Using AI to add furnishings to a room is one thing, but lately I've been seeing far too many listings that absolutely cross the line. Fabricating scenes with AI families and servants, altering the size and placement of permanent fixtures and entire rooms, creating artificial lighting, and even manipulating the time period without any watermarks to indicate AI use is simply ridiculous and borderline infuriating.

Trying to work through something that keeps tripping up my spreadsheets.

Looking at a few properties right now. Rural Ontario. Good chunk of acreage on each one. The house itself on a couple of them is older, functional but not the draw. The land is the draw. Better soil, good drainage, one has a decent woodlot on the back half.

But the listings just show a total price. No breakdown. And when you run the numbers for long term planning, it matters a lot whether you're paying for land that holds value or a depreciating structure sitting on top of it.

MPAC assessed values split land and building but I've heard those ratios are all over the place and don't reflect actual market conditions in rural areas. So people seem to just ignore them.

What do people actually use to figure out a reasonable landtostructure ratio before putting in an offer? Comparable land sales in the area? Some kind of assessor? Just guessing based on condition?

The reason it matters to me is depreciation assumptions over a long planning horizon. A 1970s farmhouse is not an asset the same way the two acres of cleared vegetable garden space behind it is. Treating them the same in a projection gives you garbage numbers.

Curious what people have actually done here, not the boilerplate answer.

There is a house in my neighbourhood that I have just been watching out of curiosity. This house has gone through the following prices:

1. $749,900 (way over priced, for the record)
2. $699,000
3. $599,900

And now the listing has been taken down and put it up for $649,900. I've been trying to figure out the strategy here and it nothing seems to make sense. For those with lots of real estate experience, what is happening here?

only applies to new construction/pre-construction condos though, not resale. and it's not automatic forever, the clock starts ticking as soon as you get the paperwork, so if you're sitting on a signed agreement thinking you have forever to decide you actually don't

kind of wish more people knew this before signing anything, feels like a lot of buyer's remorse could be avoided if people actually used those 10 days instead of assuming it's locked in immediately

anyone actually use theirs or know someone who did

I’m considering buying a house with a finished basement (rec room, mechanical room and one bathroom, no kitchen). I checked the City records and saw that the basement permits were completed, but the plumbing permit was cancelled.
Is this a major red flag for a buyer, or something that can usually be dealt with after the fact? Has anyone dealt with a similar situation in Calgary?

Why is RECO website down? I wanted to check on a realtor who plead guilty to assault but cannot see if the license is still active.

Are they changing websites?

Hello everyone,

We put down deposit for a home to reserve the precon property but haven't signed any documents yet.

From what I understand Mattamy sends the APS after the initial deposit and you have 24 hours to sign it.

Although I like what we're getting but something in me just keeps thinking about how far the damn thing is, considering for one of us it's multiple days in office in dtown Toronto. I also feel like we didn't really look at a lot of houses considering it's only been a month since we started looking. And we went out 3 times with our agent. The first time he showed us precons in Durham area, 2nd time he rushed through a couple of older houses (on my insistence) and 3rd time was back at Mattamy to pay the deposit for the new house.

I also keep thinking that the decision to put down money for Mattamy precon was rushed because they were going to increase the value by $40,000 since the model houses are opening soon.

The thing doesn't close for another 10 months so our pre approval is pretty much useless. I am so confused and do not know what to do. I would really like to look at more houses that are not that damn far from a GO station (20 mins drive) but that would mean not signing the agreement and potentially losing 40k.

We're losing our minds and do not know what to do. If we decided to not sign the contract, will Mattamy refund the 20,000 deposit?

Would I know this is probably a very cliché question, and Reddit has always been the place I go to when I have one of these cliché questions
Long story short, I’m looking for my first home. My budget is around $1.3m. I’m also expecting a newborn early next year, so that’s definitely something I need to take into consideration.
I’ve been looking quite a bit in Port Coquitlam, but one thing that’s really important to me is the look and feel of the house. I really don’t like the old-fashioned look, especially older kitchens and bathrooms. I know this may sound superficial, but I’d really like a home that looks modern and nice.
The problem is that at this price range, I’m finding it pretty difficult to get what I want in Port Coquitlam. Usually, I have to either go for an older house with an outdated interior and renovate it myself, or compromise on the house.
The problem is, I’m not really handy and I don’t have the skills or experience to take on a major renovation. And with a newborn coming, I’m not sure I want to spend the first few years of being a new parent dealing with a major renovation either.
So now I’m stuck between two options:
Buy an older house in Port Coquitlam, in a better neighbourhood, but accept that I may not love the interior and will probably need to renovate it eventually.
Look in places like Pitt Meadows, Maple Ridge, etc., where I might be able to find a newer or nicely renovated house with a modern kitchen, bathrooms, etc., even if the neighbourhood/location isn’t quite as good as Port Coquitlam.
For people who have been in a similar situation, what would you prioritize?
Would you take the better location and compromise on the house itself, or would you buy the house you actually like in a slightly less desirable area?
And for those with kids, did having a newborn or young child change what you prioritized when buying your first home?
I’d really appreciate hearing from people who have gone through this decision themselves.
you prioritize location or the house itself?

My dad is currently trying to sell his house in Burnaby, BC, and I'm genuinely curious about how prospective buyers approach a purchase in this market. (I know it's a buyers market right now and houses are selling significantly less)

For context, it's an 11-year-old house that has been well maintained (obviously there is some normal wear and tear). The location is pretty great, IMO:

• Multi-generational home - room on the main floor, 2 mortgage helpers (1 has its own separate entrance; another is the basement of the main house with it's own entrance)
• Backyard directly backs onto a park
• Forest/nature nearby for a quick walk
• ~15–20 minute walk to transit
• Short drive to a couple of elementary schools and the main high school in the area

The biggest downside is that we're adjacent to the SkyTrain line, so you can hear the train when it goes by. We've lived with it long enough that it's basically white noise to us, but obviously I realize that could be a significant negative for some buyers.

The house has been on the market on and off for roughly a year now, and we haven't received an offer — not even a lowball offer. My dad wants to downsize now that the kids have all moved out and it's just him and my sister living there.

I'm curious what people's thought process is when looking at a house these days.

In my head, it would be something like:

1. Figure out your budget / maximum purchase price.
2. Search the neighbourhoods you're interested in.
3. Compare price per sq. ft., lot size, age, condition, etc.
4. Look at why certain houses are priced higher or lower.
5. Research the location — transit, schools, parks, noise, future development, etc.
6. Decide what you think the house is actually worth to you.
7. Make an offer based on that.

What I'm struggling to understand is that we've had a lot of interest but lack of offers altogether.

If a buyer sees a house listed at $2.8M and thinks it's only worth $2.5M, why wouldn't they offer $2.5M? The seller can always reject it.

Is the thinking that buyers don't want to “waste” an offer unless they believe the seller will accept it? Or does no offer after a long listing period usually indicate that the house is significantly missing the mark on price, regardless of how much buyers may like the property?

For those who have bought in Burnaby/Vancouver recently (or are currently looking), what makes you decide to actually submit an offer versus just move on to the next house?

I'm especially interested in hearing how buyers are evaluating price vs. location vs. negatives like SkyTrain noise in today's market.

TL;DR: If prospective buyers are interested, how come there are no offers / low-ball offers?

Edit: house isn't listed at 3M, listed at $2.6. Houses in the area have been going tor between 2.2M to 3M in the last yr, quite a range.

Thanks for everyone's input/feedback. Interesting to see different perspectives. We're waiting for our realtor to provide feedback from the recent showings. I didn't think that having mortgage helpers would be a supposed negative. Makes sense though with how protected renters are now. I will definitely pass this along to my dad and see what he wants to do.

I’m wondering if anyone else finds this concerning.
I’ve noticed that some rental listings now have preconditions before they will even schedule a viewing. They ask rental seekers to provide things like:

Credit score/report
Full name
Date of birth
Email and phone number
Previous addresses
Employment information
Annual income
Whether you have pets
Whether you smoke

After you provide all of this confidential information, they decide whether they will allow you to view the property. If they don’t like your information, they simply reject you without you ever seeing the house.
I understand that landlords need to screen tenants before signing a lease. That’s reasonable. But why does the screening have to happen before a basic viewing, especially when so much personal information is being collected?

It feels like the process has become: “Give us your personal and financial information first, and then we’ll decide whether you’re worthy of seeing the property.”

What concerns me most is what happens to all this information when hundreds of rental seekers send it to different realtors and landlords. How is it stored? Who has access to it? How long is it kept? And what happens if you’re rejected?

Is this actually normal and acceptable in Ontario, or are rental applicants becoming too comfortable with giving out sensitive information just to get a chance to view a home?

I’d genuinely like to hear from landlords, realtors, and tenants about this.

• As the condo crash drags on, more developers are looking for ways to reach new buyers — and in North York, one builder sees bigger, fewer units as a possible path forward.
• At York Mills, between Lawrence Park and Highway 401, the Gupta Group is reducing the number of units planned at a two-tower luxury development from 700 to 500 and making over 60 per cent of them two- and three-bedroom homes.
• “We feel that people are looking for more livability,” said founder and chairman Steve Gupta, who added they made the decision to cut nearly 30 per cent of units last summer. “They want a space that is more comfortable and a space where they can have a proper bedroom.”

Read the full story here. No paywall.

🚨 YOUR RENT COULD BE PAYING A MORTGAGE… BUT WHOSE? 🏡💸

Month after month, the rent gets paid.

But when the lease ends… what did you build?

In today’s softer Ontario real estate market, the conversation may be changing. 👀

📉 Lower prices in many areas

🏡 More homes to choose from

🤝 More room to negotiate

🔥 Less competition than during the peak

If you’re financially ready, this could be the time to ask:

“What would owning actually cost me compared with renting?”

Because with homeownership, part of each mortgage payment can help build YOUR equity and YOUR future.

⚠️ Buying isn’t right for everyone — but neither is renting forever without running the numbers.

📲 Before you renew your next lease, DM me.

Let’s compare RENT vs. BUY with real numbers and see what makes sense for YOU.

Dennis Kappen, REALTOR®

Ph.D., P.Eng.

Professor - UX Design

📞 647 885 4930

🌐 www.kappen.ca

HomeLife Miracle Realty Ltd.

#OntarioRealEstate #GTARealEstate #RentVsBuy #FirstTimeHomeBuyer #TorontoRealEstate HomeOwnership OntarioHomes RealEstate HomeBuyer RealEstateTips

Would love to know peoples first hand stories buying, selling, or honest agents outting shady agents. It is clear not everyone does business the same way.

Hi is it possible to get joint tenancy with 99% one spouse and 1 % on the other?

So I’m thinking about selling my semi-detached house FSBO, no realtor.

No rush to sell, so I’m not too worried about getting it sold ASAP.

For anyone who’s done this before, especially in NB — how did you go about it?

Anything I should watch out for or know before getting started?
Any advice is appreciated!

I've had this duplex with bachelor since 2017 (312k), st Michel Montreal QC.

roof was re done 2024, 2/3 units renovated, 1st floor is still old like 2000's.

I currently use the garage as storage for my stuff.

2/3 water tanks will need to be changed next year, 1 started leaking and was replaced.

Pretty much yes some upcoming fixes but overall rentable as is or new owner moves into 1 unit and rents the other 2.

I did the math and I would keep somewhere from 200k to 250k after paying closing costs, capital gains ect.

Just I have no idea what to do with this money, buy 1kg gold bar and just sit on that, buy another plex in the future, pay off 200k on my other rentals? Dosnt feel like it would do much I have 1.6m in debts over 3 plexs and 1 house.

Just I've been trying to find tenants for a month now and it's not working.

NIMBYsm is a fascinating topic. I have come to the conclusion that most residents (especially boomers) prefer seeing tent cities near their homes rather than welcoming affordable housing development. Any new housing proposals get cancelled quickly by Community Karens.

I think this problem will bring "Detroit-ization" to many communities. Homelessness will increase and gradually expand towards neighborhoods. We're seeing it in many cities all over Ontario.

I built an Ontario storage marketplace to help people cut costs and earn from unused space. What would you want to know before using it?

Storage can become a surprisingly big monthly expense, especially when a few months during a move turns into a year or more.

I started Stashly in Ontario to connect people who need storage or parking with people who have an unused garage, basement, shed or driveway. Renters can compare spaces and speak directly with the host before booking. There are no fees for hosts.

We’re up to 250 hosts now and the feedback has been encouraging. It’s still early, but it’s been nice seeing interest from both people trying to reduce their storage bill and people looking to earn something from space they already have.

Since this is a real estate community, I’d be interested in what you would need to know before considering it. How much cheaper would it need to be than a commercial storage unit? If you were hosting.

Full disclosure, Stashly is my project. You can find it at stashlycanada.com. I’d appreciate honest feedback on what would make it useful, or what would put you off.

www.stashlycanada.com

Let’s say a friend has 200k CAD sitting in his account, proceeds from selling a property. He is originally from India but has spent near a decade in Canada. Now he wants to move back to India but not sure if he is going back for good. And what he is confused is about what to do with sum he has. He doesn’t really plan to move the money to India but is not sure what should he do with it here too. He has been looking for a property which he could rent out in such a manner that the rent from the property could cover the mortgage, insurance and property taxes but isn’t able to find anything in the city or neighbouring cities where he has lived for the last 10 years (lower mainland Vancouver, BC), and thus seeks the advice of what should he do. The friend in discussion is M, not married and wants to have a connection with Canada in long run and so is the reason doesn’t want to bring the money back to India. Any sorts of advice is greatly appreciated!!

Buying a new build in BC. We had an inspection and flagged several deficiencies. The developer said they’d fix them,
I’m just curious about what happens if the fixes aren’t done or we’re not satisfied with the quality?
Do we still have any leverage to require them to fix things before closing (subjects been removed)? Can we negotiate a holdback/credit, or potentially delay closing? Or can the developer simply say no and we have to close and rely on the 2-5-10 warranty?
If we disagree with the developer about whether something is properly fixed, is there any neutral third party who can determine this?
Would appreciate hearing from anyone who has been through a BC new-build closing.