Commercial Real Estate in Greater Toronto Area, Canada : Part 1

Commerical real estate sales in Greater Toronto Area, Canada has decreased from 317 to 268 from 2017 to 2018 respectively in numbers according to statistics report by Toronto Real Estate Board(TREB). However the average sales price per square feet has increased summarizing industrial, commercial/retail and office spaces or properties.

Here we'll talk about best places in Greater Toronto Area, Canada to buy property if you are buying for investment. We'll discuss about the commercial real estate in Greater Toronto Area if you're buying for your own use in next part.

If your purpose is an investment:

If you are making an investment in Greater Toronto Area then you have to see in which area the price per square feet has increased. Now Greater Toronto Area is made up of Haltorn Region,
Peel Region, Toronto, York Region, Durham Region, Dufferin County and Simcoe County. We'll consider main areas here that are Haltorn Region, Peel Retion, Toronto and York Region. Below is graphs of net price per square feet of 5 years from 2014 to 2018 for all above regions of Greater Toronto Area.

You can see from the above charts that in Toronto and Peel Region price curve is increasing where as in York Region and Hatorn Region it's mix and fluctuating irregularly. 

So, we can conclude that Toronto and Peel Region are best options for commercial real estate property investment in Greater Toronto Area. 

Based on data collected from TREB website. Source: http://www.trebhome.com/

Houses for sale in Greater Toronto Area (GTA), Ontario, Canada

Are you looking for houses for sale in Greater Toronto Area (GTA)? Greater Toronto Area is (GTA) is populous metropolitan are in Canada. Municipalities including Durham, Halton, Peel and York and Toronto makes Greater Toronto Area. GTA is one of the centers of commercial and financial sectors. There are so many immigrants come to Greater Toronto Area. People who come for job and immigrants would settle in the area. Also Ontario is good market for real estate investment. Real Estate sales jumps 16.8% in Toronto area*.

Immigrants or people who want to invest in real estate in Greater Toronto Area look for houses for sale through different mediums. If you are looking for houses for sale in GTA, here's the guide how you can find it.

1. Realtor.ca

Realtor.ca is real estate website owned by Canadian Real Estate Association (CREA). One can find houses for sale listing on www.realtor.ca. Apart from house listings there is other
information and guide about real estate for the people for example, mortagage calculator, neighborhood demographics and realted articles.

2. Private listing sites

There are many private listing sites like zillow.com, kijiji.ca, etc. You can find listings
for houses for sale on the sites. Generally, you can filter properties by price, location, etc. on the site.

Here's some popular real estate listings sites you can refere to:
www.zillow.com
https://www.remax.ca/
https://www.zoocasa.com/
Homebuyers.com
https://www.forsalebyowner.ca/

3. Real Estate Agents
Meet real estate agents, they can help you find best houses for sale in Greater Toronto Area and also give best deals. Real estate agents has to daily deal with buying and selling houses.
They also know the rules and regulations of buying and selling properties.

*

4. Newspaper Classifieds
You can check newspaper classifieds for houses for sale. The advertisers post the ad with price and sometime photo of the house with the details sometimes.

You can find classifieds related to houses for sale in 'Toronto Sun' or 'Toronto Star'or 'Missisauga News'. There is a a real estate
classifieds section in every newspaper. People list their houses in the section.

5. 'For Sale' sign in neighborhood.
If you can see 'For Sale' or 'Open House' sign passing by in your negihborhood, you can go and enquire for the property. You may see many signs in your neighborhood area.

6. Real Estate Video Tours on YouTube

You can find many video tours of houses for sale on YouTube. Real estate agents or marketing firms post the videos of house tours for sale. It shows entire house in details with different portions
like kitchen, bedroom and other areas. The benefit of the video tours is that you are able to see the house first and if you like it in the video tour, you can go to visit the sight. It saves
your time, effort and money.

One of the YouTube channel for video tours is https://www.youtube.com/user/pictourhd/videos



*Source:  https://www.bnnbloomberg.ca/toronto-housing-market-heats-up-as-sales-jump-16-8-in-april-1.1253997

https://webassets.inman.com/wp-content/uploads/2013/11/newspaper_real_estate_ad.jpg

All about buying a house in Canada

Buying a home anywhere is a big decision. For someone, it takes lifetime earnings to buy a house. Your hard earned money should be spent well. If you are buying a house for yourself to
reside there or for investment you have to take decision wisely before you buy house.

Before you buy a house in Canada keep the following points in mind

1. Purpose for buying - Investment or residence?
Ask yourself before buying a house. What is your purpose for buying a house? Investment, residence or any other?


2. Decide your budget.
Whatever your purpose is, deciding the budget will help you guide right type of house to buy
as well as area where you should buy a house. If you have limited budget then you have to
search the house in certain area and certain type of house. If you have not set budget and
can spend the money how much it takes then you can go for house hunting anywhere or any type.

3. What type of house?
Depending on your requirement choose right type of house to buy from Condominium (Condo), Attached-detached, Duplex-Triplex, Townhouse, etc.

Condominium (Condos)

Condominium means property built on common space and you own a unit and not entire land or space. Actually, it's not type of house but ownership. This type of houses are best for people
living alone or have small family or kids. There are many units owned by people on a common space. People are living nearby and so it's safe as you are not living alone.

Duplex

Separate house like Duplex or Townhouse is good for big families as it can accommodate more people and have such facilities. Also, separate house is independent and people can enjoy their space.

4. Finances: Cash or Loan, How much down payment?
If you have cash, you can opt to pay at one go. Most buyers, get mortgage loan to purchase their home. House mortgage loans are available from banks or financial institutions like credit unions or insurance companies.

To buy a house in Canada, you have to pay down payment. The minimum down payment you have to pay  in Canada is 5% of the total amount. Generally, the down payments is 20% of the total amount of the house. If you pay lesser then 20%, then mortgage insurance is required to purchase.

Apart from the cost of the house and mortgage insurance, there are other costs involved in buying a home like home appraisal cost, home inspection cost, moving costs, property tax, property transfer cost, interests on mortgages and formalities, agent fees, renovations and maintenance. You can save different types of costs.

House buying calculators: 

Calculate how the rates of interests, down payment and frequency of payment,etc.


https://www.cmhc-schl.gc.ca/en/finance-and-investing/mortgage-loan-insurance/homebuying-calculators







5. Which area of Canada?
Which area or where to buy a house in Canada depends on the budget and purpose of purchasing a home. Depending on your work, budget and other requirement you can opt out for metropolitan areas or city or small town. Obviously, houses in metropolitan areas are more costly then cities or small towns.

Image: https://live.staticflickr.com/8102/8607231542_952088b3a8_b.jpg

Canada is made up of 36 provinces including Ontario, British Columbia, Alberta, Quebec, Greater Toronto Area, Nova Scotia, Sascatchewan, Manitoba, New Brunswick, Newfoundland and Prince Edward Island.

How to buy a house in Canada? (The Procedure)

Step-1: House Hunting
House hunting is time demanding task. It also takes a lots of effort. Once above points are clear in your mind, you can start hunting for a house. You can decide to hunt your future home for yourself or take a help of real estate agents.

If you are going to real estate agents then go for any reputed brokerage. Check their reviews and ratings and record of historical deals they have done. Good and experience realtors know all the legalities and can help you get good deal for your home.

You can also hunt for your home on property listing sites like realtor.ca or zillow. There are thousands of properties listed. You can browse or search it by price, type, facilities,etc. Other options are checking newspapers classifieds or if you see 'For Sale' sign at home while passing by in neighborhood.

Step-2: Take a tour & visit sights.
Once you have seen property photographs or taken video tour, you have basic idea of the property. For example, you can get the idea of furniture, flooring, lighting,etc. of the house from photographs or video or virtual tours. If you like any of them, fix an appointment with house owner and visit the place. Visiting the sight is necessary for actual details like if anything requires repairing, water and drain systems of the house, if any part needs maintenance, etc. etc. Sight seeing also helps you know the neighborhood and surrounding area. If you are buying the house for investment purpose, it's necessary that the house is located in good locality with proper infrastructure and amenities. If you
are buying it to live yourself then you have to check the schools, banks, etc. are there nearby.

Step-3: Making an Offer & Finalizing Deal.
If your sight seeing of the house is successful, you can proceed with making an offer to the home owner. Your real estate agent (If you are going through realtor) will help in negotiating the deal for you. If you are working on it yourself then make an offer to the house owner or their real estate agent.

If you are not happy with the property from sight-seeing then you can look for other options.

Step-4: Formalities and Payment

After negotiation and making an offer to the house owner if they accept your offer, it's time to do formalities and make payments.

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With conclusion below is the popular questions asked by people about buying a house in Canada and the answers:

Que: Can a non-resident or person with visitor visa buy house in Canada or Greater Toronto Area (GTA) in Ontario? 

Ans: Yes. Person from any country can buy house in Canada or GTA. They have to produce the identity and other proofs and follow the payment and other terms and conditions by the government and house owner.

Que: Does buying a house in Canada get you citizenship of the country?

Ans: No. If you buy a house in Canada or any part of Canada doesn't give you citizenship of the country. For citizenship, one have to apply separately for the required category visa and should be eligible for the same.

Que: What is the right time to buy a house in Canada?
Ans: There's no such time to buy a house in Canada but if you are getting good deal then you can buy a house.

Virtual Reality in Real Estate

What is Virtual Reality?

Virtual Reality creates virtual environment that make the viewers feel like it is reality. As it gives in-depth idea of the subject and offers a tour,
the viewers feel excited and get detailed information about the object from various aspects. People can see everything clearly and experience the depth of the object.

Virtual Reality in Real Estate

Using Virtual Reality in real estate is very helpful for both the people - marketers and people who use it. For the marketers who are into real estate business - agents, realtors or property sellers Virtual Reality (VR) is great tool to give their future customers in-depth experience and information of the property. It gives totally unique experience to the people as they can see the house or property from different angles and width and height of it. The prospective buyer of the property need not to go to visit the property physically at first. As they can see the detailed view of the property from his / her home or office. It saves lots of time of real estate marketers, sellers and buyers of property.

Example VR Tour: 

Here's is an example of Virtual Tour : https://www.realmedia.ca/3d-virtual-tour/

How much helpful the Virtual Reality is?

• Buyers can visualize the future property.
• Once the buyers has seen VR, customers are more willing to come or walk through.
• It saves time and effort for buyers.
• Helpful to real estate marketers to give better details of the property and let the people visualize the architecture.

How much does real estate photography cost in Greater Toronto Area, Ontario, Canada?

If you are selling your home in Greater Toronto Area, Ontario, Canada, first you need to show it to the prospective buyers. You have to show photographs, video and floor plans to people, so they can have a view and if all is good they can come to visit the house on sell. 

House or real estate photography is one of the common things required to show the future buyers. So, they can decide to proceed for the deal.

Now, there are different types and ways of house photography generally people do in Greater Toronto Area (GTA) in Canada. Either, you can do photography yourself with good camera or hire a photographer / photography company. If you have a good camera and skills of photography then you can save a lot of costs. If you are hiring a photographer or an agency then they may charge you depending on type of photography, area in square feet, and photographers reputation or brand.

Real estate or house photography in Greater Toronto Area, Ontario, Canada may cost you as belows:

Basic Photography: 

Basic photography of your house costs CAD $70 to $250 for your 1000-2500 sq.ft. house.

HDR Photography:

HDR or High Dynamic Range photography are clearer and photography with details. It helps you impress your buyers and visit your home to buy.

HDR photography may cost you CAD$100 to $300.

Aerial / Drone Photography:

Aerial / Drone Photography is done when you want to give buyers surrounding area details. 

Aerial / Drone Photography cost you around CAD $150 to $500.

Panoramic / 360 Degree / Virtual Tour Photography:

Panoramic, 360 Degree or Virtual Tour Photography are advanced level photography if you would like to show your house in details and more attractive way. 

Panoramic / 360 Degree / Virtual Tour Photography cost CAD $150 to $500.

Refer some of the best agencies or photography service providers like:

Studio GTA or Realmedia for best results and professional services in Greater Toronto Area.

Image : Realty Leadership, Google, Pixabay

How to sell your home in Ontario, Canada

If you have decided to sell your home in Ontario, you can proceed with many ways to sell it. First of all do some research and find out current real estate market in your city.

Cities including Toronto, Hamilton, Ottawa, Kingston, Windsor, Kitchener, Brantford, London, Greater Sudbury, Cambridge, Peterborough, Barrie, Oshawa, Guelph, Mississauga, Belleville, Brampton, Cornwall, Startford, Burlington, Vaughan, Markham, Pickering, Oakville and other cities make Ontario.

After doing some research, you may be able to find out what are the approximate price you are going to fetch for your home in Ontario depending on the real estate market in your city.

Now, decide that you are going to sell it yourself or will sell it through real estate agent? Real estate agents know the procedures and rules and regulations properly as they sell houses and deal with the people everyday. Realtors charge their commission, which may be anything in a range of 2% to 6%. If you want to save the commissions to real estate agent or realtor then you can sell it yourself.

If you are selling through Real Estate Agent	If you are selling yourself
Check the background and  ratings of Real Estate Agents and find out right one.	List your property on site like zillow.com, realmedia.ca, realtor.ca or/and other sites.
Negotiate the commission and decide the other cost of selling your house.	Prepare marketing material like feature sheets, photography, video tour, 3d floor plans and virtual tours, etc. You can see more options or consult real estate marketing agency what you'll need. One in Ontario is https://www.realmedia.ca/.
List your property with the realtor and do marketing with your Real Estate Agent.	You will get the deals through your marketing. Tell your leads to come see your home.
Open the house to show it for the buyers.	If the prospective buyers like your home negotiate the price.
If the buyers like your home, ask your Agent to get into best deal. If not show it to other buyers.	Do the formalities.
Your real estate agent will ask you to do the formalities to close the deal. Follow the procedure.

How to become a real estate agent in Ontario, Canada?

Real estate profession in Ontario, Canada is one of the most rewarding professions if you work well. But every country or region has their own criteria and certain ways to become real estate agent.

If you want to become a real estate agent in Ontario, Canada then Canadian Real Estate Association (CREA) and the Ontario Real Estate Association (OREA) can help you in it. There are certain education and licencing requirements you have to fulfill. You have to meet following requirements:

1. Fulfill regional and age requirements like you must be above 18 years of age and Candadian resident.
2. You have to completed minimum educational level.
3. Complete Articling -  a practical training given under the supervision.
4. Pass written exam.

Course Fees*:
The Salesperson Registration Education Program - $3,580
The Broker Registration Education Program - $1430

As mentioned on https://www.orea.com/Education/Programs/Fees 

Get more information on

CREA page : https://www.crea.ca/realtor-members/become-a-realtor/
OREA page: https://www.orea.com/Professional-Development/Become-a-Broker 

Course Duration: 
The courses must be completed within 18 months.

After completing the course you have to acquire license from local organization like Real Estate Council of Ontario (RECO) through licensed brokerage.

RECO page: https://www.reco.on.ca/

Licence Fees: 
It may range from $400 - $2000 

Other Fees:
Brokerage Charges may depend on the brokerages.