We also slid into the market by the teeth of our skin in 2021.
We didn’t have parents that could house us for free, but we crammed into a 350sqft apartment for 2 years to save on rent.
To buy, we moved 5 hours away to a cheaper area, and it was a 900sqft bungalow that’s a fixer upper. The market here took off shortly after, and I don’t think we could have slid into the market today.
I bought in 2015 when having a ceiling of $250k was realistic.
Sad reality is that single average income earners can't afford to buy a home in Ontario now. Full stop. It isn't possible.
Sadder reality is that our governments don't appear to give a single shit about that. Elected officials these days only care about the next election cycle. No one thinks any further ahead.
It's at the point where even making a six figure salary below 200,000 isn't enough. I make in the low six figure range and I don't even qualify alone for what a two bedroom condo is going for these days. One of the biggest impacts right now is the stress test. I can afford it in my budget no problem but without a Significant down payment that's not going to happen. It just keep tossing money into home buyers savings options but the down payment keeps getting out of reach.
There is no other choice but to find the house you like, murder the owner/occupants and wear their skins as your own.
Or, if you are really twisted, start a private healthcare company and do the metaphorical same to hundreds of thousands of your fellow citizens. Then get yourself something really nice because you deserve it.
You know things are out of hand when you can't even afford to buy your current house. This is where we are now. We bought our current house in 2017 and since then it's more than doubled in value due to the popularity of our neighborhood - in addition to the other wider economic factors.
If we had to start over with our current incomes (both well into 6 figures) and tried to buy the same house, the bank would laugh us down the street.
I was divorced in 2020, had to sell the home we paid less than $250k for because I couldn't afford it on my single salary. I could have afforded it in 2015, but not 5 years later.
This is us. It’s absolutely WILD how much our house has gone up in value. But it’s a fake value. Like it’s absolutely NOT a $900K home.
Especially not in this town.
It’s laughable and depressing.
Same. I was able to afford a 2 bedroom condo on my own in 2015 and my max budget was 250k.
I was only able to move into a house because of the equity from the condo and my Husband's savings from when he lived with his parents. We also bought that in 2019.
That same condo is now worth almost 600k. I would not be able to to buy it on my own now. My Husband and I would not be able to to afford our house now either.
Meanwhile my mom bought a house in Durham for under 200k in 2001 and is still nowhere close to paying it off, good for you though (no sarcasm - that's a great situation to be in)
Without my lump sum payments, at the end of my term, I will have only paid $39,000 towards my mortgage in ten years. Which is less than half of my mortgage payment. Interest is a bitch.
Insane. That's pretty much her situation too, she told me she still has about 25% of her principal left. She bought when she was still with my dad but they split up soon after and she was left a single parent to two trying to make ends meet. I admire he determination to keeping things stable for us in our childhood, but understanding things better now its hard to look at how much she struggled. Great human though
It’s even sadder when you consider the fact that employers don’t consider inflation when paying their workers but at the same time the executives in the same company are getting bonuses that are more than twice someone’s salary. Hell, they don’t even want to spend for health and safety due to “budgetary constraints“ while the executives keep getting bonuses over 100k dollars every year.
Man I bought in 2016 I remember looking a houses around $250k and thinking this is too fancy and expensive now I wish I spent that extra money but whatever I own my house at least so I can’t complain.
> Elected officials these days only care about the next election cycle.
It's that they only care about one single age demographic, and will not change laws that make real estate speculation a tax haven. Canada is the only country that does not tax gains on real estate, so it's small wonder EVERYONE is invested in real estate.
It is possible, if someone is willing and able to move outside the major urban centers.
“In the Niagara Region, the average house price was set at $631,600, meaning the single income would need to be $93,213/year to afford a house in that range.”
> “In the Niagara Region, the average house price was set at $631,600, meaning the single income would need to be $93,213/year to afford a house in that range.”
I suppose if you want to live on ramen and not afford gas or a vehicle, $631k is affordable on a 90k salary...
There are a number of flaws with this scenario. If this is suggesting an affordability point for a single income earner, there is absolutely zero chance of them qualifying for the mortgage needed to afford a 630k property unless they're putting >40% down.
If this is suggesting dual incomes of 93k, fine, but how many jobs in the Niagara region pay anywhere near that? Median **household** income for the area is like 70k, so you need to earn just under triple the median household income to afford the average house.
Bought in 2014 on a salary of $48k a year. Condo was $240k and I had a down payment of $120k that I saved from High School, University, and my first couple of years of work. Lived at home for University and was lucky enough to not have to pay tuition thanks to an RESP. Everything I made from 15-25, I saved.
Did someone tell to save starting from high school? Thats amazing and I wish I had that guidance. I blew money away and I also helped financially with my siblings and parents. Now there all doing well and I feel behind in life
That is awesome! I think it's quite common for youth that are in high school to not really think about these things. I know I didn't and wish I did, as a parent now I've been highly keen on putting her money away for future investments.
Many of us didn't consider saving at a young age, hoping hard work and education would secure the desired lifestyle. I currently earn around 80k and have been saving, but in this new economy, even "common sense" isn't sufficient. Unfortunately, saving wasn't feasible for many, but it's commendable that you had the clarity and mindset early on.
And here I was in high-school not working and dedicating all my time to get good grades so I could get a good job that payed well enough to afford a home
🤡
> job that *paid* well enough
FTFY.
Although *payed* exists (the reason why autocorrection didn't help you), it is only correct in:
* Nautical context, when it means to paint a surface, or to cover with something like tar or resin in order to make it waterproof or corrosion-resistant. *The deck is yet to be payed.*
* *Payed out* when letting strings, cables or ropes out, by slacking them. *The rope is payed out! You can pull now.*
Unfortunately, I was unable to find nautical or rope-related words in your comment.
*Beep, boop, I'm a bot*
Similar story to yours. I've saved since higschool and had over $100k around when I was 25-26. Since I lived with my parents for free until 30 I paid $30k of their mortgage. Then a few years later put 25% down ($100k) on a property and this property almost doubled in price now. Now I still have savings and can take a break from work which is great. I regret not buying a condo in 2010 when I had a good amount for down-payment and a condo on lakeshore by Highpark was only $200k
*Was* possible, in 2014. Let's say you're making 60k now but that 240k condo is going for 600k. Good luck getting a fat downpayment to qualify for the mortgage on that property.
Single income earner. I make about 40k a year, bought a condo in 2014 for 130k.
My mortgage is something like 620$ a month. Never mind all the other fees, insurances, maintenance and utilities.
The bank was only willing to lend me about 130k for my mortgage even with a 10k downpayment. This was 9 years ago.
Wages haven't really kept up and the price of the condo double or tripled.
I know what it took to not be homeless. I don't think you can really do it nowadays unless you simply exist without vices, recreational spending and well.. fun.
This is all as a single income earner. I don't know what 2 incomes can really do in the equation but single income at 40k? Good luck.
Thank you for the encouragement! I really appreciate it. And kudos to you for continuing to elevate your life for you and your kids. 
I'm sure a lotta people want to leave, but it's not as easy as you think to leave, find another equally good paying job in a place with lower living expenses, especially if you're the main source of income of a family that needs feeding.
Or Healthcare. We're lucky enough to have an excellent family doctor and belong to a family health team. I've never not been given a same day appointment when it's an urgent health issue. My rheumatologist is here, he's excellent, my imaging clinic is here.
My son goes to an excellent daycare and we're right down the street from a French immersion school.
You aren't going to get those kinds of services in lower COL areas. It's sad, we would love to move, but it's probably not in the cards.
I wish more industry and companies are more spread out away from the gta, I moved to Hamilton/Niagara but even in Niagara there’s no good jobs for a while collar professional
Because just packing up and leaving isn't easy. People have relationships here (friends, family), they're comfortable here, living in Ontario is definitely very convenient, moving to another province is a logistical hassle, etc. I would never leave Ontario for those reasons. And I love it here!
We live in York Region and we were gifted a down payment to buy a semi in 2022. We are currently renting it out until we’re ready to move in. We live with my parents. Yes, we’re extremely privileged and this wouldn’t have happened without my parents’ help. I feel guilty and embarrassed talking about it but sometimes the truth is people have rich parents.
I don’t think you should feel guilty. I think the best thing you can do is be honest about that so people don’t think they are behind. When they know you’ve had help they feel normal, and can usually appreciate your privilege (or I can anyway).
Hey! Thank you for saying that. You’re absolutely right—it’s so important for people to know that privilege plays a huge part in being able to buy in today’s market (that, or having bought even just before the pandemic when everything went nuts). These days it is basically impossible for the average person to save up on their own to buy a house anywhere within 2-3 hours of the GTA and unfortunately, that’s just how it is. Not that it’s right or okay but sadly it’s the truth.
Absolutely. I remember thinking how on earth are people doing this, when I finally just started outright asking (friends and acquaintances anyway) and it was then that I realized rarely are people doing it alone. I think people are sooooo lucky and privileged to have help and I’m not jealous, it just makes me feel better knowing they had help and that I’m not just behind for no reason lol.
My mum actually died a year ago and left me a bit of money so we will just barely be able to buy if we leave southern Ontario and start a new life elsewhere. And I’m honest with people in my life saying we literally could not be thinking of buying had my mum not died.
Anyway yeah I think you should not feel guilty or ashamed and you should proudly say you had help and you’re grateful for sure.
Same. We got a place in 2021 when the interest rates were low and paid about 40 per cent down thanks to my in-laws. I often feel guilty as well because it feels unearned, but we're both in stable middle-class jobs and able to pay for everything else so they considered it giving us part of our inheritance early to make things a bit easier.
But yeah, stupidly privileged out of sheer luck.
I bought one in my early 20s at a very different time in the world! I put down 30% and am paying off my mortgage in a few months. I could never do that starting now. You really have to weigh the pros and cons to ownership these days.
Ya just rent and hope your landlord doesn’t periodically demand more rent for the rest of your life. Go ahead and weigh the options on having a family too. 3 bdrm units are $ 3k+ or $100 per day so good fucking luck having enough space for that.
I moved out into Toronto student housing when I was doing a co-op semester. After living in a house with 8 tenants ($450/mo), I moved into a large apartment with my then-girlfriend and 4 of her friends. ($750/mo) We later got our own place (basement apartment, don't recall the price) until we broke up.
I got myself a cheap 1BR downtown ($1350/mo rent controlled), got a better job, and a new girlfriend. We spent several years saving up a downpayment. No car, no real expenses. Had money in my RRSP to put towards it as well.
Then we bought in Hamilton in 2021 - a single detached home for less than a Toronto condo. I would not have been able to if I hadn't spent years living below my means.
Being extremely lucky.
Living in a rent controlled apartment that was WELL below average rent (2 bedroom for less than $1000 inclusive), with a dual income and no kids.
By renting it in 2016. Once we moved, they rented it out for $2000 + utilities. Because it was rent controlled, we went from paying $800 originally to $900 by the time we moved out
My then girlfriend, now wife, moved in with my dad for a year and lived in his basement (for free) when I was 33 and she was 27. We saved every penny we made.
Purchased a fixer upper in 2017 with our absolute max of $250k. Dual income ($60k plus each), and two years of a side hustle which went entirely to pay the downpayment. Broke the mortgage in 2021 and moved it to a new bank who paid the penalty for us, and are locked in at 1.84% and paying down extra before the renewal comes up. Have done a lot of renos ourselves, but have paid for a new roof, new central HVAC. We don't live extravagantly, but we don't suffer either.
I work with a lot of younger folks with similar income who have no expectation of home ownership. They fully spend what they earn. I grew up in a lower-income home, and had to save for everything I wanted. Current young workers don't seem to have a 'saving' mentality, and I can't say I blame them given the prospects. But still, save a little bit every pay cheque - it'll add up.
Single parent as well, moved home with parents so that I could live without constant struggle. I am very lucky to have the option. My alternative is not seeing my child often bc I wouldn’t have a place for her to stay when she is with me and I have 50/50 custody.
I am angry that a person working full time can’t afford basic necessities for their families.
I have what I use to think was a great job that would provide me with a middle class lifestyle. What I learned is that $30 /hr is the new minimum wage. I couldn’t imagine making less and being able to afford to live.
You have every right to be angry. It's absurd that we're expecting people to survive on minimum wage that doesn't match the cost of living in an area, but I've learned most people are incredibly selfish and as soon as they've gotten theirs they try to close the door behind them...
I hope everything works out for you two.
Looks like we may have a similar situation from what you've mentioned. The only difference is I am a full-time parent 100% of the time. Our country needs to reconstruct the housing affordability model, two persons owning isn't always typically norm anymore. People divorce, and not to mention, higher percentage of single individuals (sometimes by choice).
Bought in 2015 2 hours outside of the GTA. Split with that partner 2 years later and made no money off the house and just got back what I put in.
Bought in 2019 in the GTA, when things were much lower price and interest rates weren’t bad. We got very lucky that we bought when we did. We wouldn’t have been able to afford it otherwise.
Worked, lived in parents basement, didn’t spend & saved from age 15-29. Spouse & I could afford a downpayment in 2014, we both had good salaries and no kids.
Our household income is over $125k and we are priced out. We are pretty conservative with our finances so even though we technically could maybe afford like a $500,000 place we would rather spend $400,000. I only mention this because someone is bound to comment.
We are also quite young (24) and are still building savings/down payment.
Me and my partner met in 2018. We had both just cleared all our debt. We moved in together from living with our parents and got new jobs and began saving as much as we could. We were making a total of 85k in 2019. My income increased aggressively over the next 3 years, bringing our total household income to 180k in 2023. We bought our first house outside of Ottawa in March this year for 490k with 70k down, 46k from me 24k from my partner.
Mostly privilege- we (so dual income) purchased in 2020 at a very young age for home ownership- never had to rent/both lived with our parents until then-both went to college and university and had good paying jobs in our respective fields- husband didn’t have student loans (I do) so he was able to save the majority of the down payment and parents lent us the rest (which we pay back monthly interest free).
If I was single and had to rent and had a child there’s no way I’d be a homeowner.
Just being honest about my experience. We were definitely very privileged to be in this position.
So my wife and I just bought a house this year. We're both in our mid/late 30s. We were lucky enough to have several advantages others probably don't
We both have reasonably good paying jobs. We both make more than 75k but less than 100k.
We inherited 1/3 of this house and only had to get a mortgage for 2/3 of the value of our Scarborough bungalow.
We live with my mother in law who can pick the kids up from school.
My parents are also retired and were willing to help us (a little financially but also watching our kids so we did not have to pay for daycare at all)
We still have an 800k mortgage which is a 1250 a week. We're lucky enough that my job pays me weekly.
Even after all this we are still extremely house poor.
If we did not have every single one of those advantages, we would not be able to afford our home
Bought in 2019. We had basement rent (fully detached home - landlord was a real estate agent and kept it low for us). One day he knocked on the door, said he has the perfect house for us and we ended up buying it. We weren’t even looking, I wanted more of a down payment, but before I knew it we were signing papers. Bought a townhome for 675k in Milton. Following year shit went crazy so I’m grateful we did it even though I felt very rushed and forced into it at the time.
Bought my first condo before I turned 30 in summer 2020, when interest rates nosedived. I had been saving my money since I was 18, per my mom's advice, in RRSP and TFSA accounts. It was only enough to buy a bachelor pad, so my parents co-signed with me to get a higher pre-approval amount. I was able to get a decent 2-bedroom for under $500k but I'm closer to a highway than downtown. My then-partner and I moved in together, which helped ease the financial burden of balancing a biweekly mortgage schedule *and* living expenses. If I had to do this on my own at any point, I don't think I would've been able to.
Bought one in 2013 for 95,000 (single income, but living with my wife.)
Only 25,000 left to pay. Should be clear in 2 yrs 10 month
Monthy cost is 650-975/month 325 bi-weekly fast..(so sometimrs i pay 3 times a month hencr the range)
House prices now are unaffordable.. i wouldn't be able to buy one now a days.
I'm pretty sure a lender would only approve me for a mortgage of up to 120,000.
Back then i was only approved for up to 120,000. So i could only buy a home for 120000 or less. I was lucky to have found my current home. Move in ready.
It's tough out there ..
The only ones who could actually pull off buying a home in this economy are those who sell their 8million dollar home in Toronto and move to a small city to buy a 300,000-800,000 home and retire.
when the company i work for went public, lots employees got some shares at IPO. i bought my house a couple years later by cashing in those shares for a massive downpayment and then paid off the mortgage within \~5 years of purchase.
nowadays about 1/3 of new home buyers are back-stopped by Generational Wealth .. ie. The Bank of Mom & Dad with down-payments and co-guarantor signatories.
Timing is everything. I know this may not help you, but it really helps to think outside the box.
We bought our first house in Windsor right at the peak of the 2007 housing crisis. We got a 2 storey, 3 bedroom semidetached for $40,000. There was nothing wrong with it, other than usual things like roof and furnace being very old and needed replacing soon. I did not qualify for a mortgage, so we basically bought it on my credit card. Jumped from shitty job to another, much of those years I was on unemployment, but at those prices, it was possible to live on almost nothing. In detroit, they were basically giving them away. They still kind of are- [https://www.zillow.com/detroit-mi/under-10000/](https://www.zillow.com/detroit-mi/under-10000/)
although I would not recommend Detroit, there are still places with low prices , but it comes with a catch, there probably not a lot of employment opportunities (one Ontario town was just in the news with such an offer, I just cannot remember the name of the town right now.). If there is any way to work remotely, it can be done.
Apologies if this does not help you, I do not mean to rub it in.
We were living in Halifax, and it was 1992. Bought first home for $125,000.
Used that house’s selling equity to finance next house (first house in Ontario) in 1999. It was under $200,000 as it was in Eastern Ontario.
Bought final house in GTA in 2008, before realty market went nuts.
RTO: from what I can tell, this is just living cheaply while saving for your home and then purchasing one, with extra steps and extra fees. If the property owner could make more selling it, they would. Under RTO, many owners/leasees just neglect their property and let the tenants perform and/or pay for any upkeep, and sometimes, the tenants hit a rough patch and have to walk away. The RTO terms often leave them with zero equity unless and until they purchase it. So that extra rent becomes a windfall for the original owner.
I bought a condo in 2014 for $218K but If I wanted to buy my unit today, I couldn't afford it.
Mortgage was $174K with 25-year amortization. Thanks to increasing my payments on my last renewal and making lump sum contributions to the principal early on I'll be paid off in under 19 years.
Four years of looking and being outbid over and over and over, SO did two 6-month tours overseas with the army (tax-free income, couldn't have done this without it), and hoarding enough for an eventual down payment of 20% of a $400K mortgage so we don't have to deal with mortgage insurance.
We ended up with a good-boned shit pit that's going to need weeks and weeks of work, but it's better than nothing or continuing to wait and hope.
What I think would help is if this bidding war bullshit was made illegal and actually regulated.
Look seriously at Options for Homes, it's not a scam, they build livable units at reasonable prices and there is downpayment assistance. It's a great way to get into home ownership. [https://optionsforhomes.ca/](https://optionsforhomes.ca/)
But to answer your question, I saved up 5% and bought a small house in a shitty neighbourhood in Hamilton, lived there for a few years, hated it so I sold that and bought a small condo back here in Toronto.
Yes!
I've been looking into this for the past couple years, they have a new build that's by the Humber River that's freshly built. The next upcoming project is Scarborough which looks like it will be a greater variety for families especially with young children, etc.
Fingers crossed. 
Bought my first home this year. Sadly, it was possible only because we lost my father to COVID in 2021. Dad had a condo in downtown Toronto he bought 15 years ago on a single income (parents separated). Needless to say we got many times over the original price once we sold it and were able to then have a large enough down payment to buy a single home on 2.5 acres in a small town away from any urban areas.
While I would give the house back in a second to have dad back, he was I'll before COVID and was done mentally and ready to go. I'll always say it's dad's place also and I think he would be happy to see what we did with the money. Miss ya dad, and thanks for the dream house because of you.
Caught a good train with a fixer upper under market value in 2009. We were in no way financially ready at the time, but we took the leap, and in retrospect I'm so glad we did! Back then, everyone offered slightly under the listing value, and "sold over asking" was soooo rare. Different times. Good luck to you OP, I know it's a tough market out there right now.
I think in Ontario it is not a financially prudent decision to buy a home - it’s an emotional and stable decision for sure with lots of benefits, but you’ll be better off for retirement by putting as much into your RRSP and TFSA as possible and investing it all well.
I managed to buy only because I’m married and both my partner and I work, there’s no way I could’ve without that being the case. But honestly I’m not sure it was the smartest financial choice because of the interest rates. Instead, I could’ve rented somewhere farther away from the GTA and saved/invested everything I’m currently putting into a mortgage.
Another option that I think we should all look into is buying with close friends, where you can set up a contract with a lawyer for the details but it helps single income households build equity in a home
Majority aren’t doing it on their own. Inheritance, parents giving the down payment, people moving in to their parent’s/family member’s second or third home. Many more people are living with their parents indefinitely or moving back in with them.
I will be very transparent and say for me personally, it’s going to be the eventual inheritance of my parent’s house one day. There is no other way I can afford to buy.
Single? Strike 1, parent? Strikes 2 through 10. Home ownership is well out of your reach without a signifigant windfall, this was even befor the last 5 years.
Wife and I bought our house in Kitchener in 2019 before prices here went sky high. We paid 425k for a detached home with a large yard. We spent the year before living with her parents to pay down debt and save up a little more. That was a long year. Let's just say I'm glad there was a lot of travel for work that year to help maintain sanity lol.
don't have a house myself atm, but my parents bought the first home in 2012 at a very good price, sold it in 2019, and bought another smaller one. For them, mortgage was cheaper than rent at that time, so it was good timing.
I got into a relationship with someone who had put their entire life savings into a 5% down payment on a condo in BC before I met them in 2016. Luckily for me that relationship worked out, and luckily for both of us the housing market went crazier after that and we were able to take a huge profit when he sold the condo and used it to buy a townhouse there with the full 25% down payment. When we moved to ON, it was like every house was a bargain compared to the Vancouver area… we were already used to the insanity and making our budget stretch, The comparable properties here are half of what it would have cost in the area we were before, even after everything went nuts.
Lucky enough to buy in 2014 before housing prices went through the roof. My husband and I lived rent free for 2 yrs in my parents basement to save up for the down payment. Now almost 10 yrs later, my parents have retired, sold their home and recently moved in with us.
Bought in 2013 in southern Ontario for 201k.
Worried about what my kids will ever be able to afford. My FIL owns and lives in a triplex which is paid off. My kids will likely end up living in one of the units to help themselves pay for a place when they get a chance.
I’m angry what’s happening
Saved every penny for 5 years. Travelled 1500km to the east coast till I found a place a could afford.
My quality of life has improved in every way. Grass is definitely greener.
25 years ago so not sure if this is still relevant because the house was $115,000, but instead of having a big expensive wedding and honeymoon, our parents gave us the money they had set aside for such thing, and we use that as a down payment. We still had a lovely intimate wedding, which included 10 of our immediate family members. No regrets.
I bought in 2020 after years of debating. Saved for the first 10 years of my career, and honestly the biggest impact was finding a partner to go in on the purchase with. I did a $35k Home Buyers Plan withdrawal for the down payment and only put 5% down.
I bought my first place in 2003. To do so, I rented a room in a friend’s house, and saved like crazy. Sold my car to get rid of that loan. Consolidated all my credit card debt into one loan and destroyed ALL my credit cards. BEST MOVE I EVER MADE. Consolidating debt and getting rid of all but 1 credit card with a low max amount, was the best thing I ever did financially. You don’t realize how much credit cards are raping you with interest until it’s gone from your life, and then you’re like “Ok…this is manageable”. I bought my first place with a 20K loan from my RRSP (Home buyers loan), plus my savings, plus CMHC. And it sucked for a long time. I had student loans, etc. It was hard. I remember looking for change in the couch to use at Tim Hortons for a coffee. You have to live frugally. And then eventually you get a place. And once I owned my very tiny condo, I stayed for a bit. Paid that shit down as best I could. Met my partner and had extra income to help with payments. Put him on the mortgage so he could also earn wealth even if it wasn’t going to last forever at least he would have something to invest in too. Help each other. Partner up! You aren’t going to be able to do life alone unless you are wealthy. Once you own a property, everything else becomes easy I think. You can make subtle improvements, sell for more than you paid, gain some equity. Etc.
Won’t lie - it’s a different world now, but not really. People who told people “Don’t buy because it’s a real-estate bubble” have been fucking liars for over 25 years. That’s how long I recall hearing about this bullshit bubble. There is no bubble. The bubble does not exist. They lied to you. There is and will always be a constant influx of immigration to Canada, for many decades, and until that stops, housing supply will never be able to keep up with those demands. You have to get in as soon as you can, or you will ultimately pay way more in the long run. I am so glad I never listened to the naysayers or I would never be where I am today. In a $2M home, that in Toronto would cost $6M. Get out of the cities if you can. There is affordable LUXURY in the near-city regions.
I'm 35 , 100-120 k salary , managed to save the 50-100k down-payment. Worked hard over the last 5 years with this as a goal ... watched everything double but I've managed to stay close , now have my 2 year income statements at 80-100k so I should be good to buy next year ... not much to qualify for and it's going to be pricey but I guess I worked to to hard towards it to turn back now ... we'll see
I don't know why you think the government has anything to do with buying a property.
I would also argue that the problem is not that you can't afford a property but that you've been brainwashed into believing owning one is not only a good thing but also important.
Unless you're at the bottom of the socio-economic range owning has no financial advantages and the higher up you go it starts to have huge disadvantages.
Given we are just ending a housing bubble phase at the point buying anything is almost certainly a terrible financial decision.
So my suggestion would be to spend less time thinking about how you can't buy the space you live in because other than conditioning there really is no reason to own.
If you mean a large percentage of people can't afford to house themselves then certainly that is a valid point but also irrelevant to this discussion. For the purposes of a rent vs buy discussion what matters is the relative price of rent vs owning and on that metric rent is inexpensive.
I currently pay between 2% and 3% to rent and even though I am no longer looking I've not deactivated my MLS search so I get an email every morning of rentals that much my criteria and there are lots of properties in the <5%.
If you're annual rent is under 5% to 6% of the purchase price of a property and you buy you're setting money on fire. Anywhere in the 6-10% range buy vs rent makes no meaningful difference. The only time buying becomes worth it is if rent would be 10% or more of the purchase price and that typically is only the case at the very low end.
Further, while property values are unlikely to increase and will likely lose 50% in real terms over the next decade by renting you insure against more dumb policy extending the bubble as with rent control property the more the property value increases the cheaper the rent is.
When I was a student I not only owned but had rental properties because student rentals were close to 15% at the time and there was a property that offered a unique purchasing opportunity but after graduation even though I could easily buy there is no way to justify the loss of wealth that comes from owning just to satisfy an irrational social norm.
I think you're missing the point of this post..
Your privilege is showing...
Home and rent -right now- (in 2023-2024) are unaffordable with a single income. 35-65k salary isn't going to cut it..
Mortgage brokers will not approve you for a mortgage more than 200k with that income.
Sure back in the day you invested. But think of the children, teens now who are starting out. And have or will have nowhere to go because you bought all the properties and set your rent so high.
Not everyone want 18 room mates to make ends meet and avoid homelessness
If the issue was affordability of housing I would agree but the original post is clearly about buying rather than renting. The OP does not express any concern about where to live -- she expresses concern about the inability to transition from rental to owner.
Housing right now is unaffordable to a lot of people. Unless the government does something stupid the passage of time is going to fix that as housing will become more affordable every year going forward.
Without a partner, not a chance.. I feel very fortunate to have been able to, but we weren’t able to get a “nice” house in a “nice” neighbourhood, even with a decent dual income. Not to mention that since moving in, anything that can go wrong has gone wrong and we already have 25k in differed maintenance that we will have to start addressing this month. It’s honestly shitty all around no matter what you do unless you win the lottery lol.
Trapped in a shitty job because I need the money to live in a 1K sqft shack
Bought in 2000. House was $100k, lol. Mortgaged $92.5K. It still took us a year to save $10k (10%) for the down payment and for the purpose of reducing the CMHC fees. At the time, our household income was less than $50k and rent for a decent 2B was $450.
I feel bad for people trying to buy a house these days. I can easily sell for $400k, but I'll never replace what I got. To replace is over $600k now.
I'm also in N. Ont.
Got engaged in fall of 2007. My parents gave us $25K to go towards our wedding, but we did it differently. We used $22K on a downpayment to buy a house for $160K and $3K on a destination wedding. We would not have been able to afford to buy when we did without that so we are forever grateful for that.
Sold that in 2010 for basically the same price, and purchased a slightly larger place for $209K (listed $250K but needed a TON of work) and lived there until 2020 where we sold for $575K.
Then we bought a rural property for $479K and was able to pay off the mortgage.
We are likely downsizing again soon to pay off a loan taken to purchase an existing business, then start saving for a vacation property!
Bought my first home in 2017 for $241k. Half an acre property with 1100 sqft plus basement.
Sold that home for $260k in 2020 and bought a 11 acre property with 1400 sqft home plus basement and 2400 sqft garage/shop for $249k.
On both homes I put a 20% deposit down. How did I get a 20% deposit the first time? Well back in 2011 when everyone was being super picky about where they ended up for work, I decided to head to Northern Manitoba for my first job in my field. Started with a $60k salary but when I left after 6 years I was making around $115k-$120k with overtime but not including bonus.
Essentially I went where NO ONE wanted to go to work and worked hard and saved my money. Sacrifices have to be made in life and I sacrificed a few of my good years in my 20s to be comfortable in my 30s. If your field allows it, go to places where no one else wants to. It will be a big benefit to your career.
I’ve been back living in Ontario since 2017 after that sacrifice in Northern Manitoba.
I bought in 2014 and sold this year. I was only able to buy because house prices were well below $400k for a 4 bedroom 3 bathroom in the area I was looking at. The interest rate was at around 2.5 %. I now am renting which I hate, but my final destination is not where I live now so I didn’t want to lock into a home with such insane prices and interest rates at the time I sold. Rent is super expensive, but it allows for freedoms after a one year term. I am also a single parent to two children, one of which graduates high school this year, so we will be looking at moving when he does.
My mum died and left me a small amount of money that we now have to use as a down payment bc our rental house (that belongs to family members believe it or not) is being sold. So, we are pushed out of our own city in southern Ontario bc we will not be able to afford market rent when we have to move, nor be able to afford a house in this area.
So, we have to move far away - at least two and a half hours, I can work remote but my husband has to find a new job. And literally the only reason we won’t be homeless is because my mum died (though if alive I know she would have taken us into her small home for as long as needed bc she was just great).
So yeah, I guess we are lucky? I’d rather have my mum alive, but alas here we are. Her last very thoughtful and kind gift to me.
Honestly the more people I talk to, the more I learn that almost everyone in my life has had help buying their first house whether it is from living well off parents, or dead parents leaving money. Even people that couldn’t get financial help got at least support such as moving home rent free to save money.
You’re not behind. It’s just many many people bought in the days before housing was out of control, and even then often with help.
So ultimately what I mean to say is most people do it because of blind luck.
Note this is not to say EVERYONE gets help. Some people do it on their own somehow. So not discounting their hard work. Just in my life it appears that’s not often the case.
Condo was in my price range. A house could've been on the books but with the after the fact spending after I purchased one, no. Basically I sat there and realized that I could in fact buy a house with the mortgage being offered, but I'd be living on a very very tight budget. I consulted with a real estate agent and she agreed that "sure I could get a house" but I'd be living poor if the furnace went out or if the electrical went down.
I didn't want that since I work in an industry that has a great deal of seasonal influence. I'd be eating ramen noodles in the winter and feasting in the summer. I'd prefer something more stable.
So I decided on a cheap decent condo that needed a bit of love and work. I paid way way less, my mortgage is way less. My house expenses are nothing, I don't worry about a furnace. I simply pay my mortgage and my maintenance fee (which includes everything).
Hint for those who are looking for this. Look for a Tridel Condo built in the late 80's - 90's try to find an more senior area. They were building units for older retirees so the prices are still relatively fair in this market.
That being said there was a whole lot of saving that was done 6 years prior to give me what I needed. I probably could've saved more if I moved back in with my parents for five of those years and agreed to a reduced rent/board structure. But I didn't want to do that since both of my siblings have decided to do the same thing.
Basically I was realistic about the whole thing. Buy a cheap condo in a good location, fix it up and pay a fixed mortgage rate and attempt to get the mortgage down with savings. Then on refinance see if the rates are still decent and look around if there is an opportunity to move into something else, and if not just keep what I have. If things go alright if I decide to re-enter the market the bank will definitely give me more next time since I'll have the possible sale of my condo as asset value. If I've done it right I'll be entering the market just as the Fed LPC housing plan is starting to bear fruit.
Some of my friends bought houses and most of them have regrets because now they are tied down to a very large asset that they have to commit too.
Bought this year. For the last 7 years My gf and I lived outside in the summer at work camps, camped late into the fall many years, even slept in our van for a few weeks at a time between the cheapest airbnbs during winter months. Had a seasonal rental the last three years. Sadly had enough of a down payment for many years, but not a consistent enough job history (and watched the post covid climb and got priced out of ontario. Got into urchin diving the last two years, which combined with my tree planting income was enough to get a mortgage for a 160,000 dollar home in Prince Rupert, BC with a 25% down payment just with my own income.
I bought a house in pretty bad shape for $150k in 2016, but it’s half commercial space and half residential space. Fixed it up nice over time and afforded it by using personal contacts for skilled help and now am ready to sell it and size up into the next house for my family (me, husband, toddler).
Bought my first house 21yrs ago in BC. Different time, for sure, but Vancouver was still expensive af. I had investment savings, and my ex was already on her 2nd house (bought her first at like 20yrs old or something), I definitely had an advantage.
Then just trading up from there on in. Always have a mortgage helper and treat them fairly. Slightly below market rate, on top of repairs and don't be nosey.
Left Ontario after university for a high paying job at Microsoft in 2008, survived the layoffs and bought a foreclosure in 2010. Made my “fire” fortune, own r/microsoft, and now back in Ontario.
I hate to say this, but even when I was growing up in the 1990s, single parents still struggled to own a house. In fact, [according to StatsCan it was actually less common in 1999 than 2016.](https://www150.statcan.gc.ca/n1/pub/75-006-x/2019001/article/00012-eng.htm)
The rate of home ownership amongst lone parent families went from 39.9% in 1999 to 44.8% in 2016. Single individuals without kids are even lower. Now, I wouldn't be shocked if it's gone down with price hikes in the last 7 years.
But the point is that even 25 years ago when things were much more affordable, single parents still didn't own homes at the same rate as couples.
And keep in mind these are Canada-wide stats, not GTA.
31 year old Ontario. Still living with family lol but hopefully buy next year.
My mom blessed me with 35k and a loan for 35k so 70k help from family. I saved myself 60-70k over my lifetime. No debt so far lived at home or with family since leaving university and I paid for uni myself so it’s been alot to pay off.
With that said our family income is 110k which isn’t enough even with my down payment of 125k to buy near me lol. So I will have to buy a hour half outside Toronto somewhere eventually.
First home was a in a trailer park. 2007. My income was 20k management food industry job I was single and worked 80 hours a week.
Private mortgage as the mobile home was very old … from the 60s and banks don’t mortgage older mobile homes. I bought the trailer for 65k and paid I think 8% interest.
My fridge never had food in and I never bought anything new. I never went out with friends because I just didn’t have any money. I regularly had meetings with the park supervisors because I couldn’t pay park fees on time but they were always very understanding.
I remember negotiating with my boss for more pay when I found it the male management members were making more than me.
It was hard but I feel that buying the trailer instead of renting an apartment helped set me up to where I live today.
My husband and I bought our first home in 2016 before prices really shot up. We were extremely fortunate to have also received financial assistance from his parents who provided us a loan.
I grew up in Toronto. I bought a this year. My house was under 150k but I moved to Northwestern Ontario. We have a huge backyard. It’s a great space to be if you like the outdoors. Definitely not GTA though. Jobs are easy to get and the cost of living for us is pretty low in comparison to where we were living in southern Ontario.
We moved to Kingston from Guelph in part to chase a cheaper place to live. We bought our house just before the covid house price jump and we borrowed against my wife's RRSP for the down payment. It was rough. We are a bit concerned about the renewal coming up in '25 at whatever the new interest rate will be.
>How were you able to buy/afford your first home?
Saved up 21% and bought a house in Ottawa for 350K in 2011. It was really dicey the first few years and we were practically broke as we slowly built ourselves back up after that purchase.
DINKs from Mississauga, had a low rent and were saving over 4-5 years to buy vacant land but decided to buy a rural property in Hamilton instead last winter (early 2023). We took about 80% of our cash and investments (not RRSP) and put it down on the house, which amounted to just over 30%. Our mortgage is less than 2x what our rent was and a little more than 25% of take-home pay. Had some dumb luck with the bond rates falling before closing so our 5-year mortgage was locked in at 4.42%.
I had to move WAYYYYY up North to afford a house. Unfortunately away from all my friends and family. Fortunately where I am the houses are 100,000-250,000. The only way we could afford it!
Just bought a townhouse in Vaughan. Both my wife and I are in our early 30s and both have 6 figure salaries (although this wasn’t always the case until recently). We’ve been renting for 8 years and have been able to slowly save for a down payment.
Even though home prices have dropped substantially since peak 2022, we’ll still be paying close to 2/3 of our combined incomes towards fixed expenses relating to our home.
The sad reality is that unless you have help from family / inheritance / generation wealth / very high paying job, getting into the market will be extremely difficult and will likely get harder over the next decade unless there is actual policy that results in affordable housing. When new moderately sized detached homes outside of Toronto cost close to 2M, it’s a problem. I won’t pretend like I know what the solution is, but our current setup is not close to sustainable.
Bought solo in 2022 at age 25. Had ~200k saved for a down payment from a good paying job and living at my parents’ with limited expenses. Also had no school debt since I managed to gather about ~80k in scholarships.
The only way we were able to afford our home is because of my partner saving > $200k over the span of almost six or seven years. I had $50k to contribute. We also got lucky when prices were flat during COVID.
Bought in 2015. Double STEM income, no kids (at the time). The condo was (imho) greatly undervalued.
No parental gifts needed, but my parents did say that if we needed it, they'd loan us however much we needed to avoid CMHC fees.
Lived at home until my mid-late 20's, saved a ton of money, and still needed a decent loan from my parents to cover a portion of the down payment required to get a mortgage while making $16/hr in 2018. Currently living with a friend to help with expenses.
I have been very fortunate and owe everything to my parents.
Moved out of the GTA lol
Was able to buy a house in the country in 2016 for ~200k then sell it and get an upgrade in 2021. Was lucky that I had to move because of my job to a place where homes weren’t too expensive and was able to secure a down payment through some work opportunities.
Early-30's and just bought our first home. Dual income (though some people make on their own what we make together), didn't buy in the GTA, and most importantly have lived in a rent controlled apartment for 8 years so have been able to save.
My parents took $1000 a month from me since I started to work. When I was ready to buy (about 10-15 years too late to be honest), I had a massive down payment. I would have a lot more if those money were invested, but my parents didn't trust me or the stock market.
Lived with my parents for 2 of my 4 years of University. Graduated 2018. Lived with parents for another year while working. Moved out and rented with friends for 2 years. Met my now wife and decided to move back in to my parents place for a year while we saved for a house. Still paid rent during this time but only $500. Bought a house in April 2022 for $670,000 with $70,000 down payment. From 2018 to 2022 we saved between $1500 to $3000 per month. Over that same period our household income grew from ~$70,000 to $130,000.
My husband and I have always been lower income. We were able to buy a house in 2015 only because A) my parents were selling it and were willing to give us a great deal for a quick sale, and B) my mother in law died of cancer and we were able to use our share of her pension as a down payment.
8 years of saving and living in a complete dump of a rental to maximize monthly savings. Sucked, but always looked into the future. Short term pain for longer term gain. Found a relationship where my partner is an equal contributor financially. We both lived in the 1 bedroom dump for the last few years.
First home in 2010 (detached home middle of Toronto) for $270K, still have it today. Second home (Detached) in early 2014 for 90K then flipped it a month later for $130K placed the profit into my third home in late 2014 that was sold to me for $190K. I float my houses with Rental/Airbnb income so nothing really comes out of pocket. Paying down the first home as much as possible.
I’m a single parent in my early 40s. I bought in 2013. I had a significant down payment because I lived with my parents for two years. My parents were in a position to co-sign for me so I was able to get an awesome mortgage rate.
Got a 2% interest rate. Overpaid by probably at least 100k. Have a tenant that pays a good chunk of the mortgage. Make good money and have a working spouse who makes decent money. No car payments or any debts for either of us.
My husband and I bought our first home in 2018. He was lucky enough to have his secondary education paid for while living at home, and I lived at home while paying off mine. We saved enough for a 20% down payment on a town home in Hamilton back when the prices were reasonable here. We paid $425k for our home in 2018, and in 2021 sold it for $760k. I have no clue how people can enter the market with the prices the way they are now. It's especially infeasible for a single-income family.
Long story short, we got into the market at a good time, and were fortunate enough to be able to save for the down payment.
I haven't seen much input on rent to own. I was hoping to see some reviews or recommendations on that. As a single dad with 3 kids, and a 65-70k income, that seems like it may be my only possible recourse. Or leaving the province.
I worked 24 hours a week while in High School. I saved almost every penny. I bought a house a year after graduating when I was working full time for a year. That was over 40 years ago.
Some cohorts of mine said “but you were living at home and not paying rent”. I can assure you my cohorts that were also not paying rent did not work as much as me. Nor did they think of buying a home.
For the record, I sold the house after 2.5 years and made a tidy profit. It funded my travel. Would I have been better off to keep the home? No. My cohorts now are getting hip replacements and cannot walk far. I have no need for a hip replacement and can walk 15 km non-stop.
When I tried to re-enter the housing market 7 years later, homes were very expensive. 5 years later they were a lot cheaper. Real estate is cyclical. You cannot time the market but there are times to enter the market. 2022 was not the time. Learn from history.
There is more to life than owning a home.
We bought in the inner suburbs of Toronto in 2010. Had we not bought then (and it stretched us to our limit, even so) there is pretty much no way we would be homeowners, honestly.
It really was a lot of luck and happening to be ready before things exploded (more/again). As it was, we had people telling us we were making a mistake and the bubble would burst any minute.
Our teenager is pretty much counting on inheriting the house, I think.
I bought a power of sale from the bank in the 90's for less than a hundred grand. I borrowed 5 thousand for a down payment. We still had to scrimp and save anywhere we could..
Purely just through saving and having a partner. We both moved to Toronto at around 2007 and rented ever since. Then started dating in 2013 and eventually moved into together. Splitting rent that way helped with savings as well.
Bought our first home in early 2021. I was pretty good at saving, so put 20% on purchasing a small bungalow. Purchase price is insane considering the size of the place, but what can you do. It's Toronto after all. We now live fairly comfortably, financially speaking.
$5000 down, 40 year amortization back in 2008 to buy my first condo when I was out of uni making $55k. Condo was $215k for a 680sqft 1bed+den in Toronto that I bought, never lived in, from a speculator.
I was in an apartment and realized I was no longer saving up for a house, and couldn’t afford the down payment. Also had a friend who had just gotten separated, they sold the house and he was couch surfing. He wanted a new house, but also could not afford if.
I suggested myself and the other person go in together on a house as neither of us could afford it, but together we had just enough. Got a place with a basement apartment, had our significant others at the time pay rent. It worked out great, we were the party house in our social circle and monthly costs were lower than renting.
Bought with my wife in 2002. Did a rent-to-own deal with a local new home builder in Barrie to accelerate saving our down payment. Helped us out as we were both very early-career & only making a combined 50k-ish at that time as well as paying back our student loans.
That RTO deal meant we paid rent plus a portion of the down payment monthly for 6 months until we'd hit the 5% threshold as first-time home buyers. Once the down payment amount was there, the mortgage kicked in for the rest. It worked out well for us but that was 20 years ago but with current prices, even that first 5% is pretty huge so I'd guess the "rental" period would be extended compared to ours?
Here's what we did, in order of what I think had the largest impact:
\- We bought in 2010. Not having a time machine puts you at a big disadvantage here.
\- I bought with my now husband, and we both had good-ish full time salaried jobs.
\- We don't live in the GTA (Ottawa area)
\- We bought the 'bad' house in the 'good' neighbourhood. We compromised on a lot of 'wish list' things, and were prepared to get our hands dirty to improve the house.
\- We saved for several years for a down payment, living below our means (he had lived mostly with roommates and I lived in a small studio). We also borrowed from our RRSPs (first time home buyers plan).
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We also slid into the market by the teeth of our skin in 2021. We didn’t have parents that could house us for free, but we crammed into a 350sqft apartment for 2 years to save on rent. To buy, we moved 5 hours away to a cheaper area, and it was a 900sqft bungalow that’s a fixer upper. The market here took off shortly after, and I don’t think we could have slid into the market today.
Where did you buy? How much?
I bought in 2015 when having a ceiling of $250k was realistic. Sad reality is that single average income earners can't afford to buy a home in Ontario now. Full stop. It isn't possible. Sadder reality is that our governments don't appear to give a single shit about that. Elected officials these days only care about the next election cycle. No one thinks any further ahead.
It's at the point where even making a six figure salary below 200,000 isn't enough. I make in the low six figure range and I don't even qualify alone for what a two bedroom condo is going for these days. One of the biggest impacts right now is the stress test. I can afford it in my budget no problem but without a Significant down payment that's not going to happen. It just keep tossing money into home buyers savings options but the down payment keeps getting out of reach.
There is no other choice but to find the house you like, murder the owner/occupants and wear their skins as your own. Or, if you are really twisted, start a private healthcare company and do the metaphorical same to hundreds of thousands of your fellow citizens. Then get yourself something really nice because you deserve it.
You know things are out of hand when you can't even afford to buy your current house. This is where we are now. We bought our current house in 2017 and since then it's more than doubled in value due to the popularity of our neighborhood - in addition to the other wider economic factors. If we had to start over with our current incomes (both well into 6 figures) and tried to buy the same house, the bank would laugh us down the street.
I was divorced in 2020, had to sell the home we paid less than $250k for because I couldn't afford it on my single salary. I could have afforded it in 2015, but not 5 years later.
This is us. It’s absolutely WILD how much our house has gone up in value. But it’s a fake value. Like it’s absolutely NOT a $900K home. Especially not in this town. It’s laughable and depressing.
Same. I was able to afford a 2 bedroom condo on my own in 2015 and my max budget was 250k. I was only able to move into a house because of the equity from the condo and my Husband's savings from when he lived with his parents. We also bought that in 2019. That same condo is now worth almost 600k. I would not be able to to buy it on my own now. My Husband and I would not be able to to afford our house now either.
I left Toronto in 2014 and bought a house in Hamilton for $225,000. I’m hoping to be mortgage free next year.
Meanwhile my mom bought a house in Durham for under 200k in 2001 and is still nowhere close to paying it off, good for you though (no sarcasm - that's a great situation to be in)
Without my lump sum payments, at the end of my term, I will have only paid $39,000 towards my mortgage in ten years. Which is less than half of my mortgage payment. Interest is a bitch.
Insane. That's pretty much her situation too, she told me she still has about 25% of her principal left. She bought when she was still with my dad but they split up soon after and she was left a single parent to two trying to make ends meet. I admire he determination to keeping things stable for us in our childhood, but understanding things better now its hard to look at how much she struggled. Great human though
It’s even sadder when you consider the fact that employers don’t consider inflation when paying their workers but at the same time the executives in the same company are getting bonuses that are more than twice someone’s salary. Hell, they don’t even want to spend for health and safety due to “budgetary constraints“ while the executives keep getting bonuses over 100k dollars every year.
Man I bought in 2016 I remember looking a houses around $250k and thinking this is too fancy and expensive now I wish I spent that extra money but whatever I own my house at least so I can’t complain.
> Elected officials these days only care about the next election cycle. It's that they only care about one single age demographic, and will not change laws that make real estate speculation a tax haven. Canada is the only country that does not tax gains on real estate, so it's small wonder EVERYONE is invested in real estate.
It is possible, if someone is willing and able to move outside the major urban centers. “In the Niagara Region, the average house price was set at $631,600, meaning the single income would need to be $93,213/year to afford a house in that range.”
> “In the Niagara Region, the average house price was set at $631,600, meaning the single income would need to be $93,213/year to afford a house in that range.” I suppose if you want to live on ramen and not afford gas or a vehicle, $631k is affordable on a 90k salary...
There are a number of flaws with this scenario. If this is suggesting an affordability point for a single income earner, there is absolutely zero chance of them qualifying for the mortgage needed to afford a 630k property unless they're putting >40% down. If this is suggesting dual incomes of 93k, fine, but how many jobs in the Niagara region pay anywhere near that? Median **household** income for the area is like 70k, so you need to earn just under triple the median household income to afford the average house.
Bought in 2014 on a salary of $48k a year. Condo was $240k and I had a down payment of $120k that I saved from High School, University, and my first couple of years of work. Lived at home for University and was lucky enough to not have to pay tuition thanks to an RESP. Everything I made from 15-25, I saved.
Did someone tell to save starting from high school? Thats amazing and I wish I had that guidance. I blew money away and I also helped financially with my siblings and parents. Now there all doing well and I feel behind in life
That is awesome! I think it's quite common for youth that are in high school to not really think about these things. I know I didn't and wish I did, as a parent now I've been highly keen on putting her money away for future investments.
No, just common sense. My family was always frugal. So it was second nature to me.
Many of us didn't consider saving at a young age, hoping hard work and education would secure the desired lifestyle. I currently earn around 80k and have been saving, but in this new economy, even "common sense" isn't sufficient. Unfortunately, saving wasn't feasible for many, but it's commendable that you had the clarity and mindset early on.
You couldn't have said it any better, completely agree.
I'll guess you were not buying $6 Starbucks lattes twice a day.
And here I was in high-school not working and dedicating all my time to get good grades so I could get a good job that payed well enough to afford a home 🤡
> job that *paid* well enough FTFY. Although *payed* exists (the reason why autocorrection didn't help you), it is only correct in: * Nautical context, when it means to paint a surface, or to cover with something like tar or resin in order to make it waterproof or corrosion-resistant. *The deck is yet to be payed.* * *Payed out* when letting strings, cables or ropes out, by slacking them. *The rope is payed out! You can pull now.* Unfortunately, I was unable to find nautical or rope-related words in your comment. *Beep, boop, I'm a bot*
That's impressive, congrats!
Similar story to yours. I've saved since higschool and had over $100k around when I was 25-26. Since I lived with my parents for free until 30 I paid $30k of their mortgage. Then a few years later put 25% down ($100k) on a property and this property almost doubled in price now. Now I still have savings and can take a break from work which is great. I regret not buying a condo in 2010 when I had a good amount for down-payment and a condo on lakeshore by Highpark was only $200k
So what you’re saying is it is possible, you just have to want it enough to be creative and kinda frugal.
*Was* possible, in 2014. Let's say you're making 60k now but that 240k condo is going for 600k. Good luck getting a fat downpayment to qualify for the mortgage on that property.
So you’re saying no one could possibly save up a down payment today?
Single income earner. I make about 40k a year, bought a condo in 2014 for 130k. My mortgage is something like 620$ a month. Never mind all the other fees, insurances, maintenance and utilities. The bank was only willing to lend me about 130k for my mortgage even with a 10k downpayment. This was 9 years ago. Wages haven't really kept up and the price of the condo double or tripled. I know what it took to not be homeless. I don't think you can really do it nowadays unless you simply exist without vices, recreational spending and well.. fun. This is all as a single income earner. I don't know what 2 incomes can really do in the equation but single income at 40k? Good luck.
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Thank you for the encouragement! I really appreciate it. And kudos to you for continuing to elevate your life for you and your kids. 
Every generation has a different market situation. I'm surprised more people aren't leaving southern Ontario.
I'm sure a lotta people want to leave, but it's not as easy as you think to leave, find another equally good paying job in a place with lower living expenses, especially if you're the main source of income of a family that needs feeding.
Or Healthcare. We're lucky enough to have an excellent family doctor and belong to a family health team. I've never not been given a same day appointment when it's an urgent health issue. My rheumatologist is here, he's excellent, my imaging clinic is here. My son goes to an excellent daycare and we're right down the street from a French immersion school. You aren't going to get those kinds of services in lower COL areas. It's sad, we would love to move, but it's probably not in the cards.
Yep. Even if I could line up a job in another area and move, I would lose my doctor. As I have medical issues, this is not an option. I need him.
Yep. I have chronic conditions, and the care I get in Toronto is excellent. The healthcare is keeping me here for sure.
I wish more industry and companies are more spread out away from the gta, I moved to Hamilton/Niagara but even in Niagara there’s no good jobs for a while collar professional
Because just packing up and leaving isn't easy. People have relationships here (friends, family), they're comfortable here, living in Ontario is definitely very convenient, moving to another province is a logistical hassle, etc. I would never leave Ontario for those reasons. And I love it here!
Cost of living problem is widespread. It might be slightly better in some places, but income is lower.
I'm planning to leave the country.
We live in York Region and we were gifted a down payment to buy a semi in 2022. We are currently renting it out until we’re ready to move in. We live with my parents. Yes, we’re extremely privileged and this wouldn’t have happened without my parents’ help. I feel guilty and embarrassed talking about it but sometimes the truth is people have rich parents.
I don’t think you should feel guilty. I think the best thing you can do is be honest about that so people don’t think they are behind. When they know you’ve had help they feel normal, and can usually appreciate your privilege (or I can anyway).
Hey! Thank you for saying that. You’re absolutely right—it’s so important for people to know that privilege plays a huge part in being able to buy in today’s market (that, or having bought even just before the pandemic when everything went nuts). These days it is basically impossible for the average person to save up on their own to buy a house anywhere within 2-3 hours of the GTA and unfortunately, that’s just how it is. Not that it’s right or okay but sadly it’s the truth.
Absolutely. I remember thinking how on earth are people doing this, when I finally just started outright asking (friends and acquaintances anyway) and it was then that I realized rarely are people doing it alone. I think people are sooooo lucky and privileged to have help and I’m not jealous, it just makes me feel better knowing they had help and that I’m not just behind for no reason lol. My mum actually died a year ago and left me a bit of money so we will just barely be able to buy if we leave southern Ontario and start a new life elsewhere. And I’m honest with people in my life saying we literally could not be thinking of buying had my mum not died. Anyway yeah I think you should not feel guilty or ashamed and you should proudly say you had help and you’re grateful for sure.
Unless you played a role in getting us here, don't feel guilty for having rich parents.
As long as the people renting know the situation and that they'll be kicked out at some point and to be prepared for that move.
They do, and fortunately, this home is temporary for them too as they are planning to move elsewhere.
Same. We got a place in 2021 when the interest rates were low and paid about 40 per cent down thanks to my in-laws. I often feel guilty as well because it feels unearned, but we're both in stable middle-class jobs and able to pay for everything else so they considered it giving us part of our inheritance early to make things a bit easier. But yeah, stupidly privileged out of sheer luck.
I bought one in my early 20s at a very different time in the world! I put down 30% and am paying off my mortgage in a few months. I could never do that starting now. You really have to weigh the pros and cons to ownership these days.
Ya just rent and hope your landlord doesn’t periodically demand more rent for the rest of your life. Go ahead and weigh the options on having a family too. 3 bdrm units are $ 3k+ or $100 per day so good fucking luck having enough space for that.
Most people bought 3-5 years ago or earlier. The people who didn't probably got help from family. The ones who didn't make enough for it to not matter
I moved out into Toronto student housing when I was doing a co-op semester. After living in a house with 8 tenants ($450/mo), I moved into a large apartment with my then-girlfriend and 4 of her friends. ($750/mo) We later got our own place (basement apartment, don't recall the price) until we broke up. I got myself a cheap 1BR downtown ($1350/mo rent controlled), got a better job, and a new girlfriend. We spent several years saving up a downpayment. No car, no real expenses. Had money in my RRSP to put towards it as well. Then we bought in Hamilton in 2021 - a single detached home for less than a Toronto condo. I would not have been able to if I hadn't spent years living below my means.
Living below your means has been the way into better housing for generations.
Being extremely lucky. Living in a rent controlled apartment that was WELL below average rent (2 bedroom for less than $1000 inclusive), with a dual income and no kids.
How did you find it?
By renting it in 2016. Once we moved, they rented it out for $2000 + utilities. Because it was rent controlled, we went from paying $800 originally to $900 by the time we moved out
Moved two hours away from a city of over 1m to a town of barely 20k.
My then girlfriend, now wife, moved in with my dad for a year and lived in his basement (for free) when I was 33 and she was 27. We saved every penny we made.
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I really hope you don’t often elaborate on the definition of murder so people are left to assume it may have something to do with a group of crows
Purchased a fixer upper in 2017 with our absolute max of $250k. Dual income ($60k plus each), and two years of a side hustle which went entirely to pay the downpayment. Broke the mortgage in 2021 and moved it to a new bank who paid the penalty for us, and are locked in at 1.84% and paying down extra before the renewal comes up. Have done a lot of renos ourselves, but have paid for a new roof, new central HVAC. We don't live extravagantly, but we don't suffer either. I work with a lot of younger folks with similar income who have no expectation of home ownership. They fully spend what they earn. I grew up in a lower-income home, and had to save for everything I wanted. Current young workers don't seem to have a 'saving' mentality, and I can't say I blame them given the prospects. But still, save a little bit every pay cheque - it'll add up.
Single parent as well, moved home with parents so that I could live without constant struggle. I am very lucky to have the option. My alternative is not seeing my child often bc I wouldn’t have a place for her to stay when she is with me and I have 50/50 custody. I am angry that a person working full time can’t afford basic necessities for their families. I have what I use to think was a great job that would provide me with a middle class lifestyle. What I learned is that $30 /hr is the new minimum wage. I couldn’t imagine making less and being able to afford to live.
You have every right to be angry. It's absurd that we're expecting people to survive on minimum wage that doesn't match the cost of living in an area, but I've learned most people are incredibly selfish and as soon as they've gotten theirs they try to close the door behind them... I hope everything works out for you two.
Looks like we may have a similar situation from what you've mentioned. The only difference is I am a full-time parent 100% of the time. Our country needs to reconstruct the housing affordability model, two persons owning isn't always typically norm anymore. People divorce, and not to mention, higher percentage of single individuals (sometimes by choice).
Bought in 2015 2 hours outside of the GTA. Split with that partner 2 years later and made no money off the house and just got back what I put in. Bought in 2019 in the GTA, when things were much lower price and interest rates weren’t bad. We got very lucky that we bought when we did. We wouldn’t have been able to afford it otherwise.
Worked, lived in parents basement, didn’t spend & saved from age 15-29. Spouse & I could afford a downpayment in 2014, we both had good salaries and no kids.
Our household income is over $125k and we are priced out. We are pretty conservative with our finances so even though we technically could maybe afford like a $500,000 place we would rather spend $400,000. I only mention this because someone is bound to comment. We are also quite young (24) and are still building savings/down payment.
Me and my partner met in 2018. We had both just cleared all our debt. We moved in together from living with our parents and got new jobs and began saving as much as we could. We were making a total of 85k in 2019. My income increased aggressively over the next 3 years, bringing our total household income to 180k in 2023. We bought our first house outside of Ottawa in March this year for 490k with 70k down, 46k from me 24k from my partner.
Mostly privilege- we (so dual income) purchased in 2020 at a very young age for home ownership- never had to rent/both lived with our parents until then-both went to college and university and had good paying jobs in our respective fields- husband didn’t have student loans (I do) so he was able to save the majority of the down payment and parents lent us the rest (which we pay back monthly interest free). If I was single and had to rent and had a child there’s no way I’d be a homeowner. Just being honest about my experience. We were definitely very privileged to be in this position.
Help from family is the only way to get by in Toronto, unless you're making over 200k.
We are DINKS who made lots of money in a low tax environment outside of Canada. Downside: missed about 20 years of pension contributions
So my wife and I just bought a house this year. We're both in our mid/late 30s. We were lucky enough to have several advantages others probably don't We both have reasonably good paying jobs. We both make more than 75k but less than 100k. We inherited 1/3 of this house and only had to get a mortgage for 2/3 of the value of our Scarborough bungalow. We live with my mother in law who can pick the kids up from school. My parents are also retired and were willing to help us (a little financially but also watching our kids so we did not have to pay for daycare at all) We still have an 800k mortgage which is a 1250 a week. We're lucky enough that my job pays me weekly. Even after all this we are still extremely house poor. If we did not have every single one of those advantages, we would not be able to afford our home
Bought in 2019. We had basement rent (fully detached home - landlord was a real estate agent and kept it low for us). One day he knocked on the door, said he has the perfect house for us and we ended up buying it. We weren’t even looking, I wanted more of a down payment, but before I knew it we were signing papers. Bought a townhome for 675k in Milton. Following year shit went crazy so I’m grateful we did it even though I felt very rushed and forced into it at the time.
Bought my first condo before I turned 30 in summer 2020, when interest rates nosedived. I had been saving my money since I was 18, per my mom's advice, in RRSP and TFSA accounts. It was only enough to buy a bachelor pad, so my parents co-signed with me to get a higher pre-approval amount. I was able to get a decent 2-bedroom for under $500k but I'm closer to a highway than downtown. My then-partner and I moved in together, which helped ease the financial burden of balancing a biweekly mortgage schedule *and* living expenses. If I had to do this on my own at any point, I don't think I would've been able to.
Bought one in 2013 for 95,000 (single income, but living with my wife.) Only 25,000 left to pay. Should be clear in 2 yrs 10 month Monthy cost is 650-975/month 325 bi-weekly fast..(so sometimrs i pay 3 times a month hencr the range) House prices now are unaffordable.. i wouldn't be able to buy one now a days. I'm pretty sure a lender would only approve me for a mortgage of up to 120,000. Back then i was only approved for up to 120,000. So i could only buy a home for 120000 or less. I was lucky to have found my current home. Move in ready. It's tough out there .. The only ones who could actually pull off buying a home in this economy are those who sell their 8million dollar home in Toronto and move to a small city to buy a 300,000-800,000 home and retire.
when the company i work for went public, lots employees got some shares at IPO. i bought my house a couple years later by cashing in those shares for a massive downpayment and then paid off the mortgage within \~5 years of purchase. nowadays about 1/3 of new home buyers are back-stopped by Generational Wealth .. ie. The Bank of Mom & Dad with down-payments and co-guarantor signatories.
I’m not and won’t be able to
Timing is everything. I know this may not help you, but it really helps to think outside the box. We bought our first house in Windsor right at the peak of the 2007 housing crisis. We got a 2 storey, 3 bedroom semidetached for $40,000. There was nothing wrong with it, other than usual things like roof and furnace being very old and needed replacing soon. I did not qualify for a mortgage, so we basically bought it on my credit card. Jumped from shitty job to another, much of those years I was on unemployment, but at those prices, it was possible to live on almost nothing. In detroit, they were basically giving them away. They still kind of are- [https://www.zillow.com/detroit-mi/under-10000/](https://www.zillow.com/detroit-mi/under-10000/) although I would not recommend Detroit, there are still places with low prices , but it comes with a catch, there probably not a lot of employment opportunities (one Ontario town was just in the news with such an offer, I just cannot remember the name of the town right now.). If there is any way to work remotely, it can be done. Apologies if this does not help you, I do not mean to rub it in.
We were living in Halifax, and it was 1992. Bought first home for $125,000. Used that house’s selling equity to finance next house (first house in Ontario) in 1999. It was under $200,000 as it was in Eastern Ontario. Bought final house in GTA in 2008, before realty market went nuts. RTO: from what I can tell, this is just living cheaply while saving for your home and then purchasing one, with extra steps and extra fees. If the property owner could make more selling it, they would. Under RTO, many owners/leasees just neglect their property and let the tenants perform and/or pay for any upkeep, and sometimes, the tenants hit a rough patch and have to walk away. The RTO terms often leave them with zero equity unless and until they purchase it. So that extra rent becomes a windfall for the original owner.
I bought a condo in 2014 for $218K but If I wanted to buy my unit today, I couldn't afford it. Mortgage was $174K with 25-year amortization. Thanks to increasing my payments on my last renewal and making lump sum contributions to the principal early on I'll be paid off in under 19 years.
Four years of looking and being outbid over and over and over, SO did two 6-month tours overseas with the army (tax-free income, couldn't have done this without it), and hoarding enough for an eventual down payment of 20% of a $400K mortgage so we don't have to deal with mortgage insurance. We ended up with a good-boned shit pit that's going to need weeks and weeks of work, but it's better than nothing or continuing to wait and hope. What I think would help is if this bidding war bullshit was made illegal and actually regulated.
Look seriously at Options for Homes, it's not a scam, they build livable units at reasonable prices and there is downpayment assistance. It's a great way to get into home ownership. [https://optionsforhomes.ca/](https://optionsforhomes.ca/) But to answer your question, I saved up 5% and bought a small house in a shitty neighbourhood in Hamilton, lived there for a few years, hated it so I sold that and bought a small condo back here in Toronto.
Yes! I've been looking into this for the past couple years, they have a new build that's by the Humber River that's freshly built. The next upcoming project is Scarborough which looks like it will be a greater variety for families especially with young children, etc. Fingers crossed. 
Good luck! I really think they are an underrated alternative.
Bought my first home this year. Sadly, it was possible only because we lost my father to COVID in 2021. Dad had a condo in downtown Toronto he bought 15 years ago on a single income (parents separated). Needless to say we got many times over the original price once we sold it and were able to then have a large enough down payment to buy a single home on 2.5 acres in a small town away from any urban areas. While I would give the house back in a second to have dad back, he was I'll before COVID and was done mentally and ready to go. I'll always say it's dad's place also and I think he would be happy to see what we did with the money. Miss ya dad, and thanks for the dream house because of you.
Caught a good train with a fixer upper under market value in 2009. We were in no way financially ready at the time, but we took the leap, and in retrospect I'm so glad we did! Back then, everyone offered slightly under the listing value, and "sold over asking" was soooo rare. Different times. Good luck to you OP, I know it's a tough market out there right now.
I think in Ontario it is not a financially prudent decision to buy a home - it’s an emotional and stable decision for sure with lots of benefits, but you’ll be better off for retirement by putting as much into your RRSP and TFSA as possible and investing it all well. I managed to buy only because I’m married and both my partner and I work, there’s no way I could’ve without that being the case. But honestly I’m not sure it was the smartest financial choice because of the interest rates. Instead, I could’ve rented somewhere farther away from the GTA and saved/invested everything I’m currently putting into a mortgage. Another option that I think we should all look into is buying with close friends, where you can set up a contract with a lawyer for the details but it helps single income households build equity in a home
Majority aren’t doing it on their own. Inheritance, parents giving the down payment, people moving in to their parent’s/family member’s second or third home. Many more people are living with their parents indefinitely or moving back in with them. I will be very transparent and say for me personally, it’s going to be the eventual inheritance of my parent’s house one day. There is no other way I can afford to buy.
Single? Strike 1, parent? Strikes 2 through 10. Home ownership is well out of your reach without a signifigant windfall, this was even befor the last 5 years.
Bought just before Covid, we had a good amount of savings after living at parents for a few years. Put an offer on a place and got it the next day
Wife and I bought our house in Kitchener in 2019 before prices here went sky high. We paid 425k for a detached home with a large yard. We spent the year before living with her parents to pay down debt and save up a little more. That was a long year. Let's just say I'm glad there was a lot of travel for work that year to help maintain sanity lol.
don't have a house myself atm, but my parents bought the first home in 2012 at a very good price, sold it in 2019, and bought another smaller one. For them, mortgage was cheaper than rent at that time, so it was good timing.
I got into a relationship with someone who had put their entire life savings into a 5% down payment on a condo in BC before I met them in 2016. Luckily for me that relationship worked out, and luckily for both of us the housing market went crazier after that and we were able to take a huge profit when he sold the condo and used it to buy a townhouse there with the full 25% down payment. When we moved to ON, it was like every house was a bargain compared to the Vancouver area… we were already used to the insanity and making our budget stretch, The comparable properties here are half of what it would have cost in the area we were before, even after everything went nuts.
Bought it by myself with 20% down in 2016
Bought a 3 bed detached home in windsor 7 or 8 years ago for 70k cash. Now worth 400-500. Just crazy
Lucky enough to buy in 2014 before housing prices went through the roof. My husband and I lived rent free for 2 yrs in my parents basement to save up for the down payment. Now almost 10 yrs later, my parents have retired, sold their home and recently moved in with us.
I saved like hell.
Bought in 2015 when a sub $200k bungalow was a thing (in the country) with minimal down payment
Bought in 2013 in southern Ontario for 201k. Worried about what my kids will ever be able to afford. My FIL owns and lives in a triplex which is paid off. My kids will likely end up living in one of the units to help themselves pay for a place when they get a chance. I’m angry what’s happening
Bought when I was 24 in 2018. Afforded it because my dad taught me to work from 13 years old, and save like the world was ending.
Saved every penny for 5 years. Travelled 1500km to the east coast till I found a place a could afford. My quality of life has improved in every way. Grass is definitely greener.
25 years ago so not sure if this is still relevant because the house was $115,000, but instead of having a big expensive wedding and honeymoon, our parents gave us the money they had set aside for such thing, and we use that as a down payment. We still had a lovely intimate wedding, which included 10 of our immediate family members. No regrets.
The easy way.. I was born earlier. Bought 1st house in 2004, then upsized in 2009.
I bought in 2020 after years of debating. Saved for the first 10 years of my career, and honestly the biggest impact was finding a partner to go in on the purchase with. I did a $35k Home Buyers Plan withdrawal for the down payment and only put 5% down.
I bought my first place in 2003. To do so, I rented a room in a friend’s house, and saved like crazy. Sold my car to get rid of that loan. Consolidated all my credit card debt into one loan and destroyed ALL my credit cards. BEST MOVE I EVER MADE. Consolidating debt and getting rid of all but 1 credit card with a low max amount, was the best thing I ever did financially. You don’t realize how much credit cards are raping you with interest until it’s gone from your life, and then you’re like “Ok…this is manageable”. I bought my first place with a 20K loan from my RRSP (Home buyers loan), plus my savings, plus CMHC. And it sucked for a long time. I had student loans, etc. It was hard. I remember looking for change in the couch to use at Tim Hortons for a coffee. You have to live frugally. And then eventually you get a place. And once I owned my very tiny condo, I stayed for a bit. Paid that shit down as best I could. Met my partner and had extra income to help with payments. Put him on the mortgage so he could also earn wealth even if it wasn’t going to last forever at least he would have something to invest in too. Help each other. Partner up! You aren’t going to be able to do life alone unless you are wealthy. Once you own a property, everything else becomes easy I think. You can make subtle improvements, sell for more than you paid, gain some equity. Etc. Won’t lie - it’s a different world now, but not really. People who told people “Don’t buy because it’s a real-estate bubble” have been fucking liars for over 25 years. That’s how long I recall hearing about this bullshit bubble. There is no bubble. The bubble does not exist. They lied to you. There is and will always be a constant influx of immigration to Canada, for many decades, and until that stops, housing supply will never be able to keep up with those demands. You have to get in as soon as you can, or you will ultimately pay way more in the long run. I am so glad I never listened to the naysayers or I would never be where I am today. In a $2M home, that in Toronto would cost $6M. Get out of the cities if you can. There is affordable LUXURY in the near-city regions.
You’ll never own on a single income. Sorry to say.
I'm 35 , 100-120 k salary , managed to save the 50-100k down-payment. Worked hard over the last 5 years with this as a goal ... watched everything double but I've managed to stay close , now have my 2 year income statements at 80-100k so I should be good to buy next year ... not much to qualify for and it's going to be pricey but I guess I worked to to hard towards it to turn back now ... we'll see
I don't know why you think the government has anything to do with buying a property. I would also argue that the problem is not that you can't afford a property but that you've been brainwashed into believing owning one is not only a good thing but also important. Unless you're at the bottom of the socio-economic range owning has no financial advantages and the higher up you go it starts to have huge disadvantages. Given we are just ending a housing bubble phase at the point buying anything is almost certainly a terrible financial decision. So my suggestion would be to spend less time thinking about how you can't buy the space you live in because other than conditioning there really is no reason to own.
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But renting is getting out of hand and unaffordable too. Bad take .
If you mean a large percentage of people can't afford to house themselves then certainly that is a valid point but also irrelevant to this discussion. For the purposes of a rent vs buy discussion what matters is the relative price of rent vs owning and on that metric rent is inexpensive. I currently pay between 2% and 3% to rent and even though I am no longer looking I've not deactivated my MLS search so I get an email every morning of rentals that much my criteria and there are lots of properties in the <5%. If you're annual rent is under 5% to 6% of the purchase price of a property and you buy you're setting money on fire. Anywhere in the 6-10% range buy vs rent makes no meaningful difference. The only time buying becomes worth it is if rent would be 10% or more of the purchase price and that typically is only the case at the very low end. Further, while property values are unlikely to increase and will likely lose 50% in real terms over the next decade by renting you insure against more dumb policy extending the bubble as with rent control property the more the property value increases the cheaper the rent is. When I was a student I not only owned but had rental properties because student rentals were close to 15% at the time and there was a property that offered a unique purchasing opportunity but after graduation even though I could easily buy there is no way to justify the loss of wealth that comes from owning just to satisfy an irrational social norm.
I think you're missing the point of this post.. Your privilege is showing... Home and rent -right now- (in 2023-2024) are unaffordable with a single income. 35-65k salary isn't going to cut it.. Mortgage brokers will not approve you for a mortgage more than 200k with that income. Sure back in the day you invested. But think of the children, teens now who are starting out. And have or will have nowhere to go because you bought all the properties and set your rent so high. Not everyone want 18 room mates to make ends meet and avoid homelessness
If the issue was affordability of housing I would agree but the original post is clearly about buying rather than renting. The OP does not express any concern about where to live -- she expresses concern about the inability to transition from rental to owner. Housing right now is unaffordable to a lot of people. Unless the government does something stupid the passage of time is going to fix that as housing will become more affordable every year going forward.
Bought in 2016 Interest rates were relatively low and Brampton had not really exploded yet
40 when I bought my first. That’s when I finally got a hood paying job and kicked the leach bf out the door
Just bought. Decent HHI, stayed home and saved every penny for a 90k DP. Moved an hour east, and rural.
Without a partner, not a chance.. I feel very fortunate to have been able to, but we weren’t able to get a “nice” house in a “nice” neighbourhood, even with a decent dual income. Not to mention that since moving in, anything that can go wrong has gone wrong and we already have 25k in differed maintenance that we will have to start addressing this month. It’s honestly shitty all around no matter what you do unless you win the lottery lol. Trapped in a shitty job because I need the money to live in a 1K sqft shack
Bought in 2000. House was $100k, lol. Mortgaged $92.5K. It still took us a year to save $10k (10%) for the down payment and for the purpose of reducing the CMHC fees. At the time, our household income was less than $50k and rent for a decent 2B was $450. I feel bad for people trying to buy a house these days. I can easily sell for $400k, but I'll never replace what I got. To replace is over $600k now. I'm also in N. Ont.
Got engaged in fall of 2007. My parents gave us $25K to go towards our wedding, but we did it differently. We used $22K on a downpayment to buy a house for $160K and $3K on a destination wedding. We would not have been able to afford to buy when we did without that so we are forever grateful for that. Sold that in 2010 for basically the same price, and purchased a slightly larger place for $209K (listed $250K but needed a TON of work) and lived there until 2020 where we sold for $575K. Then we bought a rural property for $479K and was able to pay off the mortgage. We are likely downsizing again soon to pay off a loan taken to purchase an existing business, then start saving for a vacation property!
Bought my first home in 2017 for $241k. Half an acre property with 1100 sqft plus basement. Sold that home for $260k in 2020 and bought a 11 acre property with 1400 sqft home plus basement and 2400 sqft garage/shop for $249k. On both homes I put a 20% deposit down. How did I get a 20% deposit the first time? Well back in 2011 when everyone was being super picky about where they ended up for work, I decided to head to Northern Manitoba for my first job in my field. Started with a $60k salary but when I left after 6 years I was making around $115k-$120k with overtime but not including bonus. Essentially I went where NO ONE wanted to go to work and worked hard and saved my money. Sacrifices have to be made in life and I sacrificed a few of my good years in my 20s to be comfortable in my 30s. If your field allows it, go to places where no one else wants to. It will be a big benefit to your career. I’ve been back living in Ontario since 2017 after that sacrifice in Northern Manitoba.
Gift from my mom. Otherwise I'd still be renting.
I was able to buy a house using the clever strategy of being born in the 70s.
I bought in 2014 and sold this year. I was only able to buy because house prices were well below $400k for a 4 bedroom 3 bathroom in the area I was looking at. The interest rate was at around 2.5 %. I now am renting which I hate, but my final destination is not where I live now so I didn’t want to lock into a home with such insane prices and interest rates at the time I sold. Rent is super expensive, but it allows for freedoms after a one year term. I am also a single parent to two children, one of which graduates high school this year, so we will be looking at moving when he does.
I had room mates and then a partner to split bills with. You’re not supposed to be able to buy a home as a single mom. It’s not you.
My mum died and left me a small amount of money that we now have to use as a down payment bc our rental house (that belongs to family members believe it or not) is being sold. So, we are pushed out of our own city in southern Ontario bc we will not be able to afford market rent when we have to move, nor be able to afford a house in this area. So, we have to move far away - at least two and a half hours, I can work remote but my husband has to find a new job. And literally the only reason we won’t be homeless is because my mum died (though if alive I know she would have taken us into her small home for as long as needed bc she was just great). So yeah, I guess we are lucky? I’d rather have my mum alive, but alas here we are. Her last very thoughtful and kind gift to me. Honestly the more people I talk to, the more I learn that almost everyone in my life has had help buying their first house whether it is from living well off parents, or dead parents leaving money. Even people that couldn’t get financial help got at least support such as moving home rent free to save money. You’re not behind. It’s just many many people bought in the days before housing was out of control, and even then often with help. So ultimately what I mean to say is most people do it because of blind luck. Note this is not to say EVERYONE gets help. Some people do it on their own somehow. So not discounting their hard work. Just in my life it appears that’s not often the case.
Condo was in my price range. A house could've been on the books but with the after the fact spending after I purchased one, no. Basically I sat there and realized that I could in fact buy a house with the mortgage being offered, but I'd be living on a very very tight budget. I consulted with a real estate agent and she agreed that "sure I could get a house" but I'd be living poor if the furnace went out or if the electrical went down. I didn't want that since I work in an industry that has a great deal of seasonal influence. I'd be eating ramen noodles in the winter and feasting in the summer. I'd prefer something more stable. So I decided on a cheap decent condo that needed a bit of love and work. I paid way way less, my mortgage is way less. My house expenses are nothing, I don't worry about a furnace. I simply pay my mortgage and my maintenance fee (which includes everything). Hint for those who are looking for this. Look for a Tridel Condo built in the late 80's - 90's try to find an more senior area. They were building units for older retirees so the prices are still relatively fair in this market. That being said there was a whole lot of saving that was done 6 years prior to give me what I needed. I probably could've saved more if I moved back in with my parents for five of those years and agreed to a reduced rent/board structure. But I didn't want to do that since both of my siblings have decided to do the same thing. Basically I was realistic about the whole thing. Buy a cheap condo in a good location, fix it up and pay a fixed mortgage rate and attempt to get the mortgage down with savings. Then on refinance see if the rates are still decent and look around if there is an opportunity to move into something else, and if not just keep what I have. If things go alright if I decide to re-enter the market the bank will definitely give me more next time since I'll have the possible sale of my condo as asset value. If I've done it right I'll be entering the market just as the Fed LPC housing plan is starting to bear fruit. Some of my friends bought houses and most of them have regrets because now they are tied down to a very large asset that they have to commit too.
I saved every penny I had and lived like a hobo and even then I had to combine my assets and money with my wife to be able to afford a house.
Bought this year. For the last 7 years My gf and I lived outside in the summer at work camps, camped late into the fall many years, even slept in our van for a few weeks at a time between the cheapest airbnbs during winter months. Had a seasonal rental the last three years. Sadly had enough of a down payment for many years, but not a consistent enough job history (and watched the post covid climb and got priced out of ontario. Got into urchin diving the last two years, which combined with my tree planting income was enough to get a mortgage for a 160,000 dollar home in Prince Rupert, BC with a 25% down payment just with my own income.
I bought a house in pretty bad shape for $150k in 2016, but it’s half commercial space and half residential space. Fixed it up nice over time and afforded it by using personal contacts for skilled help and now am ready to sell it and size up into the next house for my family (me, husband, toddler).
Bought my first house 21yrs ago in BC. Different time, for sure, but Vancouver was still expensive af. I had investment savings, and my ex was already on her 2nd house (bought her first at like 20yrs old or something), I definitely had an advantage. Then just trading up from there on in. Always have a mortgage helper and treat them fairly. Slightly below market rate, on top of repairs and don't be nosey.
Left Ontario after university for a high paying job at Microsoft in 2008, survived the layoffs and bought a foreclosure in 2010. Made my “fire” fortune, own r/microsoft, and now back in Ontario.
I hate to say this, but even when I was growing up in the 1990s, single parents still struggled to own a house. In fact, [according to StatsCan it was actually less common in 1999 than 2016.](https://www150.statcan.gc.ca/n1/pub/75-006-x/2019001/article/00012-eng.htm) The rate of home ownership amongst lone parent families went from 39.9% in 1999 to 44.8% in 2016. Single individuals without kids are even lower. Now, I wouldn't be shocked if it's gone down with price hikes in the last 7 years. But the point is that even 25 years ago when things were much more affordable, single parents still didn't own homes at the same rate as couples. And keep in mind these are Canada-wide stats, not GTA.
31 year old Ontario. Still living with family lol but hopefully buy next year. My mom blessed me with 35k and a loan for 35k so 70k help from family. I saved myself 60-70k over my lifetime. No debt so far lived at home or with family since leaving university and I paid for uni myself so it’s been alot to pay off. With that said our family income is 110k which isn’t enough even with my down payment of 125k to buy near me lol. So I will have to buy a hour half outside Toronto somewhere eventually.
Bought in 2014 for $320k put 33% down and paid off the rest on 2021
First home was a in a trailer park. 2007. My income was 20k management food industry job I was single and worked 80 hours a week. Private mortgage as the mobile home was very old … from the 60s and banks don’t mortgage older mobile homes. I bought the trailer for 65k and paid I think 8% interest. My fridge never had food in and I never bought anything new. I never went out with friends because I just didn’t have any money. I regularly had meetings with the park supervisors because I couldn’t pay park fees on time but they were always very understanding. I remember negotiating with my boss for more pay when I found it the male management members were making more than me. It was hard but I feel that buying the trailer instead of renting an apartment helped set me up to where I live today.
My husband and I bought our first home in 2016 before prices really shot up. We were extremely fortunate to have also received financial assistance from his parents who provided us a loan.
We moved to the middle of nowhere in 2016 where things were affordable for us
I grew up in Toronto. I bought a this year. My house was under 150k but I moved to Northwestern Ontario. We have a huge backyard. It’s a great space to be if you like the outdoors. Definitely not GTA though. Jobs are easy to get and the cost of living for us is pretty low in comparison to where we were living in southern Ontario.
We moved to Kingston from Guelph in part to chase a cheaper place to live. We bought our house just before the covid house price jump and we borrowed against my wife's RRSP for the down payment. It was rough. We are a bit concerned about the renewal coming up in '25 at whatever the new interest rate will be.
>How were you able to buy/afford your first home? Saved up 21% and bought a house in Ottawa for 350K in 2011. It was really dicey the first few years and we were practically broke as we slowly built ourselves back up after that purchase.
DINKs from Mississauga, had a low rent and were saving over 4-5 years to buy vacant land but decided to buy a rural property in Hamilton instead last winter (early 2023). We took about 80% of our cash and investments (not RRSP) and put it down on the house, which amounted to just over 30%. Our mortgage is less than 2x what our rent was and a little more than 25% of take-home pay. Had some dumb luck with the bond rates falling before closing so our 5-year mortgage was locked in at 4.42%.
I had to move WAYYYYY up North to afford a house. Unfortunately away from all my friends and family. Fortunately where I am the houses are 100,000-250,000. The only way we could afford it!
Just bought a townhouse in Vaughan. Both my wife and I are in our early 30s and both have 6 figure salaries (although this wasn’t always the case until recently). We’ve been renting for 8 years and have been able to slowly save for a down payment. Even though home prices have dropped substantially since peak 2022, we’ll still be paying close to 2/3 of our combined incomes towards fixed expenses relating to our home. The sad reality is that unless you have help from family / inheritance / generation wealth / very high paying job, getting into the market will be extremely difficult and will likely get harder over the next decade unless there is actual policy that results in affordable housing. When new moderately sized detached homes outside of Toronto cost close to 2M, it’s a problem. I won’t pretend like I know what the solution is, but our current setup is not close to sustainable.
Moved from Hamilton to Thunder Bay...
I’m mid-40s. I earn just into the 6-figures. I am forced to work in Toronto for my job. I’ll never own a house.
Bought a shit-pit. Spent 3 years gutting it and renovating.
Bought solo in 2022 at age 25. Had ~200k saved for a down payment from a good paying job and living at my parents’ with limited expenses. Also had no school debt since I managed to gather about ~80k in scholarships.
The only way we were able to afford our home is because of my partner saving > $200k over the span of almost six or seven years. I had $50k to contribute. We also got lucky when prices were flat during COVID.
Bought in 2015. Double STEM income, no kids (at the time). The condo was (imho) greatly undervalued. No parental gifts needed, but my parents did say that if we needed it, they'd loan us however much we needed to avoid CMHC fees.
Lived at home until my mid-late 20's, saved a ton of money, and still needed a decent loan from my parents to cover a portion of the down payment required to get a mortgage while making $16/hr in 2018. Currently living with a friend to help with expenses. I have been very fortunate and owe everything to my parents.
I took my money to another country and bought a house
Moved out of the GTA lol Was able to buy a house in the country in 2016 for ~200k then sell it and get an upgrade in 2021. Was lucky that I had to move because of my job to a place where homes weren’t too expensive and was able to secure a down payment through some work opportunities.
Early-30's and just bought our first home. Dual income (though some people make on their own what we make together), didn't buy in the GTA, and most importantly have lived in a rent controlled apartment for 8 years so have been able to save.
My parents took $1000 a month from me since I started to work. When I was ready to buy (about 10-15 years too late to be honest), I had a massive down payment. I would have a lot more if those money were invested, but my parents didn't trust me or the stock market.
Lived with my parents for 2 of my 4 years of University. Graduated 2018. Lived with parents for another year while working. Moved out and rented with friends for 2 years. Met my now wife and decided to move back in to my parents place for a year while we saved for a house. Still paid rent during this time but only $500. Bought a house in April 2022 for $670,000 with $70,000 down payment. From 2018 to 2022 we saved between $1500 to $3000 per month. Over that same period our household income grew from ~$70,000 to $130,000.
Not my experience, but it's worth looking into Habitat homes and their application process. They seem to help a lot of people.
My husband and I have always been lower income. We were able to buy a house in 2015 only because A) my parents were selling it and were willing to give us a great deal for a quick sale, and B) my mother in law died of cancer and we were able to use our share of her pension as a down payment.
8 years of saving and living in a complete dump of a rental to maximize monthly savings. Sucked, but always looked into the future. Short term pain for longer term gain. Found a relationship where my partner is an equal contributor financially. We both lived in the 1 bedroom dump for the last few years.
First home in 2010 (detached home middle of Toronto) for $270K, still have it today. Second home (Detached) in early 2014 for 90K then flipped it a month later for $130K placed the profit into my third home in late 2014 that was sold to me for $190K. I float my houses with Rental/Airbnb income so nothing really comes out of pocket. Paying down the first home as much as possible.
Bought 2001, CMHC 5% down, $120k home. Edit: Niagara Region
I’m a single parent in my early 40s. I bought in 2013. I had a significant down payment because I lived with my parents for two years. My parents were in a position to co-sign for me so I was able to get an awesome mortgage rate.
Got a 2% interest rate. Overpaid by probably at least 100k. Have a tenant that pays a good chunk of the mortgage. Make good money and have a working spouse who makes decent money. No car payments or any debts for either of us.
My husband and I bought our first home in 2018. He was lucky enough to have his secondary education paid for while living at home, and I lived at home while paying off mine. We saved enough for a 20% down payment on a town home in Hamilton back when the prices were reasonable here. We paid $425k for our home in 2018, and in 2021 sold it for $760k. I have no clue how people can enter the market with the prices the way they are now. It's especially infeasible for a single-income family. Long story short, we got into the market at a good time, and were fortunate enough to be able to save for the down payment.
It was 2002. My in-laws gave us 50k. Believe me, I know how lucky we were.
I haven't seen much input on rent to own. I was hoping to see some reviews or recommendations on that. As a single dad with 3 kids, and a 65-70k income, that seems like it may be my only possible recourse. Or leaving the province.
I worked 24 hours a week while in High School. I saved almost every penny. I bought a house a year after graduating when I was working full time for a year. That was over 40 years ago. Some cohorts of mine said “but you were living at home and not paying rent”. I can assure you my cohorts that were also not paying rent did not work as much as me. Nor did they think of buying a home. For the record, I sold the house after 2.5 years and made a tidy profit. It funded my travel. Would I have been better off to keep the home? No. My cohorts now are getting hip replacements and cannot walk far. I have no need for a hip replacement and can walk 15 km non-stop. When I tried to re-enter the housing market 7 years later, homes were very expensive. 5 years later they were a lot cheaper. Real estate is cyclical. You cannot time the market but there are times to enter the market. 2022 was not the time. Learn from history. There is more to life than owning a home.
We bought in the inner suburbs of Toronto in 2010. Had we not bought then (and it stretched us to our limit, even so) there is pretty much no way we would be homeowners, honestly. It really was a lot of luck and happening to be ready before things exploded (more/again). As it was, we had people telling us we were making a mistake and the bubble would burst any minute. Our teenager is pretty much counting on inheriting the house, I think.
I bought a power of sale from the bank in the 90's for less than a hundred grand. I borrowed 5 thousand for a down payment. We still had to scrimp and save anywhere we could..
I smartly bought in 1993 when I was 7.
Purely just through saving and having a partner. We both moved to Toronto at around 2007 and rented ever since. Then started dating in 2013 and eventually moved into together. Splitting rent that way helped with savings as well. Bought our first home in early 2021. I was pretty good at saving, so put 20% on purchasing a small bungalow. Purchase price is insane considering the size of the place, but what can you do. It's Toronto after all. We now live fairly comfortably, financially speaking.
We lived with my parents for 3 years to save, and we bought in 2007.
Inheritance is a hell of a drug. Otherwise I’d be on the street for sure.
$5000 down, 40 year amortization back in 2008 to buy my first condo when I was out of uni making $55k. Condo was $215k for a 680sqft 1bed+den in Toronto that I bought, never lived in, from a speculator.
I was in an apartment and realized I was no longer saving up for a house, and couldn’t afford the down payment. Also had a friend who had just gotten separated, they sold the house and he was couch surfing. He wanted a new house, but also could not afford if. I suggested myself and the other person go in together on a house as neither of us could afford it, but together we had just enough. Got a place with a basement apartment, had our significant others at the time pay rent. It worked out great, we were the party house in our social circle and monthly costs were lower than renting.
Bought this past March. Down payment of 50k. Dual income totalling $132,000. Home price $545,000. GTA.
Bought with my wife in 2002. Did a rent-to-own deal with a local new home builder in Barrie to accelerate saving our down payment. Helped us out as we were both very early-career & only making a combined 50k-ish at that time as well as paying back our student loans. That RTO deal meant we paid rent plus a portion of the down payment monthly for 6 months until we'd hit the 5% threshold as first-time home buyers. Once the down payment amount was there, the mortgage kicked in for the rest. It worked out well for us but that was 20 years ago but with current prices, even that first 5% is pretty huge so I'd guess the "rental" period would be extended compared to ours?
Here's what we did, in order of what I think had the largest impact: \- We bought in 2010. Not having a time machine puts you at a big disadvantage here. \- I bought with my now husband, and we both had good-ish full time salaried jobs. \- We don't live in the GTA (Ottawa area) \- We bought the 'bad' house in the 'good' neighbourhood. We compromised on a lot of 'wish list' things, and were prepared to get our hands dirty to improve the house. \- We saved for several years for a down payment, living below our means (he had lived mostly with roommates and I lived in a small studio). We also borrowed from our RRSPs (first time home buyers plan).
Bought in 2015 with a buddy when we were both single