THE TRUTH ABOUT DOWNSIZING TO A TORONTO CONDO

What You Need To Know About Moving To Downtown Before You Sell Your House

As fabulous as it is to live in a Toronto condo, not having to worry about snow shovelling or cleaning eaves-troughs, here are some things to consider before you ditch the house in Lawrence Park or North Toronto:

Larger units come with larger price tags.
If you are looking for a Toronto condo that has a similar amount of square feet as your current home that will push you into the Luxury Condo Building category. This translates into a lateral or even an upsize move, as the purchase price of your Toronto luxury condo will likely cost the same or more than the value of your home. 

Maybe you don’t need as much space as you think you do.
How many days will you be living in your Toronto condo? If you spend summers at your cottage and go to Florida for the winter, it may work out to only 4 months of the year that you will actually be in Toronto. However, you'll still be paying monthly maintenance fees on the unit whether you are in town or not.

You may want to consider getting a smaller unit or a pied-a-terre in Toronto.
Unlike in your house, you will probably do more entertaining and socializing outside of your condo taking advantage of the city's restaurants and cultural activities.

If you don’t want to skimp on space then older condo buildings in Toronto may be an option for you.
 Older condo buildings have larger suites that are more reasonably priced. However, the trade-off is that they also have higher monthly maintenance fees. A rule of thumb in condo pricing is that the cheaper the asking price of a unit, the higher the monthly maintenance fees are in the building.

Be prepared to buy new furniture.
Your furniture from your house is not all going to fit in your condo – in fact it probably won’t even suit it. But getting rid of stuff is not a bad thing. Look at it as part of embracing the turnkey, carefree condo lifestyle.

The condo building is the community.
Each condominium building has its own unique community made up of its residents. You are in much closer proximity to your neighbours than you would be living in a house. Whether you are riding the elevator together or meeting in the mailroom, you are sharing more public spaces with other residents.
 
That’s why its important to find a condo building that has a community that fits your lifestyle, a building where you can see yourself making friends with your fellow residents. 

Retaining an expert real estate agent with many years experience in Toronto condo sales can help you find the right condo building that fits your lifestyle and also ensures that you will make a well informed purchase that will appreciate over time.  Contact Victoria

Victoria Boscariol is a real estate agent in Toronto Canada with Chestnut Park Real Estate Limited Brokerage. With over 25 years experience, Victoria has been helping people successfully buy and sell condos and houses in Yorkville and downtown Toronto.  As one of Toronto's top luxury real estate agents, Victoria has represented both Buyers and Sellers in many of the best luxury condo buildings in Toronto including: The Four Seasons Private Residences, 1 St Thomas, 1 Bedford Rd, The Shangri-La, The St. Regis and The Ritz Carlton.