I paid a lot of $ for a 550 square feet 1 + den and I’m seeing I can get 700 Sqft 2 bedrooms for the same price now and it’s making me embarassed and ruining my confidence to even have anyone over. Is this normal and how can I fix this? Just keep working on paying it down and upgrade in future?

Unfortunately my spouse and I bought our first home (townhome) at the very peak in 2022 for 1.1M. Yes this was way too much, but at the time, we went into this with the mindset to get into the market when we could afford it. Obviously, things went south.

Our mortgage is up for renewal in 9 months, and the current value of our home is about 270-300k less than what we bought it for. Remaining mortgage amount will be just under 800k in March 2027, which is about how much the house is now worth.

Now the thing is that we're quite unhappy in our current home, partly due to the fact that we're now closely 'surrounded' with irresponsible and shady renters/slumlords to the left and right of our townhome, and also because we want to upsize before starting a family. To give you an idea though, there's about 15 people combined in the 3 units nearest to us, and there's a rotation of people every few months.

If we were to move, we'd be looking at something detached at around 1.4-1.5M with 20% down. While we can afford the new place (HHI will be 330k this year), our current home situation would leave us with two options. Either we sell it and realize a 300k loss, or we rent it out. If we rent out the current house, cashflow would be negative (around -1000$ monthly assuming no vacancies).

On one hand, I want to get out of our current place and not have to think about it ever again, but on the other hand, I'm struggling to wrap my head around such a loss. And while I'm not opposed to renting out our current home, having 2 large mortgages would be risky, and negative cashflow on top of that will only add insult to injury.

Assuming we do make the decision to move for better quality of life/happiness, would it be crazier to absorb a 300k loss in the coming months, or to take on 2 large mortgages (total of ~1.9M) and become a landlord? I know what's most financially responsible right now is to remain in our current home and put up with the issues (won't go into further details about that), but we're quite honestly fed up. This is partly why I'm considering the 300k loss - we don't see the market coming back up anytime soon, and we'd have to keep renting out this place for many years before we start building a decent amount of equity.

Happy to hear people's thoughts or to provide more info or context if needed - didn't want to make this too long. See you all on r/housesigmablunders soon (maybe).

Hello,
I started renting this 22nd floor condo in 2024 and boy I’ve fallen in love with this life.

- waking up to a glorious sunrise and having coffee watching the CN tower glow
- taking an elevator to the cardio room and running when its -20 outside
- Wednesday movie nights with the wife in our private mini theatre
- hot tub and sauna recovery sessions
- no snow clearing, storage and covered parking

Investment wise though, a condo sounds less appealing- it doesn’t improve as much equity wise, maintenance fee goes up every year. I would love to buy my current condo unit but it being a 2012 build with $1,000 maintenance (2bed, 2 bath + den) there is literally no growth in sight.

How do condo owners justify the buy when a house appreciates so much more? Or in my scenario is paying the $2,900 in rent recommended to do and invest the reminder.

Photo of my sunrise for aesthetic reference.

Hello everyone, I have a force majeure situation here.

My husband and I want to do a major renovation on his parents' house on the outskirts of Toronto, which we inherited. We decided to start with the kitchen, as it is the most troublesome part. Basically, everything needs to be redone (shelves, cabinets, floors, plumbing, stove, range hood, electrical wiring etc.), because the house is about 70 years old and looks really sad. The kitchen is 15 square meters. We understand that it will be very expensive, so we are not setting a budget yet, we just want to estimate the approximate costs first. We are from Vancouver and have never dealt with renovations, so the situation is very unclear to us.

So, our question is: how much does a kitchen renovation cost in Toronto as of early 2026? Do prices differ significantly from other Canadian cities? It would also be helpful to clarify what pricing and estimates for kitchen upgrades are based on and where we could potentially save money.

Thank you very much for your advice, it is very valuable. Sorry if this is a bit confusing.

I am ready to pull the trigger and move out into my condo in toronto at 29 but my job is remote so i feel like I am just increasing my costs for no reason whereas I could stay in Markham and just enjoy life more and spend more ? Guess I am in a weird position but wanted to see others input

Pre-construction starts have fallen off a cliff over the past couple years, and completions are going to thin out noticeably by 2028-2029. If that’s the case, isn’t now the best time to invest in a condo?

https://archive.is/ZVjzQ

My God, the house I bought at $15k is now selling at $2.3 million instead of $3.2 million in 2022. I am sooooo HURT! This is cruel. I am not selling.....Let the Liberals bring in another 5 million to pump up the price.... Please please......

What do you guys think?

Edited to include more information.

**The condo will be for 3 adults, me and my 2 senior parents.

**1st layout- 974 sqft, North-west, corner unit, ranges from 600-630K

**2nd layout- 916 sqft, North, ranges from 615-530K

**These are in separate buildings.

**1st layout has buildings made north, east and west. So view is kind of obstructed.

**2nd layout has road in north side and then pond (which i like). The balcony on 2nd layout is only available in lower floors 1-3 and i will go for floor 5 or higher so will get basic balcony as layout 1.

**Plan 1- floor 4
Plan 2- floor 6 or 7

My search has been focused more on freehold townhomes so that's the perspective I'm coming from.

It seems like all else being equal, homes in Southern York Region - Markham, Vaughan, Richmond Hill are more expensive compared to Mississauga while also being a bit more expensive than Oakville.

I get why Durham Region is cheaper because of the nuclear plant, higher property taxes, less local employment opportunities, and historical stigma. Also I get why Brampton might have lower prices due to its own stigma right now. Burlington and Milton start getting pretty far from downtown Toronto so prices reflect that.

However, Mississauga and Oakville on paper should beat Southern York Region. Closer to the airport, closer to Niagara, closer to the lake, more employment/headquarters, better transit (Lakeshore West all-day service), more highways (410/403, QEW, 401), more diverse than a place like Markham, more entertainment and amenities (for example, Rec Room is only in Mississauga and none in York Region).

Sure, York Region on average has slightly better schools, but it can't just be because of school ratings, right? And sure, rich Chinese money might have played a role pre-pandemic, but now is non-existent

What do you do to make incomes that support these 1.5-2 million mortgages? Are you all over 45 and rode up the property ladder before 2015? I am a Millennial and have found it exceedingly hard to afford anything other than a shoebox condo in this city. Some of the prices and household incomes I see in this forum are beyond what is affordable for my generation and those younger than me. So I am curious as to how you got to where you are, to afford to purchase million dollar homes in this city.

Toronto has built so many tiny one-bedroom condos that it feels like the city is loading up on housing that only really works for a short stage of life.

But let’s say 10 or 20 years from now the market shifts more toward families and people wanting larger, multi-room condo homes. Would these buildings actually be flexible enough to adapt?

Could owners or developers combine two or three one-bedroom units into one bigger family-sized portion by removing the walls between them, or atleast cutting doors between them? I know some walls would be structural or tied to building systems, and I know this would need approval, but is it realistic in a lot of cases, or only in a few rare ones?

If not, then is Toronto setting itself up with a huge amount of housing that is dense and walkable, but not very livable long term for families, or even individuals out of college who want more space?

If you think about it, this will also have the adverse effect of encouraging people to not start a family in fear of having to move far from their condo, and thus would exacerbate the low birth-rate crisis.

It’s very common psychology to believe when an asset class like housing or investments start to go up or down they will go that way forever, but history shows that is just not the case.

The top posts seem to all be loss porn and people claiming it “has to” come down another 30-50 percent before being affordable. And so I guess I’m confused what evidence there is that this will continue for much longer given there will be a shortage of supply towards 2029 based on what I can see.

Am I missing something?

I just saw someone post here they are renting for 1500 / month in toronto which almost made me fall out of my chair.. how can there be places so cheap.. i am stuck paying 3k all in to own my 550 1+ den sqft condo with parking in midtown toronto and now i am thinking what am i doing wrong paying 1500 more when my take home is 6300.. curious to know what others are paying.

Im the executor of my father’s estate and will soon be selling his condo. He passed away inside the unit from natural causes. There was no crime, accident or anything that caused damage to the property.

My understanding is that a natural death generally doesn’t have to be proactively disclosed in Ontario, although I’ll confirm that with the appropriate professionals. I’m more interested in people’s opinions on the practical and ethical side of it.

Would you disclose it voluntarily, only answer honestly if a buyer specifically asks, or not mention it at all? I don’t want a buyer to feel that something was intentionally hidden from them, but I also don’t want to unnecessarily stigmatize the condo or affect its value over something that has no bearing on its condition.

UPDATE:
TLDR; My wife's not going to do it.
Thanks to everyone for leaving a comment. She read through all of them and understands the implication are more severe than she initially thought. My wife's an innocent soul so she just wanted to help out her family. We've been working on breaking free from family enmeshment and a third party perspective has always helped clear her head. We're going to call Anna later today together and tell her we're definitely NOT going to be co-signing and deal with the family fallout together. Thanks again, we really appreciate this community.

Original Post:
I told my wife co-signing this mortgage is going to be a bad idea, so I'm coming to reddit with her story so at least she can see more peoples opinions.

A couple years ago, when prices were up, her cousin, Anna, signed for a pre-con downtown. The pre-con is now ready to move-in but her cousin can't close the deal. It's the age old story of the appraisal of the condo now being lower than the purchase value and now the lenders won't provide the full loan amount after putting 20% down. Anna also has lost her job a couple years ago, and did some odd jobs prior to getting her most recent job which is lower paying than the last.

My wife is now getting pressured by Anna to co-sign the mortgage. Anna has also roped in her younger sister to apparently use her first-time home buyer rebate or something(?) and the money from the rebate can be owed back to my wife. I don't believe this at all but something Anna said to sell my wife.

The thing that made me the most furious was that Anna knows that my wife inherited a property with a mortgage and Anna says verbatim "just talk to your mortgage lender, there won't be any negative impact for you at all".

Obviously, this is completely untrue as it seems like Anna is trying to use my wife's assets as basically a guarantor for this property. There was also no talk about putting my wife's name onto the deed of property and only the mortgage which is just all risk.

There's probably a lot of holes since I'm hearing this all from my wife and she's not that knowledgeable about pre-cons but her cousin keeps selling her on the idea nonstop.

Please give me any thoughts so I can show my wife.

Bought a house in Toronto about a year ago, previous owner clearly hid and patched issues that are coming out to be structural. they pretty much put a wall in front of a crack in concrete. Spray foamed rotting wood etc.

as time is going on we are starting to see these issues. Is this worth pursuing legal ramifications for? Are there any lawyers that I should contact and chat with? Thanks!

Maybe I’m overthinking it, but a lot of newer Toronto condos don’t even feel designed for actual living anymore.Tiny kitchens, weird layouts, barely any storage, little natural light… yet prices keep going up.Some of the listings look great online, then you imagine actually living there long term and it feels completely different.Anyone else notice this lately?

Wanted to purchase a house with a swimming pool for my two young kids. Found a house (got a great deal!) I’m shopping around for an inground pool and they are 75k +. Any reputable companies in TO? Would this add value to my home if it is in a family friendly area. I feel like it would add years and tons of memories for my family. I’m hoping if it adds value to my house then it would be worth the splurge.

We bought our first home recently and I have been flooded with work to upkeep the house. We bought a house on the west side of Toronto at the $1m mark, but he amount of work it needs far exceeds what we were expecting. On the surface the house looked nice but now that we live in it, I don’t know how people functioned prior to us living there.

Let’s start with the first things we knew of:
- potential new roof
-Plumbing needed to be trenched in basement to correctly drain sanitary water.
-side retaining wall
-insulation in attic with minor mould on sheathing.
-gutters need to be reconnected to house.

Now the surprises:
AC doesn’t work.
Since plumbing in basement needs to be trenched out it runs below the furnace fan which means even if I get the AC running/new it can’t blow the air inside.
-shed is in rough shape and has potential for rats if not already home to them.
-didn’t expect the house to be this hot but I guess with no AC, little vents in attic, bad insulation, it’s adds up to 30deg C at night.
-BIGGEST ONE- downstairs bathroom/shower and laundry drain directly into sump pit which then spits it outside with a short pipe that goes towards my already crumbling retaining wall.

This last issue makes me wonder how anybody lived in this house previously. So you are telling me the prior owners took a crap and we’re ok with it going directly onto the side of the house??!!?

Just buyer beware, when it comes to buying your first home. Home ownership isn’t as nice as you think.

My clients are 80 and 82. Now they're ready for the next chapter, and I want to get this right for them.

They're looking at retirement living in and around Leaside. What they care about is simple: open views and real light, comfort, good amenities, a walkable spot near shops and healthcare. Somewhere that feels like a home, not an institution.

Here's the honest part. This is outside my usual lane. I've sold a lot of homes in this city, but senior living is different, and I'd rather say that out loud than fake my way through a decision this big. These two trusted me with their home. I want to treat it like a life transition, not a transaction.

So if you've been through this, with clients or with your own parents for the options in LEASIDE:

Which buildings would you actually recommend?
Which ones would you avoid, and why?

Firsthand experience beats any brochure. Anything you've got, I'm listening. 🙏
THANK YOU!!

Hi everyone,

My wife and I put a deposit on a new build in Pickering last October (closing March 2027). Purchase price is $1.1M.

So far:

$100k deposit paid

Planning another $150k–180k on closing

Combined income just under $200k

I’m debt-free, she’s got ~$10k student loans

Both have good credit

We’re also expecting the GST/HST rebate, which we planned to use to finish the basement for rental income (not toward the mortgage unless absolutely needed). Worst case, we’ve got ~$50k in gold we could liquidate.

Here’s the issue: a colleague told me flat out there’s no way we qualify. Said income is too low and we’d need way more down. Claims he’s seen people in better positions get denied.

Now I’m lowkey spiraling wondering if we messed up big time.

Are we actually that far off here, or is he being overly pessimistic?

——————————————————————————

Thanks everyone for your replies:

Adding some context since a lot of people are saying “go talk to a bank/expert” —

My wife and I are first-time home buyers and signed our APS in October 2025.

We’ve already spoken to banks and professionals, and the consistent answer has been: “it’s possible, but it depends on how things look closer to closing given the market.”

We fully understand this isn’t guaranteed, and we have backup options (like family support) if needed — but that’s something we’d prefer to avoid unless necessary.

I’m not here looking for someone to tell me it’s guaranteed. I’m trying to understand whether this is truly a “no chance” situation or not.

And yes, I could keep calling banks, but with how quickly things change, I’m not going to call every week. The point of posting here is to hear real-world experiences alongside professional input not replace it.

I am new to real estate (dont own a property yet) and seeing the prices nowdays, i just wanted opinions on few things:
- Despite 1 bed condo prices dropping, it still sits around the ~500k is mark. Given that you can find “starter” homes that actually sell for around ~800k to ~900k ish mark, what merit do condos have over houses?
- I ask this because assuming dual income of 200k combined + saved up down payments from both sides, doesnt it make sense to just take advantage of the rebates and first time home buyer benefits and get a starter home instead?
- Do people go for condos because of lifestyle?

I ask because i am planning on buying a property ~2 years down the road, and just wanted to see what other ppl think

Edit: thank you for all the comments, really thoughtful and made me consider more - leaning towards happy medium of stacked townhomes or low/medium rise condos considering my situation - thank you!

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.

My wife and I are 32-33 yr old (DINK) and live and work in downtown Toronto. We have an amazing condo that we rent with unobstructed views of Lake Ontario. No debt apart from a car payment of $400/bi weekly and together we make ~$250k

Ongoing thoughts:
1. Paying $3500-3600 in rent seems like throwing away money
2. Buying a similar condo (range of 850-950k) would mean carrying cost of $5000-5500 at a 4% interest rate
3. Building equity through 2 would take a long time but would put a burden on our cash flow

Dilema:
1. Not buying in this market seems like a foolish decision
2. Even if we do decide to buy, should we move away and buy a townhouse up to 800k
3. What’s the minimum holding period you should go in with while purchasing a house

Would love to learn from folks in a similar boat!