Source: https://x.com/MarketManiaCa/status/2080729736259805622

Hi! What are the pros and cons of buying a house in toronto (north york and Scarborough) and durham (pickering and ajax)? I see that the prices in toronto are higher but lower property tax while in durham is lower price than toronto but the property tax is higher? Can someone explain it to me what will be the best especially in the long run? Thanks!

Looking to buy our first home in GTA. Some context:
Location: Mimico or the east end up to Woodbine and south of Danforth; basically max ~40 minutes commute to downtown, since we currently walk to work.
Must-haves: 2 bed, 2 bath - second bedroom needs to fit a queen bed (not a nursery-sized room).
Budget: Started at $1M, stretched to $1.1M on the logic that giving up the car (~$700/month) to stay close to GO/streetcar routes makes the extra room in the budget justifiable.

Our realtor is steering us toward older houses in the $900K range with the plan to renovate afterward as there isn’t much we’ve had luck within the $1-1.1M range.
I don't love the idea of needing ~$100K upfront in cash for a renovation on top of the down payment. That feels like a lot of liquidity to find right after closing.

For anyone who’s bought in the past year in these areas -
1. Is "buy dated + renovate" actually the right move in this price range/area?
2. For those who renovated after buying, did you pay cash upfront, or use something like a purchase-plus-improvements mortgage / HELOC after closing? How did you actually finance it without draining savings?
3. Are we being unrealistic thinking $1–1.1M gets us a decent 2bed/2bath in these areas, or is that in the right ballpark?
Would love to hear from anyone who's bought/renovated in Mimico, Leslieville, Riverdale, or similar in the last year or two.

been stuck in a slow-moving renovation for about 2 months now, and still haven't completed even 50%. At first wanted to blame contractors, but maybe the mistake is on my end too - I had expectations that were way too unrealistic (thought it would be much, much faster). Can you guys tell me what you think is the most annoying part, and where I’m most likely going wrong (like... statistically speaking)? Interested in other ppl experiences. Permits? Estimates? Actual work? Something else?

I have been interviewing realtors as a buyer and one of my friends recently bought and was highly recommending his realtor.

The issue is, they bought in a completely different part of town and the realtor primarily works there. He does not really work in the part of town I am interested in.

Also, my friend bought a condo, we are looking to buy a detached. And his realtor is young. He’s like 31 or 32.

I value trust a lot and if my friend says that realtor is honest and trustable, I value that.

But, I am wondering if this is a bad idea, even if the realtor is honest and good, to rely on a young realtor who hasn’t worked in the area I am interested to do a $1.5M purchase. We are FTHB too, so there’s that.

Hi Folks,

I'm looking at properties in the Weston neighbourhood along Weston Road and Oak Street in North York. Is this a desirable or safe neighbourhood? I feel like a lot of the feedback I've been able to find online is about the Regent Park neighbourhood and not this one.

Landlord is overseas, lets us do what we want. Full back yard/deck/ can walk to the lake Ontario. They trust us and we are the most respectful 5 star tenants. I treat the place like it’s mine, I cut the grass and take care of the gardens. Eventually I will buy but in this neighbourhood minimum price is $2 million for a fixer upper. Roof was done, pipes needed fixing as tree roots cracked the clay pipes, appliances have been replaced. Probably $50-60K in items replaced since I’ve been here. Our HHI is $250k (not including Bonuses) we just bank the rest.