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Where Barrie’s waterfront homes are
Kempenfelt Bay wraps around the heart of Barrie, and the City’s waterfront runs for more than 5 km along it. Homes face the water on both shores, from historic Kempenfelt Village on the north side to Allandale on the south. The City also describes the bay as the deepest part of Lake Simcoe.
On the north shore, Kempenfelt Village is one of Barrie’s nine historic neighbourhoods. The City’s heritage guide puts it between Steel Street, Puget Street, Penetanguishene Road and the water. Penetanguishene Road dates from the War of 1812 era, and the early village had a boat landing, barracks, a tavern, a brewery and brickworks.
Allandale sits on the southern shore. It grew up around the railway and was annexed by Barrie in the 1890s, and the old Allandale Station is still its centrepiece. Further along the south shore are Minet’s Point, home to one of the City’s four beaches, and Tollendal.
Downtown, condo towers stand near the marina. If you own one of those units, the Barrie condo reverse mortgage page covers what lenders check in a building.
How a waterfront home is appraised
An appraisal is a visit from a licensed appraiser who sets the home’s value for the lender. For most Barrie houses, there are plenty of similar sales to compare. On the bay, there are far fewer, and no two shoreline lots are quite the same.
The appraiser looks at the house, the lot, how much frontage it has on the water and the state of the shoreline. A house with a well-kept shore and year-round comfort compares differently from a seasonal cottage next door. With fewer sales to compare, a good appraiser may look further along the bay.
The value matters because the most you can get is a set percentage of it, based on the youngest owner’s age. Here’s what that looks like on Barrie’s September 2026 single-family benchmark of $669,900:
| Youngest owner | Up to about | On a $669,900 home |
|---|---|---|
| 65 | 50.55% | about $339,000 |
| 70 | 52.85% | about $354,000 |
| 75 | 57.75% | about $387,000 |
| 78 and older | 60% | about $402,000 |
These are ceilings, not offers. A waterfront home appraised higher than the benchmark raises the dollar figure, but the percentage for your age stays the same. Your own estimate, with a 15-year chart of home value, loan and equity, is on the Barrie reverse mortgage calculator.
Getting ready for the appraiser’s visit
A little preparation helps the appraiser see everything your home offers. Before the visit, gather:
- Your survey, so the lot lines and frontage on the bay are clear.
- Permits and receipts for work done in recent years, such as a new roof, windows, a seawall or a furnace.
- Any conservation authority permit you received for shoreline work.
- Your latest condo fee statement, if you own a unit.
Mention anything that sets your home apart from its neighbours. A finished lower level or a newer kitchen can be easy to miss in a short visit.
Converted cottages: what lenders look for
Some homes on the bay began as summer cottages and were winterized over the years. That’s fine for a reverse mortgage, as long as the home is now your principal residence, where you live most of the year.
The lender wants a house that works as a full-time home. Expect the appraiser to look at the heating, the foundation, the water supply and whether you can reach the house all year. Older additions built without permits can raise questions, so mention them up front.
If the home needs work to get there, the money can pay for it. A reverse mortgage can fund new insulation, a furnace, a level entrance or a walk-in shower, and our accessible home renovations page explains the County and Ontario help that can sit alongside it.
Shoreline permits, before the money is spent
Parts of Barrie near the lake, creeks and wetlands are regulated by the Lake Simcoe Region Conservation Authority (LSRCA). On a regulated lot, the City says you need the conservation authority’s permit before you apply for a building permit. LSRCA’s permit rules have come under Ontario Regulation 41/24 since April 1, 2024, and its online map shows whether your lot is regulated.
That adds time to any shoreline repair, new deck, addition or suite. Check the map before you hire anyone. A designated heritage property may also need approval for changes.
A reverse mortgage doesn’t change any of these rules. What it can do is pay for the work once the permits are in place, with no monthly mortgage payments.
Waterfront condos downtown and in Allandale
Barrie’s apartment benchmark was $416,600 in September 2026, down 6.28% from a year earlier. Condo apartments that actually sold that month averaged $433,784, down 24.1%, but that’s on only 19 sales, so one month says little.
If you own a condo with a view of the bay, your monthly fees continue after a reverse mortgage, just as your property tax does. At 70, a unit valued at the $416,600 benchmark could bring up to about $220,000, before any mortgage you owe is paid off.
Property tax on a bay-front assessment
Barrie’s 2026 residential tax rate is 1.467503% of your assessed value, which MPAC sets. On a waterfront home, that can add up to a large bill. As our own example, a $700,000 assessment at the 2026 rate comes to about $10,270 a year.
Two programs can help. Barrie’s Property Tax Deferral Program lets owners 65 and older freeze their taxes at the base-year amount, the year before they first apply, with the increase deferred interest-free and repaid when the home is sold. You must reapply by August 31 every year. Ontario’s Senior Homeowners’ Property Tax Grant can return up to $500 a year to owners 64 and older whose income is under its limits. Our Barrie property tax guide for seniors explains both, and how they fit with a reverse mortgage.
What stays your job after the money arrives
You keep ownership of your home, and you make no monthly mortgage payments for as long as you live there. In return, three things stay with you: property tax, home insurance and upkeep. Keeping them up is a condition of the loan.
On the bay, upkeep can include the shoreline, the dock and the effects of wind and ice off the lake. Budget for them before you settle on an amount. When the loan comes due, you or your estate can never owe more than the home’s fair market value, provided those three were looked after. It’s typically called the no negative equity guarantee.
Borrowed money isn’t taxed as income, so your Old Age Security and GIS carry on as before.
If you’re thinking about moving off the water
Some owners on the bay weigh selling against staying. Selling a waterfront home means real estate commission, legal fees, Ontario’s land transfer tax on the next home and moving costs. The downsizing in Barrie guide puts figures on each one, so you can set them next to what a reverse mortgage would cost you.
Where this applies
The same help is available everywhere listed here. Some of the places this page covers:
- Kempenfelt Village
- Downtown waterfront
- Allandale
- Brock Park
- Minet's Point
- Tollendal
- South shore
- East end shoreline
Places you'll know
- The Spirit Catcher sculpture, a waterfront focal point since 1987
- The Waterfront Trail, about 6.7 km around the lake and part of the Trans Canada Trail
- Centennial, Johnson's, Minet's Point and Tyndale beaches
- The historic Allandale Station on the south shore
- The General John Hayter Southshore Community Centre
How help reaches you
Richard works with you by email, phone or video call, so you never need to visit an office, and your son or daughter can be copied on every message.
One appraiser comes to your home to see the house or unit, its condition and its lot on the water. Tell them about any recent work, from a new roof to shoreline repairs.
For independent legal advice, you choose your own lawyer, and you can pick one close to home in Barrie.
What these homes are worth
No separate price is published for Barrie's waterfront homes, so the appraiser works from waterfront sales near you. The closest official figures are for the city as a whole: the single-family benchmark was $669,900 in September 2026, detached homes sold for an average of $789,940, and the apartment benchmark was $416,600.
On the $669,900 single-family benchmark, a 70-year-old could get up to about $354,000 (52.85%). That's a ceiling, not an offer.
Source: TRREB, Simcoe County Market Watch, September 2026 (released October 6, 2026)
Ways owners here use a reverse mortgage
- Condo Reverse Mortgages: How a reverse mortgage works on a Barrie condo apartment or townhouse, from the building check to the condo fees you keep paying.
- Accessible Renovations: Paying for a safer bathroom, an easier entrance or main-floor living in your Barrie home, without a monthly mortgage payment.
- Paying for Home Care: How Barrie homeowners 55+ combine publicly funded home care with paid help, and where a reverse mortgage fits.