First Rental Property

Hi There,

If you are familiar with Toronto, you probably know some of the neighbourhoods in Toronto as well.

There are some really popular neighbourhoods and some neighbourhoods that are less well known.

One neighbourhood in Toronto that is very well known and popular to live in is Liberty Village.

According to Wikipedia…

Liberty Village is a neighbourhood in Toronto, Ontario, Canada.  It is bordered to the north by King Street West, to the west by Dufferin Street, to the south by the Gardiner Expressway, to the east by Strachan Avenue, and to the northeast by the CP railway tracks…Liberty Village is located on one of Toronto’s oldest Settlements.

If you are at all familiar with Liberty Village and have been there before, you know that the neighbourhood is not as boring as the Wikipedia definition.

On the contrary.  It is an entertaining place, full of people and vibrant places.

The Top 10 Places In Liberty Village

The top 10 places in Liberty Village according to BlogTO, by reader ‘Rating’ are…

Ciao Europa Cafe

3 Brewers (Liberty Village)

Locus 144

Pure Yoga

See And Be Seen Eyecare

B Suite Salon

Liberty Commons At Big Rock Brewery

The Perfect Scoop

Local Public Eatery

Maizal Quesadilla Cafe

Now that you know about the ‘top ranked’ places to go when you are in Liberty Village, let’s talk real estate…

Liberty Central By The Lake (Vital Stats)

Here are some major details about this development that you should know, if you are interested in purchasing a unit there (more on that later)

SUITES AVAILABLE: 1 Bedroom plus Den, 2 Bedroom

PRICE (RANGE) AVAILABLE: $411,900 to $449,900

SQUARE FOOTAGE (RANGE) AVAILABLE:  746 square feet to 802 square feet

EXPOSURES AVAILABLE: East, West, South West

FLOORS AVAILABLE: 3, 4, 5.

PRICES INCLUDE: H.S.T. (What is HST?)

PARKING: $45,000

LOCKER: $5,000

MAINTENANCE FEE: $0.55 per square foot.  (Excludes: Individual Hydro Metering, water, parking, locker, taxes.)   (Includes:  Building insurance, snow removal, reserve fund, landscaping and maintenance, natural gas plus common area hydro.) 

PROPERTY TAXES: Estimated at 1% of the purchase price per annum.

OCCUPANCY DATE: January 2019

DEPOSIT STRUCTURE:

• Total 21%.  
• $5,000 payable on signing.  
• Balance to 5% of the purchase price in 30 days.  
• 5% of the purchase price – 90 days from Agreement date.
• 5% of purchase price – 370 days from Agreement date.
• 5% of purchase price – 470 days from Agreement date.
• 1% of purchase price upon occupancy.

Liberty Central By The Lake (Cool Description)

Here is a pretty catchy description of this new condo project taken from the Builder’s website…

“Designed to take full advantage of its lakeside location, Liberty Central is for those who live for a spectacular view in Toronto’s most sought after neighbourhood, Liberty Village. The mixed-use development is part of CanAlfa’s master-planned residential community. The building takes impact from street level up, with a four-storey podium that includes a main lobby, retail spaces and a fully landscaped and amenity-filled rooftop terrace. While there are plenty of leisures to explore inside, you’ll also be south of King Street West, within walking distance of restaurants, boutiques and daily essentials, as well as minutes from the downtown core and Lake Ontario. For those who appreciate a strong community, soaring view of the skyline or the easterly views of local parkland, this is the place for you.”

Sounds pretty awesome, doesn’t it?

Well, in my opinion, it is awesome… and here is why…

Reason #1 Why Liberty Central By The Lake is awesome…

The builder for this pre-construction condo is a group called CanAlfa.  If you are not familiar with real estate, or builders in Toronto, you might be wondering…“Who the heck is CanAlfa?  The name sounds like some sort of hair product for men!”

Don’t be fooled by the name my friends.  Take a look at what CanAlfa has built in Toronto…

Their portfolio includes developments such as:

• Toronto’s Scotia Plaza
• Waterpark Place
• 10 and 20 Bay Street
• Liberty Central by the Lake joins their portfolio of properties — Liberty Urban Towns, Liberty Towers, Bliss, Liberty on the Park and Liberty Place.

So as you can see, this Group has already built some ‘big time’ projects in Toronto.  You may not be familiar with their name.  If you are not, that doesn’t matter.

They have a proven track record in the City of Toronto.

In summary, Reason #1 why I love this new condo project is because the builder has already done major projects in the City and they are very experienced.

Reason #2 Why Liberty Central By The Lake is awesome…

I really like their floor plans.  The units are big and there is sufficient square footage in each unit, especially when you compare the Floor Plan Layouts to other competing new condo projects in the City.

The builder definitely did not skimp out when designing these Floor Plans.  The units are comfortable in size and fit for a King.  Well.. not really fit for a King, but you get the picture.  The floor plans are well thought out and I like them.  Which means that a lot of other people will like them as well.

Here is a floor plan for the “Kalliope”.  This is a 1 Bed + Den.  746 square feet plus a 38 square foot balcony.  The image is a bit small, so feel free to “zoom in” to take a better look.

If you want me to send you a PDF version of this floor plan, send me an email at neil@firstrentalproperty.com and I would be happy to send it to you.

The Offer…

So basically, we have established (if you did not know already) that Liberty Village is AWESOME and people want to LIVE there.

Whenever you find an awesome place in Toronto where people want to live, one thing is for certain…

There will be competition for the real estate there.  Prices will be driven up, and there will likely be multiple offers on listings.

Liberty Central By The Lake is an awesome building where a lot of people want to live.  There will be a lot of demand for these units, and there already has been.  That is the bad news.  However, I have some good news as well…

The Good News…

I am a VIP Realtor in The Greater Toronto Area. This means that I have front of the line access to over 100+ new construction condo projects in Toronto.

Liberty Central By The Lake is one of them.

What This Means For You…

This VIP Access  allows me to help people bypass all of the chaos (multiple offers, no financing or home inspection conditions on offers) of the re-sale market in Toronto.

We focus our efforts on the new condo market where you can purchase a property directly from the builder and avoid all of the mess and chaos happening in Toronto market, due to the incredible rise in value that this market is experiencing.

If you are interested in purchasing a unit at Liberty Central By the Lake, you should contact me today at neil@firstrentalproperty.com

I will be able to introduce you to the builder and reserve you a unit that you can purchase.

Here is the Catch…

If you are interested, you have to move quickly.  In a recent conversation I had with the builder, they told me that the building would be sold out soon.

I believe that this is true, based on the desirable location of Liberty Village, and based on the overall lack of inventory in the Toronto market.

Email me today, and let’s get you a unit.

Happy Investing!

Neil

neil@firstrentalproperty.com

ps: I have been personally investing in Toronto real estate since 2005.  If you are interested in buying a condo in Toronto for investment (or to live in), we should talk.

Hi There,

I hope you are doing well.

I am a Real Estate Broker with RE/MAX in the Greater Toronto Area.

I always get asked by people what type of real estate they should be investing in.

The majority of the people that I talk to are interested in investing in Toronto real estate.

One gentleman that I was speaking to last week was a first time condo buyer in Toronto Canada.

Some people that I speak to are experienced with real estate, while others don’t have too much experience.

The common thread with these people is that they are interested in buying a condo in Toronto Canada, or even a house in The Greater Toronto Area that they would live in or rent out to tenants.

Today I would like to talk to you about:

EMPIRE RAIN & SENSES IN OAKVILLE

If you are familiar with the Greater Toronto Area, you know that Oakville is an ‘upscale’ Town located approximately 20 minutes by car west of Toronto.

Here is Wikipedia’s definition of Oakvillle:

“Oakville is a suburban town in Southern Ontario, Canada. Located in Halton Region, on Lake Ontario, it is part of the Greater Toronto Area. As of the 2016 census the population was 193,832.”

“Rain & Senses” is a pre-construction condo being built by EMPIRE, located in The Town of Oakville.

Some say that EMPIRE is the second largest builder in Ontario, Canada by the number of units sold.

EMPIRE would be second of course to Mattamy.  (Read About: Mattamy’s Vita On The Lake Here)

Here is some important information on “Rain & Senses” as well as some of my personal opinions on this new condo project:

EMPIRE: Rain & Senses

• SUITES AVAILABLE: 1 Bed, 1 Bed + Den, 2Bed, 2 Bed + Den
• SQUARE FOOTAGE (RANGE) OF AVAILABLE UNITS: 543 square feet to 1250 square feet
• PRICE (RANGE) OF AVAILABLE UNITS: $329,990 to $739,990
• EXPOSURES AVAILABLE: North, North/East, East, South/East, South West, West
• TOTAL NUMBER OF BUILDINGS: 2
• TOTAL NUMBER OF FLOORS: 19
• PARKING: One parking space is included in the purchase price (additional parking available for purchase at $30,000 + HST)   (What is HST?)
• LOCKER: $4,000 + HST
• CEILING HEIGHT: 9′ Ceilings
• MAINTENANCE INCLUDES: Gas, Common Element Expenses & Building Insurance (Hydro and Water is separately metered)
• OCCUPANCY DATE: June 21st 2017 (First Tentative Occupancy Date)
• DEPOSIT STRUCTURE: 1st Deposit (with Agreement) is $5,000, 2nd Deposit (30 Days From 1st Deposit) is the Balance to 5%, 3rd Deposit (Due On Occupancy) is 5%.  For a total deposit of 10%.

I like this new condo project for a few reasons:

A)  There are limited high rise condo buildings in Oakville.  

The Town of Oakville is very particular with regards to dealing with Builders.  As such, the town has not approved many high rise buildings to be built in The Town itself.  As such, there is in my opinion limited inventory in Oakville when it comes to high rise condo buildings versus some of the neighbouring towns and cities close to Oakville.

And and as we know already, where there is limited supply, and if there is demand for that limited supply, this is what pushes real estate prices up.

“Detached homes in The Town of Oakville went up in value 38.4% year over year from November 2015 to November 2016.”  – Source: RE/MAX Aboutowne Realty Corp., Brokerage

With this type of dramatic increase in value, people are naturally going to gravitate towards lower priced real estate, such as new construction condos.

B) EMPIRE Is Offering a FREEE $10,000 Furniture Package with the purchase of any suite.

Like the saying goes, “All Good Things Come To An End”.

This amazing Free $10,000 Furniture Package Offer will come to an end soon.  It is only for a limited time.

The date in which EMPIRE will no longer be honouring this offer is March 12th 2017.

So if you have any interest in purchasing a unit in this condo project, and if you would like to get this amazing Builder Incentive, you need to act quickly.   You can email me directly at neil@firstrentalproperty.com to find out what the next steps are if you want to purchase a unit.

Sometimes builders offer special DISCOUNTS off of the purchase price or what they call,  “builder INCENTIVES”.  These discounts and incentives are made available through VIP Realtors (like myself).

In My Opinion…

In my opinion, the FREE $10,000 Furniture Package that EMPIRE is offering is a very good builder incentive.

EMPIRE is really going above and beyond what other builders offer as their builder incentives, and they are clearly trying to offer something of VALUE to their potential purchasers.

Sometimes builders try to get away with offering potential purchasers with cheap and not too significant incentives.  This is clearly not the case with EMPIRE.  I am impressed with this Incentive that they are offering, and I think more builders should offer great incentives like EMPIRE is demonstrating here.

The Bad News…

Rain & Senses is almost SOLD OUT.

EMPIRE is a great builder, and people want to own real estate built by great builders. Not to mention Oakville.  Oakville is a very desirable Town to Invest in…

You will need to move quickly if you want to purchase a unit in this EMPIRE community AND if you want to receive their FREE $10,000 Furniture Package.

The Good News…

To get this amazing $10,000 Furniture Package, and to reserve a suite to purchase, email me today at neil@firstrentalproperty.com

Move quickly though because the real estate market in The Greater Toronto Area is insane.

Happy Investing!

Neil

Hi There,

I hope your are doing well.

Today I would like to talk to you about a condo project that is being built on the Toronto Waterfront.

The name of this project is, “Vita On The Lake”.

The builder for this project is Mattamy.

If you are from The Greater Toronto Area, you know exactly who Mattamy is.

Some say that Mattamy is the biggest builder in terms of volume of units sold.

Is this true?

Probably.

I have not fact checked this, but I would not be surprised at all if they were the biggest builder.

Mattamy is HUGE.

When I actually think of this more, I ask myself…”Who is bigger than Mattamy in the Greater Toronto Area?”

I can’t think of any other builder…

Investing In Toronto Real Estate

A lot of people that I talk to are interested in buying a condo in Toronto for investment.  It is a relevant conversation that I have with people since I am a Real Estate Broker with RE/MAX.

Some people that I talk to are experienced investors while others are new to this and they are looking to purchase their first rental property.

Then of course, there are people that I talk to who are interested in buying a condo in Toronto Canada for their primary use.  (To live in).

Vita On The Lake

What is Vita On The Lake?

Vita On The Lake is a project that Mattamy is building that I love.  I love this project for 3 main reasons.

A) Location

The building itself is being constructed on the Toronto Waterfront.  Units in the building have FULL and PARTIAL views of Lake Ontario.

Some of the smaller units don’t have views, and of course if your units does not face the Lake you will not have a view.

However, some of the views from this building are breathtaking.

As such, this pre-construction condo project has been extremely popular with both condo investors and people looking to buy a unit there to live.

B) The Builder

The second reason why I love this project so much is because of the builder… Mattamy.  Again if you are from The Greater Toronto Area, you know exactly who Mattamy is.  You also probably know at lease one person who has purchased a Mattamy home, Or you will know a ‘friend of a friend’ who has bought a Mattamy home.  That is how BIG they are.

Since they are a BIG builder, they know what they are doing when it comes to all aspects of new construction condos.

I find their customer service level to be very high, and they produce an excellent finished product.

C) Discount Off of Purchase Price

Good builders (Like Mattamy) always have great incentives for their purchasers.  The Incentives that they offer are often made available to the public through VIP Agents (like myself).

On this project, Vita On The Lake, Mattamy is offering 2 to 3 years of free maintenance, on select units, which equates to a discount off of the purchase price of between $10,000 to $20,000!!

This is a big deal, as Mattamy does not normally offer discounts on the purchase price of their homes and condo units.

They don’t need to because their inventory of new condos and homes always sells like…

HOT CAKES.

So to actually get a discount off the the purchase price is an amazing deal that Mattamy is offering.

Again, VIP Agents (like myself) have access to these incredible discounts through the builders.  (If you want more info on this.. send me an email)

Is Vita On The Lake A Good Investment

For years, people have been asking me about real estate.  Questions that I get are:

• Where should I invest?
• What is a good investment?
• Should I buy a condo or a house?
• How much will my property go up from the time I purchase it to the time I sell it?

And the questions go on and on…

You might have similar questions with Vita On The Lake.  I get it.  People love real estate.  They want to buy something, and they want it to go up a huge amount (in value).

Well here is the deal… properties in the area that Vita On The Lake is located have been going up in value already due to the HOT Toronto Real Estate Market.

Let’s look at a few things…

• A) The project is located on the waterfront of a major International City. (Toronto)

• B) The City (Toronto) experiences approximately 100,000 people moving into this region every year.

• C) Canada has it’s doors open to Immigrants.  Many of the immigrants settle in the Province of Ontario, and specifically within the Greater Toronto Area. A lot of these immigrants come with a lot of money to invest.

• D) Some projections have been made by the Provincial Government in Ontario, that 4 MILLION more people will be moving to the Greater Toronto Area  / Golden Horseshoe Area / Southern Ontario over the next 25 years !!!

• E)  Oh yeah… and I forgot to add the following… Ontario is running out of land to build on.  There is a lot of protected land in Ontario, called “The Green Belt”, which is restricted.  Builders cannot build on this land. As such, builders are no longer building OUT, as they once used to (by building sub-divisions of homes). They are now building UP, and have been doing this for a number of years.

To put it in simple terms, it comes down to supply and demand.

If you know even a little bit about Economics, you know that…

If supply is low, and there is demand.  Then prices go up…

The story of the Greater Toronto area, and in particular, Toronto is that there is not enough supply (of housing) to match the demand (the number of people moving into the region).

So to answer my initial questions

Is Vita On The Lake a good investment?

My answer to this is:

“Yes, Vita On The Lake is a GREAT investment”

In what other international city with BOOMING real estate market can you buy a condo on the Waterfront, with Lake or Ocean views for under $700/square foot?

The long story short is that if you are looking to buy a condo in Toronto to live in or for investment (to rent out), and if you want to be on the Toronto Waterfront…

Vita On The Lake is where you need to buy.

But here is the catch… you have to move quickly.  There are a lot of smart people in Toronto (when it comes to investment) and they have been buying already in this building.

If you don’t take action soon, this building will be sold out.

If you are interested in buying a unit, email me directly at neil@firstrentalproperty.com and then I will let you know what the next steps are.

Happy Investing!

Neil.

ps: Here are some pictures of Vita On The Lake By Mattamy…

Hi There,

A new report has just been released by The Royal Bank of Canada (a.k.a. “RBC”)

In this report, RBC states that “Toronto’s housing market is the least affordable in Canada.”

RBC, Canada’s #1 Bank is a reputable source. This leads me to believe that this report is accurate.

Having said this, it is always important to do your own due diligence and always ‘question’ the information that is presented to you by the media.

Tags: Buying a condo in Toronto, Canada  |  Buying a condo in Toronto for investment  |  Investing in Toronto Real Estate  |  Buying a condo in Toronto Canada  |  First time condo buyer in Toronto Canada.

Hi There,

While Canadians complain about the inflated real estate prices in Toronto, try buying a home in Shanghai.

There, a shabby 400 square foot condo goes for $1.6 million.  You need parking?  No problem!  It can be yours for an extra $60,000.

The real estate market is so hot in one of China’s richest cities, the average price for new homes has risen by 30% in the first 3 quarters of 2016.

In Beijing and Shenzhen, the real estate market has increased so much that it has made these cities two of the most expensive in the world to buy a home.

The government in Shanghai has tried to make it harder for existing property owners to purchase another property.

They have also tried to slow the market by increasing downpayment requirements.

For many Chinese, buying a house overseas is seen as a crucial investment in the next generation.  

Canada is on the list of preferred countries to invest in for the Chinese.  In fact, Canada ranks as #3, behind The United States and Australia.

Although Canada implemented a 15% tax for foreigners buying real estate in the Metro-Vancouver Area, some experts predict that this will have no long term impact on the marketplace.

Since property is the preferred asset class for Chinese people, many observers forget that only 15% of Chinese invest in the stock market.

With the Chinese as the fastest growing segment of global property buyers, this means that many of them will be investing in Toronto real estate.

Many of them will be buying a condo in Toronto for investment.

If you are a real estate investor, or someone who is looking to buy a home to live in, you should do what the Chinese are doing and buy a condo in Toronto Canada.

It does not matter if you are a first time condo buyer in Toronto Canada.  They City of Toronto is forecasted to continue to grow in population.

As the City’s populations grows, so will the demand for the real estate.

Toronto recently overtook Vancouver as the top city in Canada for Chinese buyers, according to the website Juwai.

Buying a condo in Toronto Canada is simply a smart investment.

Who knows… maybe one day a 400 square foot condo in Toronto will be worth $1.6 million just like in Shanghai.

Happy Investing!

Neil

Source:  Canada’s Real Estate Boom: A Chinese Perspective

Hi There,

Lots of people have been asking me what I think is going to happen to the Toronto Real Estate Market in 2017.

If you have read some of my other blog posts, you know that I think investing in Toronto real estate  is a great idea, especially buying a condo in Toronto for investment.

If you are a first time condo buyer in Toronto, Canada or a veteran real estate investor looking to buy a condo in Toronto, Canada, I have a PODCAST that you need to listen to.

In this PODCAST I discuss what the real estate market in Toronto will look like in 2017.  I also talk about how buying a condo in Toronto Canada is an excellent move to make.

For my personal outlook on the Toronto Real Estate Market in 2017, and how you can profit from investing in this market, listen to my PODCAST called  ———->  2017 TORONTO REAL ESTATE MARKET OUTLOOK

Happy Investing!

Neil