Centretown

At a glance

Ottawa's densest residential neighbourhood, south of Parliament Hill between the Rideau Canal and Bronson. Mid-century and newer apartment buildings sit beside brick heritage houses, and most households rent. Public servants, students and young professionals make up much of the population, and few children live here.

Median home value

$532K

2021 census, owner estimate · city $620K

Residents

34,890

scaled estimate for mid-2025, up from 31,188 at the 2021 census

Households renting

76%

city 36%

Households in condos

29%

city 16%

What the numbers mean

• Owners valued the median home at $532K in the 2021 census, 14% below the Ottawa median of $620K. Prices have moved since, so treat it as a relative guide.
• 76% of households rent, well above the 36% city-wide, so expect a younger, more mobile mix of neighbours.
• Only 6% of residents are under 15, versus 17% city-wide.
• 28% of residents are 20 to 29, versus 14% city-wide. It skews young-professional.
• 29% of households live in condominiums (16% city-wide), so buying here usually means a condo.
• The median monthly rent is about $1,365, and about 31% of households spent 30% or more of their income on housing in 2021.

Who lives here

Share of residents by age, scaled estimate for mid-2025, up from 31,188 at the 2021 census.

Homes

Share of households by type, scaled estimate for mid-2025, up from 31,188 at the 2021 census.

Daily errands on foot¹

Places within the neighbourhood or a 5-minute walk of its edge, compared with the typical neighbourhood in Ottawa.

Supermarkets

8

city median 2

Cafés and bakeries

109

city median 9

Pharmacies and clinics

52

city median 10

Playgrounds and dog parks

34

city median 34

Upfront closing costs²

Ontario charges a tiered land transfer tax, up to 2.5% on the part of a home over $2 million. Government fees at the median home price: This uses the 2021 census home-value estimate, and today's prices are higher, so the real bill will be larger.

Ontario land transfer tax

$7,120

on $532K

Typical apartment rent nearby³

Centretown sits in CMHC's Downtown survey zone. October 2025 average rent of purpose-built rental apartments in that zone:

Studio

$1,358

+$26 vs metro average

1 bedroom

$1,601

+$8 vs metro average

2 bedroom

$2,021

+$105 vs metro average

3 bedroom or more

$2,413

+$323 vs metro average

How it's changing

Ottawa doesn't publish building permits by neighbourhood, so we can't chart construction here yet.

Safety⁴

Reported incidents in 2025 (the latest full year Ottawa Police publish by location), per 1,000 residents, compared with the median of 105 Ottawa neighbourhoods.

Reported crime

35.1

per 1,000 · above the 7.9 median

Violent crime

22.3

per 1,000 · median 5.1

Property crime

12.8

per 1,000 · median 2.8

• Reported crime runs about 4.4× the median Ottawa neighbourhood: 35.1 incidents per 1,000 residents a year, versus 7.9.
• The most common reported crime is assault, 34% of the total. 36% of incidents are property crime.
• Crime has been roughly flat since 2021, at about 1,050 reported incidents a year.
• Busy main streets, transit and nightlife bring in visitors, and incidents are counted where they happen, not where people live.

Reported crime by year