Now or later
The most common question in the market right now, answered with the same arithmetic we would run for a client sitting across the table.
Getting into the market
Five connected studies that walk you from "should I buy at all?" to "how much down?" to "what will closing day really cost?" to how far to go on offer night, and finally to the strategy that gets you a house instead of a condo.
The List Price Is a Strategy, Not a Verdict
Nobody in the market votes on the asking price. It is a marketing decision the seller signs off on, and 78.1% of GTA homes sold below it in July 2026. Why an $800,000 budget should be shopping at $850,000, how to read days on market and price history, and two near identical Ajax townhouses that sold $33,000 apart.
House Hacking a Duplex: A Tenant Pays Part of Your Mortgage
CMHC now insures owner occupied duplexes with as little as 5% down. A $1M Toronto duplex needs $121,840 less cash to close than a $1M house, and costs $797 a month less to hold. The math, and the six things that go wrong.
Rent or Buy in the GTA? When Each One Actually Wins
A $550,000 condo and a $750,000 townhome, run against renting. The break-even point, the wealth gap at five and ten years, and the one table that decides the whole question.
5% vs 20% Down Payment: Buy Now or Wait and Save?
The same $750,000 home, two very different paths. CMHC premiums, monthly payments, the income you need to qualify, and the real cost of waiting years to save the bigger down payment.
The Hidden Closing Costs Nobody Mentions
She saved the $50,000 down payment. The real bill was $72,500. Every closing cost on a $750,000 first home, itemized for Toronto and the 905, with the rebates that soften it.
Making the next move
You own a home and want a bigger one. These studies tackle the sequencing, financing, and timing questions that come with moving up, starting with whether you should move at all.
Renovate or Move? Run Both Ways, 416 and 905
A $118,250 full refresh against the real cost of trading up: $300,200 inside Toronto, $391,375 in the 905. Moving friction alone is 85% of a renovation budget, and the Toronto buyer pays $14,475 more land transfer tax on a home costing $200,000 less.
Sell First or Buy First? The Upsizer's Dilemma
A family moving from an $850,000 townhome to a $1.25M detached, run both ways. What a 60 day bridge really costs, the $8,500 a month trap of carrying two homes, and why today's market points firmly one way.
Making your home work for you
For most Canadian retirees, the house is the retirement plan. These studies look at how to use it wisely.