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Why You Should Move to Barrhaven
Barrhaven is the perfect area to settle down and start a family. With quiet streets, tons of shopping and entertainment, great schools and public transportation, there really is no need to ever go downtown Ottawa! But, if you do care to venture into the city, it’s a quick 25-minute drive to get downtown. Known as the Southern gateway to Canada’s capital, Barrhaven is a growing suburb with a population of over 95,000. The town is well-known for its multi-culturalism housing many new families moving to Canada and the town is loaded with great cultural restaurants!
Featuring tons of beautiful, lush neighbourhoods including Half Moon Bay, Heart’s Desire, Chapman Mills and Stonebridge. If you are looking for a brand new home, look no further than Barhaven. With tons of new development sites, there are lots of brand new homes awaiting! The well-established homes are mostly built after the 1960s, so even when you purchase a pre-owned home, you are still going to get a newer home than some more historic areas of the city. Wondering if Barrhaven is the place for you? Read on to find out why you should move to Barrhaven!
2020 Average Sale Prices in Barrhaven
*Based on 2020 MLS yearly average sale price statistics in Barrhaven
Detached
$647,899
Semi-Detached
$497,681
Row Units
$486,402
Condominiums
$336,711
Awesome Location
Barrhaven sits on the south-western part of Ottawa in the Nepean Township. It is conveniently located just off the 416, making travel into the city of Ottawa very easy. It is also easy to hop on the 416 to go south towards the 401 and Kingston or Toronto. As mentioned above, you can be downtown Ottawa in just under 30 minutes from Barrhaven. This makes commuting into a downtown workplace or heading out for a night on the town manageable. You also have easy access to the Ottawa International Airport which is only a 20-minute drive. One of the nice things about Barrhaven’s location is that even though it is a growing city, the outskirts still have lots of farmland and natural beauty! If you are looking to purchase your first home or start a family, this location will be great for you!
Convenience
Barrhaven truly has everything you need. A few of the big box stores Barrhaven has are: Costco, Home Depot, Canadian Tire, Best Buy, Bed, Bath & Beyond, Winners, Staples, HomeSense, Walmart, and so much more! On top of all of these great shopping locations, there are also some great restaurants. Barrhaven offers everything from your typical fast food places to: Lone Star Texas Grill, Montanas, Royal Oak, Boston Pizza, Broadway, Kelseys, Pi·Rho Grill, and so many more! If you are looking for a new vehicle, the new auto park on the west side of town offers Ford, Toyota, Honda, and Hyundai. There are also Mazda, Nissan and Chevrolet in the area! There are plenty of gas stations, grocery stores, Starbucks and so much more. You really don’t ever have to leave!
Greenspace
Barrhaven is surrounded by greenspace and a lot of thought has been put into making parks accessible within the town. On the east end of Barrhaven, you have the Rideau River which separates Barrhaven and Riverside South. On the south side of town, the Jock River meanders through parks and farmland. A few homes in Hearts Desire even back onto the river! A few notable parks in Barrhaven include Chapman Mills Conservation Area, Mowat Farm Park, Heart’s Desire Park, Maple Hill Park and Branchwood Park. There are also lots of wooded areas such as Nepean Woods, Chapman Mills Forest, Highbury Woods and the Kennedy-Craig Forest. There is also the lush land where Stonebridge Golf Club resides, more on that below!
Recreation
Barrhaven has plenty of baseball and soccer fields as well as basketball courts and play structures. If your children are into sports, Barrhaven is the perfect place for them to play! A few baseball parks include Heritage Park Diamond, Moloughney Baseball Park, Ken Ross Baseball Park, Eagle’s Nest Diamond, Neil Nesbitt Diamond and Utman Park. A few soccer fields include Rob Stephen Football field, Lytle Park and Clarke Park Mini Field. There is also the Walter Baker Sports Centre which includes 2 full-sized ice rinks, an 8-lane swimming pool and a fitness centre. The Minto Recreation Complex includes a 6-lane pool + lazy river, 2 NHL sized ice rinks and an outdoor turf sports field designed to meet CFL and FIFA design standards! There are also a few community buildings and centres in the area which can be rented out for large events, meetings or parties.
Entertainment
Though Barrhaven doesn’t have the same amount of nightlife as downtown does, there is still plenty to see and do within the area! If you enjoy a good round of golf, check out Stonebridge Golf Club. This 18-hole public course is one of the finest in the National Capital Region. The course sprawls over 180 acres of lush, rolling landscape. The clubhouse also offers as a beautiful wedding venue that can accommodate up to 160 people. If movies are your thing, check out the Cineplex Odeon Barrhaven Cinema with 3D and prime seats. Looking for a spot to rest and enjoy a cold one? Barrhaven has lots of great Pubs including Heart & Crown, The Royal Oak, The Barley Mow, Greenfield’s Gastro Public House and more! Perhaps afternoon tea is your thing, check out Cafe Cristal for a unique experience featuring a globally inspired menu!
Public Transportation
No car? No problem! Barrhaven is loaded with OC Transpo bus routes that will take you directly downtown, to South Keys, the General Hospital, or Hawthorne Road. Hop onto a second bus, and you can go anywhere within the city! There are bus stops on almost every corner in many different Barrhaven neighbourhoods. The Via Rail Fallowfield train station is also in Barrhaven, from which you can get to basically anywhere in Canada! Within the next 10 years, the Light Rail system will also come to Barrhaven, making getting around the city even easier. Barrhaven also offers rideshare programs such as Uber, Lyft and taxi companies.
Growing Community
Barrhaven is a growing community with new residents moving in daily! There are lots of new housing developments in Barrhaven including Half Moon Bay by Mattamy, The Meadows by Tamarack as well as Harmony and Quinn’s Pointe by Minto. Due to its great location and convenience, Barrhaven is a very popular and appealing place to live in, so many people are looking to live here. Between now and 2031, the population growth rate is predicted to be a whopping 37%, compared to Ottawa’s 19% projection as stated by Barrhaven BIA. It’s hard to believe that just 30 years ago, Barrhaven was serviced by only 1 grocery store and didn’t have any bars or big box stores. It will be interesting to see whats in store for the next 30 years in Barrhaven!
Great Schools
Featuring 4 of the top 10 elementary schools in all of Ottawa, the children of Barrhaven are sure to make an impact! Based on the 2021 Fraser Institute school rankings, the following schools all ranked a score of over 7.9. Adrienne Clarkson Elementary School – 8.6. St. Cecilia Catholic School – 8.4. St. Benedict Elementary School – 8. Monsignor Paul Baxter Elementary School – 7.9. Don’t rule out the secondary schools either, because Barrhaven also has 3 out of the top 8 high schools in Ottawa with over a 7.7 score! John McCrae Secondary School – 8.3. Longfields-Davidson Heights Secondary School – 8.1. Mother Teresa – 7.7. If you are looking for a place with exceptional schools, Barrhaven is definitely the place for you!
In conclusion, Barrhaven may not be for everyone, but if you 30+ years old with a family, it just might be the perfect place for you! There are also still pockets of Barrhaven that are affordable for young people to purchase as their first homes. If you are looking to buy a home in the Barrhaven area, contact us! We are experts in this area and can give you advice on which neighbourhoods will best suit your needs and wants!
