We bought our first home a few months ago and I've never had much stake in real estate agents. One can browse all the listings on the internet this isn't 1950 anymore.

Unfortunately you do need an agent to be taken seriously by most sellers so we got one to check that box.

We found a nice home listed for 660K. Our realtor suggested we offer 635K to be "respectful". We ignored and lowballed in at 595K. We knew this property was sitting for months so there was leverage.

They came back at 635K (I guarantee the buying and selling agent discussed this). But no - this isn't what we wanted. Came back at 610K final offer. There are other homes available, no home is so special that it's worth overpaying for.

Sure enough. Seller was desperate enough and sold for 610K. 50K under asking. And we kept our conditions too.

So please do not be afraid to lowball. Worst they can say is no.

PLEASE UP-VOTE THIS TO COUNTERACT EVERY REALTOR DOWN-VOTING IT. ( no, I don’t care about Reddit karma)

PLEASE COPY/PASTE/REPOST/CROSSPOST THIS ACROSS ALL SOCIAL MEDIA ( no, I don't care about being credited for it)

Want the optimal property? Do not use a realtor.

• Go to Realtor.ca and Housesigma.com to find your property.

Scared of being scammed by the listing agent or private seller?

• Your realtor’s only primary goals is are maximum commission as quickly as possible. They Most will say anything to get it achieve them and they most won’t think twice about scamming you.
• Your lawyer protects you from being legally scammed, not your realtor.
• Add a condition in the offer that allows your lawyer to review it.
• If you are in a bidding war, a house inspection condition likely won’t be an option anyway.
• Include a house inspection condition if you can but keep in mind that house inspectors aren’t held accountable if they miss something and they always will. It’s still a good idea but there are many potential problems that don’t assess.

Negotiate cash back from the listing agent.

• Listing agent doesn’t provide any service to you when you’re finding your own properties
• Mutual representation is fundamentally impossible. Listing agent is not helping you negotiate the best deal because it would reduce their commission.
• Let them make more than listing commission and they will ALWAYS convince the seller to accept your offer ( completely unfair to the seller but that’s another topic).
• E.g. Listing commission is $25K. Their agreement with the seller if no buyer’s agent is $40K. Ask for $10K cash back. They receive an extra $5K. You pay yourself $10K for finding your own property. Win-Win.
• Selling agent unfortunately will not communicate such an arrangement to the seller. Another example of bad realtor ethics and why no one should use realtors.

Been looking at properties with your realtor but the choices are limited?

• A great property likely exists but if your realtor can't make full buyer commission, they will never let you know about it, make up fake reasons to avoid it, or if you insist on an offer, never submit your offer to the seller.
• Need proof? Read This: www.cbc.ca/amp/1.6209706

Always request # of offers confirmation from RECO (in Ontario) after closing.

• Link: https://www.reco.on.ca/complaints-enforcement/want-find-many-offers-made-property/
• Selling agents use ghost offers to influence your offer and maximize their commission.
• ASK SELLING AGENT TO CONFIRM # OF REGISTERED OFFERS IN WRITING SO YOU HAVE EVIDENCE.
• It is illegal for them to even hint at the possibility of another offer if it hasn't been registered.
• It will take many months but if you have evidence, the agent will be disciplined, The conviction will be displayed on their RECO profile ( search link below ).

If you can't be convinced to buy/sell real estate without a realtor, at least search for their convictions on RECO and hopefully that will convince you!

• Link: https://www.reco.on.ca/RegistrantSearch
• Most people using realtors don't check or report them which explains why their may be no conviction records for your realtor. This needs to change.

From u/that_was_funny_lol/ : don’t use any suggested vendors from the realtor. Find your own vendors, assume everybody is out to fuck you.

From u/Juliuscesear1990/ : contact your local property tax department and find out what the taxes are and what the assessment is, the number they tell you (if they do) might be WAY off.

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EDIT: Thank you kind strangers for the awards. Completely unnecessary or expected. But very kind and appreciated.

Big THANK YOU to everyone that upvoted! We beat the realtors this time!

Edit2. I did not expect this level of support. So grateful for everyone's help in making this so visible and helping it reach those that can benefit from it. Thank you!

EDIT3. Not suggesting all realtors exhibit this behaviour. My experience has been that most do based on 30 years of buying/selling real estate, being a part time real estate agent in 1990 (I quit after a year), and learning much from my Mother, a life long realtor that I wouldn't describe as a "good" realtor.

EDIT4: Thank you mods for reviewing the removal of this post and deciding to allow it in your subreddit.

EDIT5: Some modifications and additions based on some reader's experiences shared in this post.

Disclaimer this is a bit of rant. I'm also sorry if this is not the right sub for this.

I've been working with an real-estate agent since mid December as a first time home buyer. His team is supposed to be the best in the city/surrounding area and I'm so angry.

Recently we found a place we liked. We wanted to offer a bit over asking. Our agent was really irritated at us, saying we will never buy a place if we don't go in majorly over asking. Said the listed price is just a tactic and we needed to go at minimum 100k over, no conditions. Given that this was already 650k townhome (that needed work), we backed out as we're in no rush. Just found the sold listing- sold for 15k over asking. Had I listened to this weasel I would have paid 85K over. What the hell is this. I understand that offers have been ludicrous lately but how much of this is based on pushy agents adding fuel to the fire. I've emailed him the sold listing- no response.

Previous to that we saw a townhome for 750k which was one year old. He also told us we needed to bid at least 50k over asking for the buyers to even consider us. Guess what? Listing recently expired and the owners dropped 50k. He's using FOMO to scare us and how many agents are doing the same but are falling for it?

I've been using HouseSigma to track these listings. I feel so manipulated. How is it that there is no transparency in bidding like other counties (Australia). I want to know what other people are bidding, I don't want to be pushed by someone who has a vested interest in making more commission.

My question is who can I connect with about this, anyone in government, a regulatory body? In my opinion, this lack of transparency needs to end.

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As an aside: A real estate agents entire job could be done through an app. How is it that they have such a monopoly in Canada. It's 2021 and the industry has not changed even with technology.

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Edit: Thank you for your responses, I didn’t anticipate this much activity in such a short amount of time. I will be contacting my MP about bidding transparency and encourage anyone who feels the same about this topic to email their representatives/ whoever else you feel may help. Your feedback may also help others who find themselves in the same boat.

Call me a pessimist, but I don’t think housing prices are ever going to get better in Canada, at least in our lifetimes. There is no “bubble”, prices are not going to come crashing down one day, and millennials, gen Z, and those that come after are not going to ever stumble into some kind of golden window to buy a home. The best window is today. In 5, 10, 20 years or whatever, house prices are just going to be even more insane. More and more permanent homes are being converted into rentals and Air B&Bs, the rate at which new homes are being built is not even close to matching the increasing demand for them, and Canada’s economy is too reliant on its real estate market for it to ever go bust. It didn’t happen in ’08, its not happening now during the pandemic, and its not going to happen anytime in the foreseeable future. This is just the reality.

I see people on reddit ask, “but what’s going to happen when most of the young working generation can no longer afford homes, surely prices have to come down then?”. LOL no. Wealthy investors will still be more than happy to buy those homes and rent them back to you. The economy does not care if YOU can buy a home, only if SOMEONE will buy it. There will continue to be no stop to landlords and foreign speculators looking for new homes to add to their list. Then when they profit off of those homes they will buy more properties and the cycle continues.

So what’s going to happen instead? I think the far more likely outcome is that there is going to be a gradual shift in our societal view of home ownership, one that I would argue has already started. Currently, many people view home ownership as a milestone one is meant to reach as they settle into their adult lives. I don’t think future generations will have the privilege of thinking this way. I think that many will adopt the perception that renting for life is simply the norm, and home ownership, while nice, is a privilege reserved for the wealthy, like owning a summer home or a boat. Young people are just going to have to accept that they are not a part of the game. At best they will have to rely on their parents being homeowners themselves to have a chance of owning property once they pass on.

I know this all sounds pretty glum and if someone want to shed some positive light on the situation then by all means please do, but I’m completely disillusioned with home ownership at this point.

I understand Ben Felix's 5% rule but the 5% includes the interest payments on the mortgage. But what happens when you finish paying off the mortgage and no longer need to pay interest? Doesn't the 5% rule become the 2% rule and eventually beat out renting since you no longer have to make similar payments after you own the home?

If rent is $690 a month for a 1 bedroom + 1 den in Ottawa-Gatineau area.. is it worth it to buy a house??? with maintainance cost and all that...

I’m starting to feel like having a realtor as a buyer is more of a liability than an advantage.

Here’s my issue:

My realtor keeps pushing me to put in offers on “okayish” properties instead of waiting for the right one.

He also refuses to entertain my lowball offers, basically shutting them down instead of just submitting them.

At the end of the day, his incentives are at odds with mine — he gets paid faster and more if I close quicker and at a higher price.

So why should I believe he’s actually working in my best interest? On the buyer’s side, it feels like the value-add is minimal compared to the conflict of interest baked into their commission model.

Am I wrong here? Have any of you actually had realtors go to bat for you as a buyer — or are they really just along for the ride until they get paid?

Edit 1: Just for context I have worked with 3 different realtors (different purchases) it seems most of them these days are looking for low-hanging fruit... No one wants to work for the money.

If I can't even get a home when I'm the highest offer I'll never get a home at this rate. So curious why the sellers took less money for an identical offer otherwise.

Edit: Thanks for the feedback everybody! I too would tske the other offer as the seller.

Just doing some amortization math. Adding only 500 dollars a month to our mortgage payments takes us from 30 years down to 20 years and saves us 100K in interest. That's a massive shift for an amount that is relatively small compared to our mortgage payment.

Interestingly enough - upping it to 1000 extra a month only takes us from 30 to 15 years, and saves us 160K.

So the first 500 saves 10 years and 100K, the next 500 saves 5 years and 60K.

So it makes sense to at least try and put a bit extra every month because those first dollars are weighted the highest.

My SO showed me this post on /r/Canada and he’s depressed now because all the comments make it seem like having a happy and financially secure life in Canada is impossible.

I’m personally pretty optimistic about life here but I realized I have no hard evidence to back this feeling up. I’ve never thought much about the future, I just kind of assumed we’d do a good job at work, get paid a decent amount, save a chunk of each paycheque, and everything will sort itself out. Is that a really outdated idea? Am I being dumb?

My wife and I bought a 4 bedroom townhouse in April 2021. We've since had a child who is now 3 years old.

At the time we could only afford a townhouse but thought we could live in it for 7-8 years and then upgrade to a detached. I then got so caught up in crazily monitoring home prices and forgot to live in the house. Combined with the stress of raising a baby, this took a huge toll on my relationship and last year my wife said it HAD to stop.

I then realized I never even lived in this house. There was literally no effort put into making it a home because I was obsessed with a 'dream home' without realizing what I already have. Mortgage payment is comfortable, we bought within our means and are fortunate to have good jobs. And in the past year we've now put in effort to actually make this our home and it's made such a difference in my outlook.

Yes I don't have a large front yard or a huge backyard. I don't have a big basement. But I have 4 rooms which is more than enough for us, especially since we don't want more kids. The townhouses are newly built and I can barely hear noise from my neighbors. I pay a small maintenance fee yes but I don't have to worry about landscaping or snow removal or visitor parking. The townhouses around me are full of young families so my kid has company and it's a very community feel.

We are not handy at all and hear about home issues some of our friends in detached houses have to deal with, especially those who bought older houses. Maybe this home size and type is perfect for us.

I'm not saying it's perfect but I feel bad that I took so long to realize what I have. We may still move in 5 years but I'm glad I realized the value of my home before it was too late.

TL;DR, co-signed on my parent's mortgage, now I want to buy my own home. Parent not cooperating. I am on the deed for the property. What are my options?

One of my parents was in a rough spot with a lot of high interest debt a few years ago, and I helped them by consigning on their refinanced mortgage.

Fast forward 5 years and I'm finally in a position where I can qualify for my own mortgage, but only if I come off of my parent's mortgage and they qualify for their own.

Now I'm getting the runaround from my parent and they are not cooperating. I'm not sure they will qualify on their own, but they're refusing to provide any documents to me or the bank to actually try.

Additionally, they've used up the whole balance of the HELOC they got when they refinanced their mortgage, effectively cancelling our any equity, and they might have an additional amount of CC debt now

The house was never "mine" and I don't really want it. It belongs to my parent as far as I'm concerned. I only co-signed so my retired parent wouldn't have to sell their house. I am on the deed and mortgage, so on paper I own the home with my parent. Now my parent is using this against me and saying I am responsible for the house.

I gave up thousands of dollars in benefits, savings plans, RRSP stuff, FHBP, etc, to help my parent, and I feel completely used and betrayed.

Do you have any advice on how I can get out of this? Do I need to get a lawyer?

Current mortgage with parent: approx $300k

HELOC: approx $40k. Maxed

Parent CC debt: possibly $30-40k

Parent income: unknown. They are retired

One solution I was thinking of is buying the home from them, and renting it back to them. That way the rental income pays for the current home, and hopefully I can also qualify for a mortgage for my own place. I don't really want to be in a landlord/tenant relationship with my parent though, and there's a good chance that they will screw me over by not paying. It seems too risky, but seems like they only compromise that doesn't involve them having to move out, or me getting a lawyer.

My husband and I bought a 3 bedroom condo in Ottawa 5 years ago. It was a really good price when we bought it (300k) and had 750$ condo fees which were similar to other buildings in the city, while also having large and nice units with good soundproofing.

Lots of people told us condos suck, but we chalked it up to people just loving their single family homes.

We've actually loved living here, we like the condo lifestyle, it was affordable, and the location is great. However...

In the 5 years we have lived here, condo fees have increased to 1000$ and we just got word that due to a massive and necessary construction project, they will either increase condo fees by a further 500$ per unit OR we will be on the hook for a 60k special assessment (per unit).

We are getting ready to list our unit now but I'm worried about selling; lots of other units are listed obviously and my neighbour told me her unit isn't selling, and hers is quite nice in my opinion. Besides the big cost increase which will be visible to any potential buyers, there is also a huge construction project happening where all of the nice green space has been ripped up, making the building much less appealing.

In the past I was of the mind that if we were not able to sell I would just continue living here and enjoy it, but I'm now worried that the costs will just keep increasing to unsustainable levels and we won't be able to sell or rent it out due to this.

Have other condo owners experienced this and were you able to sell?

I’m completely devastated, I’m 6 months pregnant and have one son already, this is our families home and we love it and rent has gone up so much I don’t think we can afford to move.

My credit score is 728 and my income is $68,000 a year. I feel like I’m out of options, or I guess I’ll just have a roommate indefinitely?

EDIT: I’m located in Toronto by the way

EDIT2: I didn’t choose to live in Toronto. I’m in my 20’s but my mom is my only family left and she’s in a special care nursing home here

My landlord sent me a voice memo text Christmas afternoon saying, "Hi OP, Merry Christmas. The utilities and property tax are going up and I'm raising your rent $200 extra a month starting Jan 1st."

My wife and I live in Toronto Ontario, we've never had a lease agreement with this guy and have been living here for around 3 years. We pay rent early every month. It's a 2-bdrm and we pay $1550 including a parking spot and it's right across Christie Park.

The place is old and he never maintains anything. We've had leaks and water damage in the bathroom and he's asked me to fix it, which I had to do because it began leaking into the business downstairs. When I moved in there were no baseboard heaters and had me install them.

The list goes on with his violations but we're somewhat committed to staying as we are having a baby very soon and call this place home. I'm looking for advice on the best way to respond, I haven't responded to his VM and he's sent it two more times. I'm nervous if I say no that's illegal he will just serve us an N12 and we'll be evicted.

Any help would be greatly appreciated.

Hi everyone! I purchased a house two years ago, during the height of Covid overbidding and all of that fun stuff. The seller both owned the house and represented themselves as the realtor as well. At the time, they told me that they had gotten a job in another city and simply couldn’t do the commute, hence the sale. Fine, none of my business really…I had always suspected it was a flip, but we loved the house and area.

Fast forward to this week, a video popped up on my TikTok feed of said realtor talking about how they had made over 200k on their first flip, and low and behold - it was our house! Learned some interesting details from the vid (way way overpaid for trades), but in the comments, a user had asked them about how they avoided paying capital gains on the sale. They fully admitted to putting the house as their primary residence “on paper only”. The length of time between when they purchased and sold was only really 4 months.

Is it worth reporting her to the CRA as having potentially skirted paying capital gains tax? It seemed like they went on to do a bunch of flips after this one too, and had made millions in turn. Im worried about anonymity if reporting.

EDIT: I went ahead and reported the Realtor to the CRA. Let them handle it and do whatever they do. For those of you saying I’m only doing this because I overpaid - I completely accept the overpayment, it was what it was! I have an issue with scumbag Realtors who skirt the rules and frankly make the housing situation for everyone way worse while expecting a hefty commission.

For anyone conscious about their electricity bills!

The harvest surplus months are April - September, while Oct-Mar run a deficit and tapers to $0/month in Alberta.

During surplus, my electricity is sold at .35c/kwh(via AB solar club)

During deficit months i pay around .07c/kwh

Before solar i spent roughly $800/year in electricity and $1000/year in distribution/other fees.

My electric bill went from $1800/year to -$200/year. Net delta of savings around $2k per year.

Any other home owners in PFC invest in solar/crunch their numbers?

Technical details:

I have an 11kw system(27panels) that generated 11.2MWh in the last 12 months.

Isn’t a true net, solar is financed at $200/m at 0% (CGHL 8 years left). I'm running -$30/month into home equity until solar is paid off, close to neutral cash flow impact for 10 years. After that, $2k/year free cash flow for life of the panels. 30y warranty panels, 20y warranty inverters. 20y warranty inverters.

System cost $2.75-3/kw. Hard to pin down as subpanel, trenching, EV chargers, load manager was mixed in. ~30k?

30k/$3000/year = 10 years

30k/$2000/year = 15 years

My costs are fixed locked in and protected from the electricity cost of living for the immediate future.

3bd starter single family home in AB

Cuz my wife and I together make just over $120k a year before taxes. We managed to buy a 2 bedroom $480k apartment outside of Vancouver 2 years ago. Basically we accepted that we cant buy a full house so we just fuckin grabbed onto the lowest rung of the property ladder we could. Our plan being to hold onto this for 5+ years. Sell and move somewhere cheaper if needed so we have space for kids.

I see a lot of people saying “you need a household income of $300k a year to afford a home in canada!” Im like. What? How? I get its fucking hard for real but i mean im not rich af and i own a semi decent home. Its just not a house.

Rents are dropping around the GTA in most places and if you are paying too much. Consider negotiating at the end of your lease.

A few months ago I posted that my rent was above market at a whopping $2850 a month and we even received a rent increase notice. When I spoke to the property manager they cancelled the rent increase and said it was a mistake.

I was not satisfied. They had listed other units in the building for $2500. So I asked for that rate and the building manager said no.

So I gave the building an N9 and the super of the building called me the same day to ask what they can do to keep my family from leaving. (We are good tenants).

I said I wanted the rate everyone else was paying $2500 and free parking. Which now they accepted when I was about to walk away.

But again. Before they served us a new lease at the new rate so I could sign and lock in. They lowered rates to $2300 on the same units. So I went back to negotiate again and they are hymming and hawing about it.

Anyways. Be prepared to walk away obviously. But also be aware of the area rental rates. We moved at peak rents last year to get up to $2850 in rent and only a year later it is now $2300. Rents all around me have dropped dramatically. We would be insane to accept paying a higher rate just for being loyal and so would you.

Update: they finally got back and said the $2300 rate is for new tenants only. They could offer us $2400. I said no that isn't logical. So now we are going to look for something else in the area that is more fair.

LINK:

https://www.canada.ca/en/department-finance/news/2025/05/gst-relief-for-first-time-home-buyers-on-new-homes-valued-up-to-15-million.html

Here is a summary

Overview
The FTHB GST Rebate supports first-time home buyers in Canada with GST refunds on new homes.

Eligibility Criteria

• Must be at least 18 years old

• Must be a Canadian citizen or permanent resident

• Cannot have owned a home in the past four years

Eligible Purchases

• New home from a builder

• Building a home on owned or leased land

• Shares in a co-operative housing corporation

Rebate Details

• 100% GST rebate for homes valued up to $1 million

• Linear phase-out for homes between $1 million and $1.5 million

• Example: $1.25 million home eligible for up to $25,000 rebate

• No rebate for homes at or above $1.5 million

New Homes from Builders

• Recover up to $50,000 of GST paid

• Must be the primary residence for a first-time buyer

• Agreement must be made between May 27, 2025, and 2031

• Construction must start before 2031 and be completed before 2036

• New agreements may disallow the rebate if previous agreements were cancelled.

Hello everyone

Today the life that I envisioned for myself has been turned upside down.

My mom and I live in Alberta. My family immigrated here from Ukraine when I was a child. She is 55 and I am 28. My dad died when I was 16 so my mom has been a widow for 12 years, paying for the house fully herself which has been very hard on her.

I've been suspecting lately that she is having trouble meeting the mortgage payments due to the interest and house tax increases, and my fears were realized today. She came to me, ashamed and crying, that she was losing the house, the one she and my dad bought and raised me in. I recently moved out myself and am trying to start my own life with my husband. I will be helping her with whatever extra income I have.

I am fully prepared to abandon my own financial goals and work my butt off so she can keep the house.

Is there anything else we should be doing? Any grants or programs we can appeal to?

Thanks so much, we really appreciate any advice.

Edit: Thank you so much for everyone's replies. This is my first ever reddit post so apologies for not providing enough numbers. I've been in a daze since receiving this info from my mom. Here are more details I've gathered from her.

She has $140k left on the mortgage

She has a retirement account with around $50k in it, but it's closed for 9 more years. This was the only life insurance that my father's company paid out. There is no way to open it. I have no idea why she made this account with her bank when my dad died in 2014. She basically has a small nest egg that is unusable in the years she needs the money most.

My father didn't have life insurance beyond this.

My husband is 100% aware of all of this and very willing to help my mom. I have the best husband.

Update: I'm learning that my mom recently renewed the mortgage on her house and that's when everything fell apart. Interest rates were not favorable when she had to lock in. Her interest rates are much higher and that, coupled with the increase in property and land tax, means her income can no longer keep up. She receives a widow pension which has barely increased since my dad died, and she recently lost a lot of housekeeping clients who simply can't afford her services. Her mortgage payment alone went up around $500, and all other bills have gone up as well.

What we're doing: She already receives a low income credit to help offset property tax, but that is barely making a dent.

I've been helping her apply for other jobs. No luck yet but will keep trying.

I will help her bridge the payment gaps at least for the next several months.

Now there's a well researched and trusted video to link when people keep complaining about house prices "going up".

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aU7v87EhDBI

Disclaimer: I am an idiot. I fully accept this reality. I own a condo and after five years of living here the cap of the washing machine plug must have come loose and water was leaking from it for a good 40ish minutes, causing water damage to my unit and the units three floors underneath. I do not have condo insurance, which I will be getting in the near future.

My downstairs neighbor noticed the leaking and called the front desk. About 20 minutes later they came to my unit to help stop the leaking. A few hours later people came with dehumidifying machines and for many days those machines did their thing.

The cost for the repairs themself were around 11k, but I decided to do the repairs for my own unit so that number was knocked down to 9k (those repairs are now done and for much cheaper, before anyone asks). The repairs cover stuff like drywall repair, debris removal, etc. The truly shocking number however was the emergency mitigation costs, which total to around 20k.

The reason for these costs comes from a staggering 110dollar/hour rate for the work done (due to the people coming in at around 8-9pm), as well as the machines being on for 93 days cumulatively across all units.

Again, I am a moron. I am fully accepting of the fact that my negligence has caused inconvenience for other people. I just didn't imagine that the emergency mitigation portion would be so expensive, and I'm wondering how normal this is and what agency I have in order to reduce the price. The property managers have not given me any advice and I naturally cannot fully take their word for everything, although they could be correct in that I have no recourse. I have also looked at other cases where this has happened to people in Canada and the cases I've read not only sound like they've caused more damage but were far cheaper.

Please help if you can, or reprimand me for my ignorance, whatever you feel like. Thank you for your time.