Monday, March 28, 2011

Back after a long break!

After a whirlwind condo purchase -- likely just a regular run-of-the-mill transaction, but to a first timer it seemed intense -- I'm back to blogging.

Here are the highlights of my purchase:
- $175,000
- Downpayment of $17,500
- Mortgage of $160,650 (Principle + Mortgage Insurance + PST)
- Bi-weekly mortgage payments of $351.88

So, did I get a good deal?
According to The Red Pin the average price per square foot for a condo in the GTA is $530.  Toronto Real Estate Journal reports the average price in the GTA to be $547/sq ft.

What I paid: $469.17/square foot.

The verdict: Since my building is a "no frills" type of condo (i.e. no fitness centre, pool, tennis, doorman), and I'm located in an up-and-coming neighbourhood I believe that I purchased for a good price.  It is very rare to find a loft for under $200,000 -- believe me, I've scoured realtor.ca and loft websites!  For me, the loft is perfect; it's easy to manage financially, it's 2 blocks from a subway station, a 10-min walk to a large grocery store (a No Frills to boot), and it has all the character that I was looking for in a condo.

3 comments:

  1. Welcome back! I had wondered where you went. congrats on the condo purchase.

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  2. wow no kidding, I've been drooling over the lofts in my area (e.g. Tip Top Tailors, Toyfactory, Chocolate factory) and none of them go for under 450k! Welcome back, looking forward to more updates from you!

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  3. Congrats! Glad to see you back! :)

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