, so should some one like me who is only on the other side of the pond (Lake Erie, lol) that in many cases can assimilate easier.

I do find it interesting that people in my region and other stagnate areas (Cleveland, Buffalo, Detroit areas) move hundreds or thousands of miles away when there is a lot going on much closer in Southern Ontario. Moving from these areas to Ontario is almost like moving to a neighbouring state (I know Ontario is a province)

alex52 said:

If your place is 1,100 SF two bedroom townhouse, with a 1-car attached garage and a full basement that cost $120k USD, then your not in a major ECONOMIC metro area. Toronto is the hub of the Canadian economy and finance and has a very desirable quality of life.
Ohio obviously does not have these things. People moving from the rust belt of Detroit to Toronto better brings some wads of cash if they want to settle here.
I have my expensive home and I like it that way.

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Exactly the point I had made in my original post. I realized that the first time I visited the GTA in 2002 and it occurred to me immediately.

Rockslinger said:

The unemployment rate in Ohio is 25%. To comfortably afford a house in Toronto, you need to make at least $100,000 a year. BTW I know a couple of people in Buffalo and I am surprised at how low salaries are there compared to an equivalent job in Toronto.

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No, the state average is actually 10-12%. But the latter part of your comment reinforced a notion that I did have.

splooge said:

I bought my home when it was in the $200k's... Even though I can afford the payments on a $600k house, I wouldn't do it... I'd rather slowly move up to a detached if I were to start over right now... u know, the condo, then townhouse, then semi, then detached thing.

also, alot of people are shacking together with family members to split the mortgage nowadays... hence why a house on a less than 50foot lot requires a double car garage and double wide driveway! nuts....

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I would assume a lot of 905-area Asian immigrants have multiple family members living together or even a multi-generational household? I have actually witnessed families living with that type of arrangement while visiting Markham, Mississauga and Brampton.

Rockslinger said:

Remember that poor 16 year old girl murdered by her father for not wearing a burqa? There were 12 other people living in the same house.

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Not being local, I never heard about that. But again, your comment reinforces what I have seen regarding extended families living under the same roof.