Getting the most house for the budget
Under this line, the trade-offs are usually between space, age and location, and you generally get to pick two. A newer condo townhouse in Brooklin gives you modern systems and low maintenance but a monthly fee and a narrower footprint. An older bungalow or semi in Blue Grass Meadows or Pringle Creek gives you a real yard and a basement to grow into, with a roof, furnace and windows that may be due. A condo apartment near the station gives you the shortest commute and the least upkeep, but read the reserve fund pages of the status certificate before you rely on the fee. Keep a cushion for closing costs: land transfer tax after any refund, legal fees, title insurance, adjustments and moving. Then choose the community first and the house second; you can renovate a kitchen, but you cannot move a street closer to the GO.