Ritchie At A Glance
• Population (2012): 4194
• Density: 3355 people/km² (not very dense)
Homes in Ritchie
• Average Asking Price (2012): $377,000
• Asking Price Range (2012): $164,900 to $769,800
• Average Home Size (Approx): 1120 ft²
• Size Range (Approx): 580 ft² to 1550 ft²
Ritchie Real Estate Market
• Hot Market Index (2012): 45.3 °G
• Absorption (2012): 54.2%
• Buyer Willingness (2012): 95.3%
• Desirability Score (2012): 93.4/100 (Highly Desirable)
• Dilapidation Score (2006)*: 7.0% (Good)
Amenities
• Accessibility Score: 16 homes per point of access (Decent).
• Parking: Very good
• Transit: 29 bus stops.
• Parks: 1 park within neighbourhood boundaries and direct access to Mill Creek Ravine.
Location & Description
Ritchie is a south side community in Edmonton that is in the Bonnie Doon/University Area. Ritchie is a large neighbourhood with a fairly high population. It is gaining popularity because of its location and affordability. Real estate in Ritchie is mostly houses and apartments built in a range of eras from pre-war and post-war time frames. However, there is a lot of infill properties now in Ritchie. People have been replacing older, smaller homes since the beginning of the neighbourhood. The rental rate in Ritchie is close to 50% because the houses are less expensive to buy and therefore the rent is often affordable. There are a few schools in Ritchie: Escuela Mill Creek (a Spanish immersion school) and École Joseph-Moreau (a French immersion Catholic school). Ritchie seems like a popular choice for first time buyers, real estate investors and people looking to upgrade to a large infill. The neighbourhood is an eclectic mix of old and new in a great part of Edmonton. For more, see my Ritchie Neighbourhood Profile. Ritchie is bounded by Whyte Avenue to the north, 72 Avenue to the south, the CP Irvine Railyard to the west and Mill Creek Ravine to the east.
Prices in Ritchie are still quite reasonable at $377,000 (asking) considering the average size of homes in the area and it’s very central location. Condominiums can be had for as little as $165,000 and luxury homes on the ravine can sell for 3/4 of a million dollars. Although many of the older homes will be quite small, the average size of the homes is over 1100 ft², which is really reasonable.
The majority of homes in Ritchie were built during the Post-war period – about 34%. Next most common are homes of the pre-war period at 17%. These homes will not likely survive much longer unless their owners have taken very good care of them as they are often smaller homes and often have brick foundations. 12% of the homes in Ritchie were built in the 60s and 10% in the 70s. There was a resurgence of construction in the late 1990s likely consisting of apartment construction.
Ritchie is actually a very diverse neighbourhood with residential, commercial and light industrial zoning. When it comes to residential types, most of Ritchie is houses, but there are a large number of low-rise apartments, too.
Ritchie, like Hazeldean to the south has a an almost 50/50 mix of renters and owners. Being on or near Whyte Avenue pretty much guarantees quite a few renters when it comes to Edmonton neighbourhoods, and Ritchie is not that far from the University, so there are quite a number of students in the area, as you would expect.
To learn more about rentals in and around the University area, check out my article here.
Condos in Ritchie
73 Ave Townhouses – 9551 73 Av
Creek Side – 7839 96 St
King Edward Place – 9926 80 Av (Adult Only)
Ravine Terrace – 9505 77 Av
Scona Station – 10116 80 Av
South Garden – 9725 82 Av
Strathcona Haven – 9905 81 Av
Schools
Elementary:
Escuela Mill Creek – 9735 80 Ave | 780 433 5746
Junior High:
École Joseph-Moreau (formerly Ritchie Junior High) – 9738 75 Ave | [no number]
High Schools:
~ None in this community
Other Schools:
~ None in this community
Parks & Recreation
Ritchie has only 1 city park (named Ritchie Park – what else?), but most importantly it has direct access to Mill Creek Ravine with its network of trails:
Access & Parking
Access to Ritchie, is pretty good, although you can only get out to the north and south because of the ravine and the railyard. There are 16 entry/exit points for the neighbourhood, one for every 160 homes – not an uncommon access score for a University area neighbourhood.
Parking is decent in Ritchie except in areas where there is commercial and high-density residential development – it could get a little cramped in those areas. Besides that, there should be decent street parking with lots of alleyways and garages to keep some cars off the front streets.
Transit
There are 29 bus stops in Ritchie. That is a lot of bus stops – one for every 88 houses.
* Source: 2006 Census of Canada, Statistics Canada
by +Alan F Macdonald REALTOR® | Copyright © – gimme-shelter.com
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