Proven, Not Promised.
152 Simcoe St N, Oshawa(905) 449-4422
Rural charm meets modern convenience and real value.
Typical Range
$600K – $1.4M (huge range, rural acreage skews high)
Housing Style
Detached, rural acreage, heritage homes in Bowmanville core.
Commute
75 min to Union Station via GO (Bowmanville extension improving this).
The Vibe
Rural-meets-suburban. Value, space, and genuine small-town feel.
101,427
Population (2021)
+10.2%
Growth 2016–2021
4 urban + 8 hamlets
Communities included
40+ km
Lake Ontario waterfront
Darlington Nuclear
Major employer
Clarington is what people picture when they imagine the version of the GTA they could actually afford. Big lots, heritage main streets, working farms a five-minute drive from the highway, and a sense of community that has not been redeveloped out of existence. Bowmanville, Courtice, Newcastle, Orono, and a string of rural hamlets like Tyrone, Hampton, and Enniskillen all sit within Clarington's borders, and the result is the most varied housing market in Durham Region.
The draw is value. Clarington consistently delivers more square footage, more lot, and more driveway for the dollar than anywhere else in Durham. A 40-acre hobby farm, a new four-bedroom subdivision home, a heritage Victorian on a tree-lined street. They all exist here, and the prices still let real families buy them. The trade-off is commute distance, but with the GO Train extension under construction and Highway 418 connecting to the 407, the math is shifting fast.
What surprises buyers most is the lifestyle. Saturday mornings at Tyrone Mills for cider donuts, summer afternoons at Darlington Provincial Park, fall weekends at the Orono Fair, winter races at Mosport. There is a rhythm to the year here that is impossible to find inside the GTA proper, and it is the reason most Clarington residents will never leave.
Clarington was formed in 1974 when the Town of Bowmanville, Village of Newcastle, and the townships of Clarke and Darlington amalgamated as the Town of Newcastle. In 1993 it was renamed Clarington, blending Clarke and Darlington. Rooted in agricultural heritage and small-town main streets, the municipality grew alongside the Darlington Nuclear Generating Station, which opened in the early 1990s and remains one of Ontario's largest clean-energy facilities.
Every community has the things you find in the brochure and the things you only find by living here. Here are the ones worth knowing about before you fall in love.
01
The legendary 4 km Mosport road circuit hosting NASCAR, IMSA, and motorcycle racing just north of Bowmanville.
02
Working 1846 grist mill and bakery in a tucked-away Clarington hamlet, famous for cider donuts and weekend visits from the whole region.
03
Orono wildlife park specializing in big cats, with daytime tours and overnight zoo stays.
04
Lake Ontario waterfront park on Clarington's western edge with camping, beach, and the Waterfront Trail.
05
The Sarah Jane Williams Heritage Centre, a restored Victorian home telling Clarington's story from settlement through the Goodyear era.
06
Public art gallery housed in a restored 1903 stone mill on Soper Creek in Bowmanville.
07
Apple country with cidery, winery, and pick-your-own orchards minutes apart in Newcastle and Bowmanville.
08
The only WWII German officer POW camp in North America, in Bowmanville, now a designated National Historic Site.
09
Modern Newcastle facility with NHL-size ice and aquatic centre.
Lakeridge Health Bowmanville
Full-service community hospital on Liberty Street with 24/7 ER, surgery, maternity, and diagnostic imaging, central to all of Clarington.
Lakeridge Health Oshawa
Regional referral hospital and cancer centre roughly 15 minutes west via Highway 401 for advanced specialty care.
Clarington Central Secondary School
Bowmanville-based KPRDSB high school with strong academics and athletics, central to the municipality.
Courtice Secondary School
KPRDSB high school anchoring west Clarington's largest growth pocket.
St. Stephen's Catholic Secondary School
Well-regarded PVNCCDSB Catholic high school serving Bowmanville and the surrounding rural Clarington families.
Bowmanville Valley & Soper Creek Trails
Connected ravine trail system winding through Bowmanville along the creeks all the way to Lake Ontario.
Garnet B. Rickard Recreation Complex
Bowmanville arena, pool, and fitness hub that anchors community life and big regional events.
Newcastle Waterfront
Heritage Newcastle Community Hall plus the Port of Newcastle marina, beach, and lakefront walking paths.
Courtice Community Complex
Indoor pool, library branch, and program space serving the fast-growing west end of Clarington.
The events that turn a town into a community. Mark these on the calendar before you even unpack.
Late November–December
Clarington famously hosts five separate Christmas parades (Bowmanville, Newcastle, Courtice, Orono, and Tyrone), a uniquely small-town tradition.
August
One of Canada's largest country music camping festivals, held at Canadian Tire Motorsport Park.
Early September
Running every year since 1852, one of Ontario's oldest agricultural fairs, with livestock shows, midway, and demolition derby.
October
King Street closes for 250+ vendors, apple pies, music, and a midway celebrating Clarington's orchard heritage.
Early May
Downtown Bowmanville closes King Street for vendors, maple syrup demos, classic cars, and live music.
Towns are shaped by the people who grow up in them. These are some of the names Clarington has sent into the world.
Enniskillen-born industrialist who founded the McLaughlin Motor Car Company in 1904, the forerunner of GM Canada.
Former federal Conservative Party leader and longtime Bowmanville resident.
Scottish-born Montreal merchant and namesake of Bowmanville, the largest community in Clarington.
Canadian Minister of Militia and Defence during World War I.
Stanley Cup-winning NHL coach.
Clarington's food culture leans on its working farmland. Algoma Orchards (Newcastle) and Archibald Orchards & Estate Winery (Bowmanville) anchor a true farm-gate scene with cider, pies, and pick-your-own. Tyrone Mills still grinds its own flour and bakes legendary butter tarts and donuts on site. Downtown Bowmanville's heritage King Street has filled in with independent gastropubs and cafes, while Newcastle Village offers Massey House and the long-running Newcastle Town Hall pub scene. Manantler Craft Brewing pours locally, and seasonal farmers markets in Bowmanville, Orono, and Newcastle keep menus genuinely local year-round.
Clarington sits on Highway 401 with Highways 35/115 providing the main route north toward Peterborough and the Kawarthas, and Highway 407 ETR connecting west across the GTA. GO Transit bus service runs from Bowmanville and Newcastle to Oshawa GO, and the long-planned Lakeshore East GO Train extension is now under construction with new stations coming to Courtice and Bowmanville. Driving downtown to Toronto from Bowmanville is typically 75–90 minutes off-peak.
Clarington is a municipality containing Bowmanville, Courtice, Newcastle, Orono, and several rural hamlets. It is Durham Region's largest municipality by land area.
Extremely varied. Central Bowmanville holds heritage homes and tree-lined streets. Courtice is newer subdivision growth. Rural Clarington has acreage, hobby farms, and estate lots.
Tell us what you’re looking for. We know the streets, the schools, and the off-market opportunities that never make it to Realtor.ca.
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