#Home Buying Guide

House keys and a plain envelope on the porch railing of an Ontario brick home in autumn.

Closing Costs in Ontario: $23,701 on a $900,000 Home

A $900,000 Ontario purchase closes with about $23,701 due on top of the price, and about $38,292 inside Toronto. Every line itemised, with the source for each figure and which ones you can avoid.

Hamidreza EtebarianSeptember 28, 2026

View from a furnished Toronto condo living room looking out at nearby condo towers

Toronto Condo Fees: What a Condo Costs Every Month

A Toronto condo's asking price is only half of what it costs. Here is what the maintenance fee pays for, what pushes a building to the top of the fee range, and how property tax and insurance add up to a real monthly number.

Hamidreza EtebarianSeptember 25, 2026

Empty brick detached house with drawn curtains on an Ontario street in late autumn.

Power of Sale in Ontario: How It Works and What Buyers Risk

Ontario power of sale runs on notice periods, not court hearings: 15 days of default, then 35 days after notice. Here is what the Mortgages Act requires, what the lender owes the borrower, and what a buyer takes on.

Hamidreza EtebarianSeptember 23, 2026

Row of brick semi detached houses on a Toronto street in autumn.

Toronto Land Transfer Tax: What Buyers Actually Pay

Buy in the City of Toronto and you pay land transfer tax twice, once to Ontario and once to the city. Here is the bracket math at real Toronto asking prices, plus both first-time buyer rebates.

Hamidreza EtebarianSeptember 18, 2026

Toronto condo building with unlit upper floor units on an overcast day.

Toronto Vacant Home Tax: Rules, Exemptions and Buyer Risk

Toronto charges 3% of assessed value on homes left empty six months or more, and every owner must declare each year. Here are the rules, the exemptions, and what a buyer inherits at closing.

Hamidreza EtebarianSeptember 16, 2026

Burnaby condo towers Metrotown Metro Vancouver BC.

Burnaby Condo Towers: What Each Building Actually Costs

Burnaby's 1,097 active condos run from $689 to $986 per square foot by area, and two homes in one tower can be 75 percent apart. The breakdown by neighbourhood and by building.

Hamidreza EtebarianSeptember 9, 2026

Bare land strata community small lot homes Fraser Valley British Columbia.

Bare Land Strata in BC: What You Own and What You Pay For

In a bare land strata you own the lot, not a box of air inside a building. That one difference changes your title, your property tax bill, and what the strata fee actually buys.

Hamidreza EtebarianSeptember 4, 2026

Moving to BC from Alberta or Ontario, Metro Vancouver street.

Moving to BC from Alberta or Ontario: What Buyers Should Know

Canadians moving from Calgary or Toronto are not foreign buyers, and the taxes that apply are not the ones most people worry about. Here is what actually changes when you buy in BC.

Hamidreza EtebarianSeptember 2, 2026

BC tenancy agreement rental apartment building New Westminster British Columbia

BC Tenancy Agreement and Rent Rules 2026

Every BC tenancy runs on the same standard terms whether or not anyone signs a form. Here is what the RTB-1 binds both sides to, what deposits are legal, and how the 2026 rent increase cap works.

Hamidreza EtebarianAugust 28, 2026

A row of modern townhouses in a Fraser Valley suburb of British Columbia on an overcast summer afternoon.

Best Metro Vancouver Suburbs Under $900K in 2026

Vancouver West has 900 listings under $900,000 and not one detached house. Mission has 221 and 88 are detached. Same budget, a completely different home, across 25 regions.

Hamidreza EtebarianAugust 27, 2026

An open house sign on the sidewalk outside a modern West Coast style home in a Metro Vancouver suburb as two visitors walk up the front path.

Open Houses in Metro Vancouver: How to Use Them

Only 8% of active BC listings hold an open house. What that scarcity tells you, when the sessions actually run, and what to check in the twenty minutes you are inside.

Hamidreza EtebarianAugust 24, 2026

A detached family home in Tsawwassen British Columbia at golden hour with Delta farmland and Boundary Bay in the distance.

Tsawwassen and Ladner Real Estate 2026: Prices and Best Areas

Ladner detached homes sold in a median 14 days, Tsawwassen detached in 27. Two neighbouring South Delta communities with near-identical asking prices and very different behaviour.

Hamidreza EtebarianAugust 20, 2026