Co-ownership perhaps an option for those not wanting and being able to spend on owning a home in Toronto’s highly priced real estate market. A client called me the other day and wanted to discuss the option of buying a house with 2 apartments and sharing with a friend. The idea sounded good but the realty of co-owning is not simple. So many what happens when… We see co-ownership arrangements happening more and more. Not only is it financially easier but also good for sharing responsibility in looking after a home, perhaps good for company. If all goes well this could work. But what if it doesn’t – lawyers could be busy.

Toronto is starting to see job transfers coming in from other countries. As the world opens up we are starting to see people moving to Toronto for work. Toronto is now international hub for many industries. Its also a relatively easy city to live in with so much to offer. With the influx of immigration how will we handle our lack of housing. The rental market and the resale market are already so tight with supply. Where will everyone live? The government appears to be trying to create more supply but they are not making it easy for landlords or developers wanting to build. Perhaps some new solutions need to be looked at.

Buyers still looking for space and not enough people want to sell. It feels like we are in a Covid transition phase – the world is slowly opening up but most don’t feel like the world is back to usual. And perhaps the new usual is different. Work from home and hesitation to travel continue to spur the demand for more space. Hence homes with home offices and enough rooms for everyone in the family to escape to are in high demand. We just don’t have enough listings for everyone. Bidding wars for homes continue, Real estate looks to be a good investment. Prices have never been higher.

Buyers need to be well prepared when buying in todays market. Buyers need to have their ducks lined up in order to buy a house in todays hot market. When a well priced house comes on the market one has little or no time to think. Well prepared buyers have firm offers coming in quickly – sometimes within hours of coming to market. Hence if one wants to buy, market knowledge and financing have to be in place. The ability to make a quick decision is critical. This is true for houses of all price points and for many condos. Market is hot hot hot…

Toronto is getting busy again. Traffic is getting bad and slowly people are returning to work and play. In many ways the pandemic has given people some peace and quiet and those that really don’t need to live in the city are reconsidering staying. They still want the luxuries of a nice place but it no longer has to be in Toronto itself. Hence areas out of Toronto remain hot real estate wise and we are seeing luxury places being built where there were few. We are still waiting on the impact that accelerated immigration will have. There is currently a big shortage of staff in the service industry and immigration has always played a large role in this sector. All these people will need a place to live. Governments will need to accelerate processes to allow for more supply to be built. It sounds like everyone agrees that this is necessary. Now to do it.

Housing is a hot topic for this upcoming election – a key election issue. Toronto and surrounding areas just don’t have enough houses for the demand. This includes many parts of Canada. The Government is trying to make housing more accessible by putting more money in buyers hands. However this does not address the need for more rentals and more ownership of housing. Perhaps it may be helpful if there is incentive and less bureaucracy to create rental and homes for purchase – a better plan to create density in certain areas. Understanding that density has to be strategic and neighbourhoods have to be preserved, we just need more. Maybe more effort and money to reassess what we currently have and what we need.

Younger people who want to get into the market are getting in out of town or buying condos. Demand for condos has risen as house prices have become unaffordable. Demand for homes further from the city have also increased and so have prices. As a result, our cities will change.  The change in demographics will affect infrastructure, commercial real estate, and businesses. The world is changing in so many ways. Adapting to a new reality will be critical.

We are in a lull for listings. It was a crazy spring. Many homes and condos were sold. We saw some big bidding wars for homes and some very high prices. The number of bids on properties seems to have gone down but the prices have really not. We are seeing some strong numbers come in on both houses and condos. As soon as we see more product (and we may just see more listings as pandemic settles), we anticipate a strong market to continue. Summer may be quite busy.

How will reopening of Ontario affect the real estate market. We are wondering if anything will change when people start socializing and going out. Looking at real estate was something to do during the pandemic and it turned into a buying frenzy. I am wondering if people will be distracted with other things and the market will quiet down. That is really hard to say. I think whatever happens it will take time. Change won’t be immediate. Hence we anticipate the summer and fall to be busy. And then we will see.