Which homes this page is about
Springwater, Oro-Medonte and Innisfil are separate municipalities, not part of the City of Barrie. All three belong to the County of Simcoe, and TRREB reports their home prices beside Barrie’s each month. Many of their farmhouses and country homes sit only minutes from Barrie’s city limits.
Those limits have moved twice. On January 1, 2010, Barrie took in 2,293 hectares from Innisfil, land that became the Hewitt’s and Salem planning areas. Hewitt’s alone is planned for about 12,000 homes, so most of that land is turning into new subdivisions rather than farms. Then on January 1, 2026, about 1,673 hectares from Oro-Medonte and Springwater became part of Barrie.
So a rural home “around Barrie” might pay taxes to a township, or it might now be inside the City. Richard’s help is the same either way. What changes is how lenders look at the property, and that’s what this page explains.
How lenders look at a rural property
A reverse mortgage is based on your home’s appraised value, the figure a licensed appraiser sets after a visit. In town, that’s mostly the house and its lot. In the country, the appraiser and the lender also have to decide how much of the land counts.
Most lenders value the house plus a reasonable lot around it. Extra acres, a barn, a drive shed or a workshop often add little or nothing to the amount you can get. Some lenders lend a smaller amount on rural homes, and some won’t lend on certain rural properties at all.
That’s why the lender matters as much as the rate here. Richard compares every reverse mortgage lender in Canada, sorts out which ones accept your type of property, and shows you by email how much you could get and from whom. Your application goes only to the lender you pick, so your credit is checked once.
Wells, septic systems and the appraisal
A private well and a septic system are normal outside Barrie, and they don’t rule a home out. Still, they get a closer look than city water and sewer would.
- The well: a lender may ask for a recent water test showing the water is safe to drink.
- The septic: expect questions about its age and when it was last pumped or inspected.
- Heating and access: the appraiser notes how the home is heated and whether the road or lane is open all year.
Having these records ready, such as test results, pumping receipts and any recent repair bills, helps the appraisal and the lender’s review go faster.
What rural homes around Barrie are worth
TRREB’s September 2026 report gives a benchmark price, which tracks a typical home, for each township. Here’s what the age limits would mean on each one:
| Area | Benchmark, Sept 2026 | Up to about 52.85% at 70 | Up to about 57.75% at 75 |
|---|---|---|---|
| Springwater | $893,300 | $472,100 | $515,900 |
| Oro-Medonte | $800,800 | $423,200 | $462,500 |
| Innisfil | $651,800 | $344,500 | $376,400 |
| City of Barrie | $617,100 | $326,000 | $356,000 |
Each figure is a ceiling, not an offer, and it assumes the lender counts the full value. On a rural home, the lender may count only the house and a reasonable lot, so your number could be lower. All three townships also fell over the year: Springwater by 6.78%, Oro-Medonte by 5.83% and Innisfil by 8.25%.
Any mortgage you still owe is paid off first from the amount. To try your own figures, use the Barrie reverse mortgage calculator, and see the Barrie home prices guide for more on what the benchmark means.
If Barrie annexed your property on January 1, 2026
Since January 1, 2026, owners in the annexed lands pay property tax to the City of Barrie, not the township. To soften the change, a tax credit phases in any increase over five years, falling by 20% a year. Farm and managed forest properties get 20 years instead.
The phase-in stops if the property changes hands or its tax class changes. A reverse mortgage registers a mortgage on your title, and you remain the owner. Even so, confirm with the City’s revenue staff before you apply.
Two more points matter for owners there:
- Building limits for now: an Interim Control By-law lets most annexed properties be used only as they were on January 1, 2026, until it’s lifted or expires on December 23, 2026. The old township zoning still applies until Barrie passes new zoning.
- Old tax arrears now go to the City: any balance left from your former township is now owed to the City. A reverse mortgage usually requires unpaid or deferred property tax to be paid off at closing, so ask Richard about your situation.
Repairs, accessibility and winter in the country
Older farmhouses often need work, from a new roof to a ground-floor bathroom. Because Springwater, Oro-Medonte and Innisfil are part of the County of Simcoe, owners there can apply to the County’s Ontario Renovates program. It offers up to $15,000, with up to $5,000 of that as an accessibility grant and the rest as a 10-year forgivable loan.
The limits are firm: household income at or below $91,000, assets under $20,000 and a home value of $799,000 or less. A typical Springwater home, at the $893,300 benchmark, is above that value limit. The funding is registered on your title, so speak to the County and Richard before combining it with a reverse mortgage. Our page on accessible home renovations covers other options.
Winter is the other cost. Environment Canada’s 1981 to 2010 normals record 223 cm of snow a year at Barrie’s station, with January the snowiest month at 65.9 cm. On a country property, clearing the lane is yours to arrange. A reverse mortgage can pay for a snow-clearing contract or help at home, as our page on paying for home care in Barrie explains.
What you keep paying for on a country property
A reverse mortgage takes away the monthly mortgage payment, not the costs of owning. You still cover the tax bill, the insurance and the repairs, as a condition of the loan. On a rural property, upkeep also means the well, the septic system, the roof over any outbuilding you use and the lane.
In exchange, you stay the owner and live in your home for as long as you like. Because it’s borrowed, the money isn’t taxed, and it leaves your OAS and GIS where they are. When the loan comes due, you or your estate can never owe more than the home’s fair market value, provided those costs were kept up. It’s typically called the no negative equity guarantee.
If you move into care later
A reverse mortgage runs until the last borrower dies, sells or moves out for good. If you’re both borrowers and one of you moves into long-term care while the other stays, nothing comes due. Once the last borrower leaves permanently, the loan is repaid, usually from the sale. Some lenders lower or waive the early repayment penalty after a permanent move into long-term care.
Nine long-term care homes have Barrie addresses on Ontario Health atHome’s July 2026 list, and Sara Vista in Elmvale is on the same Barrie and area list. Our long-term care in Barrie guide lists them with the 2026 co-payments.
Where this applies
The same help is available everywhere listed here. Some of the places this page covers:
- Springwater Township
- Oro-Medonte Township
- Town of Innisfil
- Midhurst
- Elmvale
- Barrie's 2026 boundary expansion lands
Places you'll know
- The County of Simcoe's housing programs office, 1110 Highway 26, Midhurst
- Royal Victoria Regional Health Centre, 201 Georgian Drive, Barrie, with a new South Campus planned in Innisfil
- Sara Vista Nursing Centre in Elmvale, on Ontario Health atHome's Barrie and area long-term care list
How help reaches you
Everything with Richard is done by email, phone or video call, so there's no drive into town for meetings, and family can be copied on every message.
One appraiser visits the farmhouse. Walk them past the well, the septic system and any outbuildings, and have your records handy.
For independent legal advice, you choose your own lawyer, in Barrie or closer to home in your township.
What these homes are worth
September 2026 MLS® benchmark prices: Springwater $893,300, Oro-Medonte $800,800 and Innisfil $651,800. For comparison, the City of Barrie was $617,100 and Simcoe County as a whole $762,300.
These benchmarks blend every home type in each township. A rural appraisal for a reverse mortgage usually counts the house and a reasonable lot, not the whole parcel, so treat them as a starting point. At 70, 52.85% of Springwater's benchmark is about $472,100, a ceiling, not an offer.
Source: TRREB, Simcoe County Market Watch, September 2026 (released October 6, 2026)
Ways owners here use a reverse mortgage
- Accessible Renovations: Paying for a safer bathroom, an easier entrance or main-floor living in your Barrie home, without a monthly mortgage payment.
- Second suites and garden suites: Pay for a basement apartment or garden suite in Barrie with no monthly mortgage payment, and keep the home in your name.
- Paying for Home Care: How Barrie homeowners 55+ combine publicly funded home care with paid help, and where a reverse mortgage fits.