Townhouses For Sale in Burlington

A city that has run out of farmland to pave

Burlington's urban area stops at the Parkway Belt and Highway 407. North of that line, the land is farms, rural homes and conservation areas, and the Niagara Escarpment, a UNESCO World Biosphere Reserve, runs through the western part of the city. Council has repeatedly said it will protect those lands.

That leaves Burlington with an unusual growth problem. Ontario has asked the city to plan for 29,000 new homes by 2031, and in 2023 the mayor said more than 21,000 units were already in the approvals pipeline. With no farmland to subdivide, nearly all of that has to happen inside the existing city: on former plazas, parking lots, industrial sites and older low-rise blocks near transit.

For townhouse buyers, this means two things. First, almost every new townhouse in Burlington will be infill, usually stacked, back-to-back or part of a larger mixed project. Second, the existing stock of conventional two-storey condo townhouses is essentially fixed. When those come up for sale, they're competing with nothing new of the same type.

There's a practical side effect for resale buyers too. Because so little new low-rise housing is being added, the condition of a complex matters more than its age. A 1980s complex that has replaced its roofs and windows and kept a healthy reserve can be a better long-term home than a newer one that hasn't planned ahead.

Three GO stations, three precinct plans

The city has drawn up detailed plans for the land around each of its GO stations, known as Major Transit Station Areas. Council endorsed draft precinct plans for all three in early 2022, and they show where new townhouses are likely to appear.

• Burlington GO, near Fairview Street and Brant Street. The core precinct allows tall and mid-rise residential buildings along with stacked townhomes. Heights step down along Upper Brant and next to existing low-rise streets.
• Appleby GO, in the east end. Its central precinct is planned as the densest, with taller buildings near the station and mid-rise and low-rise residential zones farther out.
• Aldershot GO, in the west end. Tall and mid-rise mixed use is planned near the station, with low and mid-rise buildings along the Plains Road main street.

Across all three, the pattern is the same: the tallest buildings sit closest to the station, and stacked and street townhouses fill the transition zones next to established neighbourhoods. If you're buying an existing townhouse near any of these stations, expect your surroundings to change over the next decade.

Most of the stock dates from Burlington's long boom

Burlington's population went from about 6,000 in 1951 to 47,000 a decade later, after the QEW opened and the city annexed most of Nelson Township and Aldershot in 1958. It passed 100,000 by 1974 and kept growing north of the QEW into the 1990s and 2000s.

The townhouse stock reflects that run. Condo townhouse complexes from the 1970s and 1980s are common across central and east Burlington, in areas such as Palmer and parts of Appleby. Later subdivisions such as Headon Forest, Millcroft and Uptown added townhouse enclaves from the mid-1980s through the 2000s, many with more modern layouts and attached garages.

In the older complexes, the monthly fee usually covers far more than snow and grass. Corporations of that age are typically paying for roof replacements, window and door programs, new asphalt, and in some cases updated plumbing or electrical. A well-funded reserve is what keeps those costs predictable.

Lakeshore West trains and the QEW-403

Burlington's three GO stations are all on the Lakeshore West line, which runs along the lake to Union Station with all-day service. Burlington Transit's bus network is organized around those stations. Aldershot also has VIA Rail service.

By car, the QEW and Highway 403 run together through most of the city, with the 407 across the north. Rush-hour traffic toward Toronto is heavy, and many commuters split their week between the train and the car.

The practical rule for townhouse buyers: south of the QEW and near Fairview Street, the train is easy. North of Upper Middle Road, in Headon, Millcroft or Uptown, most people drive to a station or to the highway.

Parking at the stations is worth checking too. Burlington, Appleby and Aldershot GO all have commuter lots, but as the station areas redevelop, surface parking may be replaced by structures or reduced. Living within walking or cycling distance of a station is the safest bet for the long term.

Which part of Burlington fits which buyer

First-time buyers often start in older condo complexes in Palmer, Brant Hills or central Burlington, where entry prices tend to be lower than in newer areas, though fees can be higher. The page above shows the current price bands.

Downsizers tend to look at bungalow townhouses and smaller complexes near the lake or downtown, in Roseland, Brant and LaSalle, where walking to shops and the waterfront matters more than a yard.

Growing families usually look north of the QEW, in Headon, Millcroft and Uptown, where townhouses are newer, larger and close to schools and parks.

Commuters who take the train every day should focus on the areas around the three GO stations, where most new stacked townhouses will also appear.

Investors tend to focus on units near Burlington and Appleby GO, where renters who commute by train have the fewest alternatives.

Burlington between Oakville and Hamilton

Most Burlington townhouse buyers are also looking at one of its neighbours. To the east, Oakville has more new-construction townhouse subdivisions in its northern growth areas, which Burlington can no longer offer. To the west, Hamilton's west end and Waterdown offer more space for the money, with longer drives toward Toronto.

Burlington's position is in the middle. It has three Lakeshore West stations with all-day service, a walkable downtown on the lake, the escarpment and Bruce Trail on its northern edge, and the QEW, 403 and 407 all running through it. What it doesn't have is a pipeline of new freehold rows. If a brand-new freehold townhouse with a builder warranty is the priority, Oakville or Milton may have more choice. If an established neighbourhood near the lake or a GO station matters more, Burlington's resale stock is where the options are.

Reading an older Burlington complex before you buy

• Status certificate and reserve fund study. These are the most important documents in any older condo townhouse purchase. Look for when the last study was done and what it says is coming.
• Special assessments. Ask whether any have been charged recently or are being discussed.
• Windows, roofs and siding. In some complexes, owners are responsible for windows and doors; in others, the corporation is. The declaration says which.
• Parking. Many older complexes have one spot per unit and limited visitor parking.
• Creek and floodplain mapping. Burlington has several creeks running to the lake. Check Conservation Halton's mapping for any townhouse near one.

Burlington townhouse pockets at a glance