Name one thing Canadians love to gripe about (aside from the weather). You got it !!.... taxes. Compared to our US neighbours , we pay a premium in taxes, however paying an additional 13% on a T-shirt is nothing like taxes in Real Estate. In every Real Estate transaction , the Buyer is required to pay Land Transfer Tax, which in Ontario can be up to 2% for any property that contains one or two single family residences above $400,000. So you can imagine how Torontonians felt in 2008 when the city of Toronto Council approved a new Municipal Land Transfer Tax that is be applied to purchases on all properties in the city of Toronto in addition to the Province's Land Transfer Tax. (commonly referred to as Double Land Transfer tax) . Initially ... Read More

Despite the pessimistic prophecies of experts and analysts the Toronto housing market has continued its booming success past the expectations of skeptics. In October Toronto homes hit a pinnacle value of $577,936; tens of thousands more than where the average stood a year ago. With a more optimistic outlook compared to most, the Canadian Mortgage and Housing Corporation (CMHC) projects that this boom can be expected to continue into Toronto’s foreseeable future. The past year has been one of the strongest years for the booming housing market since 2011. The Toronto Real Estate Board (TREB) reported that housing prices climbed 8.4 per cent on average throughout 2014; even sales were 6.6 per cent higher than they were in 2013. Not ... Read More

While the Toronto real estate carries on its ever-increasing value through limited supply and plentiful demand, future homeowners are not the only players in today’s market having trouble finding economically friendly properties. Infill developers known as ‘flippers,’ are challenged with the same issue finding it difficult to turn a decent profit in the current trend of inflated prices. The increased prices are beyond just the effects of supply and demand; they are driven past their original value through the mass of naïve homebuyers and the bidding wars they bring to the Toronto housing market. In Toronto the average selling price for a home has increased by more than $100,000 in the course of a short three years, the mean price for homes ... Read More

In the quiet, delicate environment of yuppie neighbourhood floors, nine-to-five puts Monday to rest in after-work rituals of cooking and relaxation. An average Monday at King West Condos in Liberty Village only to be disrupted by a shaking explosion caused by a resident cooking a different illicit serving. In the pinnacle hallways of urban living, it can be hard to imagine that a meth lab operated behind one of those doors. On November 17th around 6:30pm an explosive blast occurred in the sixth floor condominium forcing the evacuation of many of the building residents into the early Toronto winter at 85 East Liberty Street. Investigators with the Toronto Police confirmed Tuesday that they believe the explosion was caused by a drug lab in ... Read More

While the Toronto housing ecosystem continues its growth to the skyline, today’s modern condos are in a state of decay towards tomorrow’s slums. In Toronto there are currently more than 100,000 condominiums under-construction, with many more planned for the future. The driving force behind the Toronto condo boom is that the prices of condos are up 25.7 per cent, an increase that developers and investors are eager to cash in on. The problem is that these buildings and condos are poorly constructed, with a decaying future of potential problems. With the mass amount of units, a significant pricing spike, a profit driven development and weak building code enforcement, the nature of the Toronto condominium developments leaves residents worrying ... Read More