The True Cost of Homeownership: What You Pay Beyond the Mortgage When many new Canadian homebuyers calculate whether they can afford a new home, they focus almost exclusively on one number: the monthly mortgage payment. It's the figure lenders use for the mortgage stress test, the number real estate agents discuss during showings, and the benchmark buyers use to determine their budget. However, the mortgage is only the starting line. Homeowners also pay for property taxes,... [read more]

How to Spot Real Estate Scams (and Protect Your Investment) Real estate scams are targeting more victims than ever before, and they're becoming increasingly sophisticated. Canadians reported losing $638 million to fraud in 2024, with authorities warning that only 5–10% of incidents are reported at all¹. Even more concerning, Canadian lawyers, title insurers and regulators have flagged a rise in identity-based title and mortgage fraud during real estate closings, where... [read more]

GTA Homes Sales Tick Up in September 2025 while Real Estate Prices Decline Amongst Interest Rate Cut September home sales increased in the Greater Toronto Area (GTA) compared to a year earlier, as more homebuyers sought to take advantage of more affordable monthly mortgage payments. Buyers continued to respond to substantial choice in the marketplace by negotiating the average selling price downward. “The Bank of Canada’s September interest rate cut was welcome news for... [read more]

Real Estate Sales and Prices drop while Property Listings Increase in August 2025   August home sales reported by the Toronto Regional Real Estate Board (TRREB) were up on a year-over-year basis. Over the same period, homebuyers benefitted from an even larger increase in the inventory of listings. Average selling prices continued to be negotiated downward due to the elevated choice across market segments. “Compared to last year, we have seen a modest increase in home... [read more]

National and Toronto Real Estate Market Update for 2025 The chill in Canada's housing market could be thawing sooner than expected.  Interest rates are dropping.1 Pent-up demand is building.2 Sales are starting to heat up.3 And a potentially electrifying set of mortgage rules just went into effect, making it easier than it 's been in years for first-time buyers with smaller down payments to qualify for a higher priced home.4 As a result, some experts now project that... [read more]