Relocating to Markham: The First Year, Step by Step

The paperwork, in the order it actually matters

Two things have deadlines attached. Everything else can wait a few weeks.

Health coverage has no waiting period. Ontario is explicit: there is no longer a waiting period for OHIP coverage and if you are eligible you have immediate coverage. You do not need to wait until you have been physically present for 153 days before applying. Apply as soon as you arrive.

Bring three original documents: one proving citizenship or OHIP-eligible immigration status, one proving Ontario residency and one proving identity. There are ongoing residency conditions, including being physically present in Ontario for 153 days in any 12 month period and making Ontario your primary residence.

Your driving licence expires as a practical matter after 60 days. You may drive on a valid licence from another province, state or country for 60 days after moving. After that you need an Ontario licence.

The part people get caught by is the evidence. Alongside your original licence you need original documents proving your driving experience, in English or French. Those are much easier to obtain before you leave your previous country than afterwards. Without them you may face knowledge and road tests you would otherwise be exempt from.

Rent first or buy on arrival

We say this to newcomers more often than anything else: if you have not lived in the Greater Toronto Area before, renting for six to twelve months is usually the better decision.

The reasons are specific rather than generic. Markham’s neighbourhoods differ more than a map suggests. Commutes are the single thing newcomers misjudge most, because a distance that looks short on the map behaves differently at eight in the morning. And a year of actually living somewhere answers questions that no amount of research does.

The cost is real: two moves instead of one and the risk that prices move while you wait. For a family arriving with a firm job location and a clear sense of what they want, buying on arrival is a reasonable choice. For everyone else, a year of renting is cheap insurance against an expensive mistake.

What housing costs here

Markham’s median sale price in August 2026 was $1,095,000. Across communities, TRREB’s medians for January to March 2026 looked like this:

Community	Median sale price, Q1 2026
Thornhill	$663,000
Unionville	$736,500
Cornell	$977,000
Greensborough	$980,100
Wismer	$1,048,000
Berczy Village	$1,232,000
Angus Glen	$1,349,000

Read those carefully. Thornhill and Unionville look inexpensive because a large share of sales in those communities are condo apartments, not because detached homes there are cheap. Compare property types rather than community names.

Our neighbourhood guides cover all twelve and the Markham map shows how they sit relative to each other.

The tax position when you buy

No municipal land transfer tax. Markham is in York Region, so a purchase here carries Ontario land transfer tax only. The same purchase inside the City of Toronto attracts a second municipal tax of comparable size. On a median priced home that is thousands of dollars. It is one of the real financial arguments for this side of Steeles Avenue. Our post on land transfer tax in Markham works through the brackets.

The non-resident speculation tax. If you are not a Canadian citizen or permanent resident, Ontario’s 25 percent non-resident speculation tax applies to residential property anywhere in the province. There are exemptions and rebates in specific circumstances. Take advice from a lawyer who deals with them regularly, before you make an offer rather than after.

Property tax. An annual bill based on the MPAC assessed value and the City, Region and education rates. Our post on Markham property tax sets out how the bill is calculated and when it is due.

Schools and the direction the decision runs

In Ontario the home address determines the assigned school. The address decides the school, not the other way around.

So if schooling is part of the decision, confirm the boundary with the school board directly for the specific address before you commit. Boundaries change and a listing is not a reliable source for what school a house is zoned to. This is worth an email to the board rather than a conversation with anybody who has an interest in the sale.

Getting around

Markham is largely built for driving, with two genuine exceptions.

The GO train runs toward Union Station from the Markham stations and for a regular commute into downtown Toronto it is a scheduled trip rather than a variable one. That predictability is why homes near the stations hold their appeal. Our post on commuting from Markham by GO train covers the routes.

YRT and Viva buses connect the city and feed the GO stations.

If you intend to live without a car, Downtown Markham and the areas around the stations are the realistic shortlist and saying that early saves a lot of wasted viewing. Otherwise, test your own commute at the hour you would actually travel, on the road you would actually take. Highways 404 and 407 at eight in the morning are a different proposition from the same roads at eleven.

The first year, condensed

1. Apply for OHIP on arrival. There is no waiting period.
2. Gather your driving history documents and exchange your licence inside 60 days.
3. Rent somewhere central enough to explore from, unless you already know exactly where you are going.
4. Register children with the board for the address you are actually living at.
5. Spend the year testing commutes and neighbourhoods at the times you would use them.
6. Buy when you know the answer rather than when the year is up.

We work with people arriving from other countries and other provinces regularly and the team speaks ten languages, which in practice means a family can have this conversation in the language they think in. If you are planning a move to Markham and want an honest read on neighbourhoods, costs and timing before you commit, there is no charge and no obligation for that conversation.