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Top Real Estate Websites in Canada
Whether you're buying, selling or renting property in Canada, or simply like looking at homes you can't afford, there are several valuable websites you can use to search for available and historical property listings. As the most-trafficked real estate website in Canada, realtor.ca is a great example. It gives you direct access to all the organized real estate boards in Canada and features the most active listings for sale than any other website. However, realtor.ca only provides historical sale data at the city level, so if you are looking for prior sales for a particular neighbourhood or property, you will have to rely on other websites.
If you're already working with a realtor, they can leverage their local real estate board to set you up with a personalized home search based your property type and market of interest. This allows you to receive new listings and property updates in real-time, alongside historical sales data which is often more detailed than what is publicly available on a real estate website. Nonetheless, online search represents a great way to stay informed on your local market, with many tech-savvy buyers able to find properties of interest themselves before engaging with a real estate professional.
For your reference, here are a few of the most visited and consumer-friendly websites in Ontario and Canada, along with some of their strengths and weaknesses.
As of March 2023 |  |  |  |  |  |  |
Website | ||||||
Listings Coverage and Exposure | Canada-wide, most active listings, most visited site in CAN | Ontario, Nova Scotia | Canada-wide (predominantly GTA, Vancouver, Calgary) | Ontario and BC (predominantly GTA and Vancouver) | Canada-wide | All MLS listings in Quebec, most visited site in Quebec |
Property Sold Data | No | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes (where available) | No |
Neighborhood Insights Walk Scores, Lifestyle and Demographics, Comparable Sales, and Market Trends | Good (powered by Local Logic and Statistics Canada) | Best-in-class (includes lifestyle search, comparable sales, market trends, neighborhood guides) | Excellent (includes comparable sales, market trends, and some neighborhood detail) | Best-in-class (includes comparable sales, market trends, and demographic detail from StatsCan) | Excellent (includes search by commute, school or lifestyle, price trends, and demographic details) | Good (powered by Local Logic and Statistics Canada) |
Agent Directory Listed on Website | Yes
All Realtors in Canada, and their registered brokerage, are searchable | No | No | No | Yes
All Royal LePage realtors and offices across the country are searchable | Yes
All Realtors in Quebec, and their registered brokerage, are searchable |
Available Resources | Financial Calculators (Payment, Land Transfer Tax, and Affordability), City-level Price Trend | Property Insights, Neighbourhood Finder, Market Pulse, Financial and Mortgage Calculators | Property Insights, Affordability Calculator and Coaching, Market Trends | Rental Yield, Price Growth Score, Mortgage Calculator, Cash Flow Analysis, Community Stats | Re ntal Yield, Price Growth Score,Mortgage Calculator, Cash Flow Analysis, Community Stats | Financial Calculators (Affordability or Borrowing Score, Property Tax, and Mortgage) |
Home Value Estimator | No | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | No |
Honourable Mentions
If you are looking for properties in the United States, Zillow is a popular website for both Americans and Canadians. Zillow also has listings in Canada for sale and for rent, although its coverage is much less than realtor.ca. If you are looking for properties in Nova Scotia, the largest province in Atlantic Canada - home to the iconic Peggy's Cove and the beautiful city of Halifax - ViewPoint is a popular website for property assessment values and historical sales data.
At the end of the day, a real estate website is simply a tool for consumers (and realtors) to find information about a property or neighbourhood of interest. Keeping that in mind, the opinion of best real estate website will differ from person to person, based on where they live and whether they are contemplating renting, buying, or selling. By leveraging one, or many of your favourite real estate websites, you can receive real time market updates and stay informed. So best of luck, and happy hunting!
