From foreign buyers gobbling up properties sight unseen to young families trying to raise kids in condo towers, the Canadian housing market is a hot topic of discussion these days. But what do houses really cost these days? According to the Canadian Real Estate Association (the CREA), the average price in Canada is currently $480,743, an amount that changes from region to region.

To find out just how much it varies, we looked at average house prices in each major city, and then tried to estimate how much income is needed to afford that. For help, we turned to Adrian Williams, a Toronto mortgage broker with an incredibly handy mortgage calculator.

"To calculate an estimated gross income required, you need the purchase price, down payment, interest rate, estimated property taxes and a minimum of $100 a month for heating costs. Other utilities are not factored in by lending banks," Williams says.

At William's suggestion, we used a 2.49 per cent interest rate (based on a 120-day rate hold. This is the average qualifying rate for a five-year fixed term) and a down payment of 10 per cent of the purchase price.

"Other factors that are included with mortgage qualification are the total monthly payment obligations from credit cards, LOC's, personal and car loans, car leases and other types of credit that require a monthly payment," Williams said.

The CREA's prices below take into account all residential properties, including detached, semi-detached, townhouse/row houses, apartment units, cottages, duplexes and triplexes. Median salary information comes from Statistics Canada's 2014 Metropolitan Area Census, the most recent look at salaries across the country. Numbers are rounded to the nearest dollar, and all property tax figures should be considered rough estimates.

So, without further ado, here is what you need to earn to buy a house in every major Canadian city.

Vancouver

Average price: $1,007,687

Monthly mortgage payment: $3,693

Monthly property tax: $265

Income required: $152,206

Median family income: $76,040

Jobs in Vancouver

Calgary

Average price: $469,325

Monthly mortgage payment: $1,935

Monthly property tax: $241

Income required: $107,123

Median family income: $85,366

Jobs in Calgary

Edmonton

Average price: $384,504

Monthly mortgage payment: $1,586

Monthly property tax: $256

Income required: $72,812

Median family income: $101,470

Jobs in Edmonton

Regina

Average price: $314,714

Monthly mortgage payment: $1,298

Monthly property tax: $359

Income required: $65,881

Median family income: $96,080

Jobs in Regina

Saskatoon

Average price: $346,879

Monthly mortgage payment: $1,430

Monthly property tax: $363

Income required: $71,006

Median family income: $93,400

Jobs in Saskatoon

Winnipeg

Average price: $282,684

Monthly mortgage payment: $1,166

Monthly property tax: $286

Income required: $58,191

Median family income: $79,850

Jobs in Winnipeg

Ottawa

Average price: $374,431

Monthly mortgage payment: $1,544

Monthly property tax: $335

Income required: $74,216

Median family income: $102,020

Jobs in Ottawa

Toronto

Average price: $709,825

Monthly mortgage payment: $2,927

Monthly property tax: $406

Income required: $128,746

Median family income: $75,270

Jobs in Toronto

Montreal

Average price: $349,218

Monthly mortgage payment: $1,440

Monthly property tax: $240

One-time "welcome tax": $3750

Income required: $78,473

Median family income: $75,010

Jobs in Montreal

Halifax

Average price: $292,511

Monthly mortgage payment: $1,206

Monthly property tax: $294

Income required: $56,929

Median family income: $60,010

Jobs in Halifax

St. John's

Average price: $304,115

Monthly mortgage payment: $1,254

Monthly property tax: $205

Income required: $54,717

Median family income: $94,060

Jobs in St. John's

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