How we saved up for a house DOWN PAYMENT in Toronto

How long does it take to save up for a down payment to purchase a home in a city as expensive as Toronto? It depends on several factors. Even though it may seem impossible, there are things you can do to make it happen and even speed up the process! In this video I'll be sharing with you 5 tips to save up your down payment faster! #torontorealestate #torontorealestate #livingincanada
**DISCLAIMER: This video is for entertainment purposes only and should not be considered as financial advice**
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// ABOUT Getting ahead financially in Canada while enjoying life!

[@LivinginCanada]

Are you saving up for a downpayment? If so, what are your biggest challenges? Or, are you skipping home-buying altogether and chose to rent long-term instead? Would love to hear your thoughts! Happy Friday!

[@SIEmon0408]

Greatly helpful for tourists and also all people

[@johnl119]

Really good advise and tips on how to save for a DP....especially with the tip of working backwards to achieve the goal...I have never heard of that one before. My advise which worked for me is to get rid of the car. It is a huge expense, and once eliminated all of that money previously being spent on the car can now be saved. I know, it is not feasible for everyone, but for those of you who can, it will a superb idea.

[@marg8315]

Your discipline and goal driven personality are what helped you get there! You will be successful at whatever you set your mind on! Congrats and thanks for sharing your story with us.

[@LivinginCanada]

Thanks! I'm quite happy about that, small successes, but continuous improvements! Cheers!

[@user-wm9ij8bj6t]

Congrats on where you are! Sounds like you and your husband are certainly educated and wise on what you are doing!

[@ua_andrew_ca]

Thanks a lot for your video 😊 Very informative and useful

[@LivinginCanada]

Thank you, welcome to the channel!

[@kanikamaheshwari9732]

Its the common man relatability with your content that makes us love your channel even more. The psych u project is exactly how we feel so the relatability helps🥰

[@LivinginCanada]

Glad to hear that, thanks for the positive vibes!

[@dorjidamdul3887]

More people should watch your sincere video...(many appears to brag, but yours is always sincere and honest approach)..best wishes and happy living in your new condo.

[@LivinginCanada]

Thanks so much. I try to tell it as it is so people can manage their expectations. Of course, sometimes the trade off is less 'hyped' and crazy-entertaining videos. But I do hope the content can actually help people get ahead in Canada. Cheers!

[@swindlermusic]

Patience builts wealth. Inspiring video.

[@LivinginCanada]

So true!

[@ShubhamGunputh]

Hi. Great Video! But I think your audio is more concentrated on the left audio channel. You might want to check your audio balance between left and right channel.

[@phorn_khann]

Congratulations 🎉

[@johnp1552]

Nice video :) one question; Is condo like leashold meaning that one does not own it totally? I am trying to buy a home in Vancouver and there are more affordable homes that are condos.

[@galactic904]

Dave Ramsey Radio/Podcast Show seen by 28 million americans. What's a good plan for buying a $1 million house, when your in your 20's and have a regular job? A 25% down payment. A house in Toronto in 10 years will go up let's say 5% on average per year and all the houses will cost a minimum of $1.5 million. So that means (pen on paper calculations) i would still have to keep saving $$$ to reach that 25% downpayment on a $1.5 million starter house. W-T-Hell

[@billjohnson7904]

that is why a starter house is needed to build equity

[@caterinaramirez8864]

His point is $1.5 is a starter house in Toronto. But you don’t need a small detached house in a nice area as a starter home, there less desirable neighborhoods or condos that can cost less. But it’s not easy if you also want space to start a family

[@engahd746]

Hi Chiu, Thank you for this series, It help a lot people like me to understand the buying process in Toronto. I have a question What I understand from this video that the amount of money that I need to buy a place a "less than 500k" is the 35k (Down payment + closing costs). Is there is another costs associating with the buying process it self (I am not talking about the monthly fees). In other words, If I have now the 35k$, I can start my own journey finding my studio/bachelor apartment? Thank you

[@LivinginCanada]

Very good question! I will soon make another video to break down the closing costs! That will likely follow after the video about the monthly costs of owning a condo. Thanks!

[@azamarabear]

Wow😮

[@kabikis1994]

Am saving for my DP however, it’s not easy but will get there for sure

[@LivinginCanada]

You'll get there eventually! In the beginning it feels like you'll never get there, but time flies-suddenly, 2, 3 years will have passed and you're at the point where you're making your DP on your first home, all the best!

[@kabikis1994]

@@LivinginCanada yes yes with a determination thank you so much 🙏🙏❤️❤️

[@user-zm7wp4dz3y]

Thankyou! Great info.

[@LivinginCanada]

Thanks!

[@anonymousanonymously8216]

Buying a home is expensive no matter where but buying a home especially in Toronto is crazy expensive and it’s just getting worse. We ended up buying a condo, pre construction condo, seemed like the best option for us, only problem is, we have to wait until it’s finished, so we are stuck renting until then😔.

[@LivinginCanada]

It is... happy you found a condo that works for you. It must be hard renting while paying the downpayment installment at the same time. I hope you enjoy the anticipation though and seeing your condo getting built!

[@AhhhSukeSuke]

Here's to hoping your condo is finished on time!!!!!!!!!!

[@leejunta]

Hi, I am following your channel from 2-3 months, good content and your videos have been quite helpful. Me and my wife are here on work permit and currently waiting for our PR, plus saving money for down-payment. Our budget is also similar to yours which is under 500K. But I wanted to ask you, why chose a studio apartment in downtown ? If you would have moved slightly away from Toronto downtown you might have got a 3 bedroom + Basement home. I know it would have been 50-80 Km away from the city but the value would appreciate at a much faster rate. Also needed your help with referrals to your mortgage agent and real-estate agent. Thanks.

[@LivinginCanada]

That's a really good question! We have considered moving to Hamilton, Kitchener, or even London where we could afford a semi-detached house or at least a 2 bedroom apartment, especially after the pandemic that allowed us to work from home. Towards the end however, my husband was required to go to the office regularly (on certain days) and didn't want to commute. So you could say it was more of a lifestyle decision. Apart from that, I'm at a stage where I still enjoy the big city life. For the future, I'm still considering moving further out to something bigger, perhaps in 5+ years (let's see! will definitely share it on the channel). If you're asking about the realtor who helped me to buy my home, then you can email me, you can find my email in the about section as I don't want to display it here. Cheers!

[@AhhhSukeSuke]

Wouldn't you recommend putting in a larger down-payment?

[@giovanniariawan8511]

is the RRSP account subject to tax when you take out your money before your retirement age in Canada?

[@bhaalgorn]

Not if you're taking it out for the first time home buyers plan. You will have to recontribrute what you've put in within a certain time period though.

[@alyssaannesalvador1735]

Hi! Can you make a video on how to get to downtown Toronto from niagara falls. Thanks!

[@LivinginCanada]

I haven't thought of that! Thanks for the video idea. Are you living in Niagara Falls?

[@alyssaannesalvador1735]

No. I am from Winnipeg, just planning to visit Niagara and Downtown Toronto this September. I have watched your video on how to get to Niagara from Downtown Toronto, and it is very helpful. Wondering if you could share a video on how to go back to Downtown or YYZ from Niagara. Thanks!

[@camillegroulx7420]

At 5:00, it is not very clear. Basically even in RRSP / FHSA, how did you invest the money?? I put it on GIC and now when I need it, the money is locked until maturity date.. 😓 If I put it in the HISA (high interest saving account), the interest is very very low and if I put it in stocks/bonds/etf, etc... the value might even go down by the time I need the money for downpayment.

[@LivinginCanada]

I haven't gone into detail in this video as it would be too long, I was planning to make a dedicated video on it! About RRSP and FHSA; You can deposit money in either of these accounts, then you can invest this money into securities (there's a small difference though between RRSP and FHSA). Then, when you're close to withdrawing money for your DP, you need to sell the stocks/ETF first, before withdrawing the money. There is of course a bit of risk involved, depending on what you invest in the value can go up and down. I'll talk more about this in another video! Putting the money in a GIC is not a bad idea either nowadays, considering that interest rates are so high. But yes, there's a bit of a problem with the rigid maturity date.

[@camillegroulx7420]

@@LivinginCanada Thank you for your reply. Yeah, it's a challenge with how we can manage the money. I'd say that FHSA shall be the priority. Then, RRSP. Withdrawing the RRSP will require me to repay it back into the RRSP in the future, whereas the FHSA doesn't have that requirement. Investing in stocks/ETF is quite a big risk actually. Because I am investing for a short period of time (less than 5 years), the market might be bad by the time I need to liquidize the money. Growing money from Dollar Cost Averaging only works for a very long time (more than 10 years). Anyway, now that you have bought your first property, you and your husband can no longer enjoy the FHSA, right?

[@LivinginCanada]

Good call! When we were saving up for our DP, there was no FHSA yet, otherwise I'd definitely use that! Right, because it's for first-time home buyers. Note however the definition of 'first-time home buyers' for the purpose of opening an FHSA, which is according to canada.ca: "You will be considered to be a first-time home buyer if you did not, at any time in the current calendar year before the account is opened or at any time in the preceding four calendar years, live in a qualifying home (or what would be a qualifying home if located in Canada) as your principal place of residence ...." According to this, we may be able to make use of this if we'd sold our home, then rent for 4 years, then buy again - which is unlikely though :)

[@collegeemail239]

Do you get your permanent resident card in the mail if it’s your first time applying.

[@LivinginCanada]

Yes, we got our PR card in the mail after it was approved.

[@collegeemail239]

@@LivinginCanada how long is the process

[@collegeemail239]

@@LivinginCanada how long is the process to get your card

[@Cre8tive81]

House and home are two different things. House and apartment are two different things too.

[@LordBagdanoff]

How old were you when you came to Canada?

[@LivinginCanada]

I was in my 30s!

[@_Abdelrahman1903]

Great tips but the final is it’s a miracle to buy house in this country

[@LivinginCanada]

It's difficult but very possible, it takes some time and planning though.

[@_Abdelrahman1903]

@@LivinginCanada I contacted some brokers they told me only PR and good credit score will allowing me to get mortgage then to get house

[@Democracyphobia]

saving for a downpayment was never the hard part or the issue to own a home in canada , the real problem is the non existence of a long term fixed rate mortgage , the longest u can get in canada is 5 years if you are very lucky , without a fixed rate you re exposed to have your mortgage payment skyrocket everytime the bank of canada decides to raise interest rates to combat inflation , smth like what we re going through now .living in uncertainty is a nightmare and becomes the norme in canada . in morocco people have access to longlife fixed rate mortgages , they re higher a lil bit obviously but at least you know that what you ll be paying for every month . in the US they offer fixed rate mortgages for up to 30 years which is almost longlife .Canada is an open air slave camp run by a mob , canadians are just a bunch of numbers to the rulling class and their life mean nothing .

[@AhhhSukeSuke]

Purchased under 500k. That's an impossibility in van or to now lol

[@squamishfish]

Winnipeg is much cheaper

[@LivinginCanada]

Would love to visit Winnipeg someday!

[@squamishfish]

Just looking at the prices town houses from around 200 thousand to 389 thousand , detached houses starting low 300 thousand and up , , I live I. The Vancouver area just incredible the price difference , For a family just moving to Canada to set up financially for the future Winnipeg is the place to be

[@LivinginCanada]

Yup, that's a huge difference!

[@billjohnson7904]

Why not just win a lottery, and just buy the house in cash? boom! easy.

[@user-og1nu5pb8c]

Double Income, No Kids... I see