As a Twenty-Something, What Sacrifices are you willing to Make to own Real Estate in Peterborough– a Discussion

Toronto’s housing market is one of the most competitive in the world. For twenty-somethings, millennials, and newcomers to the city, having enough to buy one’s own possible. Though the odds may be against the average Canadian in Toronto, if one’s willing to sacrifice, dig into opportunity when it comes – and let’s not forget with a little luck – almost anyone can build up enough money to enter the real estate market in Peterborough, Toronto not so easy!!!

Set your budget

Let’s be clear in saying that any plan to own real estate in Toronto, Peterborough, or any of the other ultra-competitive markets needs to be centered on sacrifice. The best place to start is to draw together a budget. Identify how much money you expect to be coming in and how much of it you want to go out. Believe it or not, there are some twenty-somethings in Toronto who own their own condo, semi-detached, or even detached home. The thing that nearly all have in common is that they have a clearly indicated monthly budget. At minimum, it gets all your numbers down on the page and provides something to start with.

Control your expenses

Next, there’s the sacrifice. For some, this has meant couponing and going out only on discount nights at select businesses. Downsizing to the most basic rent situation, not buying a car, limiting vacations to one or none, and keeping expenses low is key. For twenty-somethings lucky enough to have family in Toronto, staying with parents, grandparents, or close family for significantly reduced rent or nothing is also a common theme among this group of homeowners.

Increase your income

Now, despite all the ways in which one can cut down on expenses, to be able to save enough for the down payment and then to afford the monthly mortgage cost in Toronto, this still requires one to have a pretty sizeable amount coming in. For Canadians working on minimum wage, it’s unlikely they will ever afford owning a home in Toronto at such an early age. For the twenty-somethings who have bought Toronto or Peterborough homes in the past few years, they’ve done so on usually combined household incomes of $125,000 and above. For as much sacrificing as one can make, buying real estate, qualifying for a mortgage, and being able to save all requires a healthy annual income of at least $100,000 or more.

Look for rentable space

The last thing we want to mention is to keep note of what it is you’re looking for in a Toronto home. For example, if your home has a basement to rent out, that income could take a sizeable chunk out of your mortgage payments. For most of the twenty-somethings who own homes in Toronto, they’re able to afford their monthly expenses in part because of the rent income they have.

The truth about buying real estate for anyone under-30

While there is a housing affordability crisis in Toronto in need of address, some twenty-somethings have gone against the odds and succeeded in their dream of owning real estate in the city. If you have the same dream, know that it’s not impossible. It’s just extremely, extremely tough. It’s going to take controlling expenses as much as it’s going to take to increase income. Taking up multiple jobs and limiting casual spending might be recommended. All in all, if you’re able to make the necessary sacrifices, any twenty-something will have a much better chance at being ready to buy when the right opportunity comes along.

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