What can you actually afford?
This runs your income and debts through the real lender ratios (GDS and TDS) and the federal stress test, the same math a bank uses. It is a strong estimate, not a pre-approval, but it gets you in the right range before you fall for a listing you can't finance.
Ratios used: 39% GDS / 44% TDS. Stress test qualifies you at the greater of your rate + 2% or 5.25%.
The real cash to close
Your down payment is not the whole story. This is the money you need on top of it, on closing day. Land transfer tax is the big one people forget, and in Ontario there is an 8% PST on your mortgage insurance if you're putting down less than 20%. Here's the full picture.
Your payment, and the cost of waiting
What the payment actually is (calculated the Canadian way, semi-annual compounding), plus the honest math on waiting. Sometimes waiting saves you money and sometimes a rising market eats the savings alive. See both.
Rent vs buy, honestly
Owning is not automatically the win. This compares your true cost of owning (after you get your equity back) against renting and investing the difference. Adjust the assumptions to your own view of the market.
Owning cost = all payments, tax, and ~1%/yr upkeep, minus the equity you'd have. Renting cost = total rent, minus growth on your down payment invested instead. Selling costs are included on the owning side.
First-time buyer money on the table
These are current for 2026. Stacked together, a solo first-time buyer can pull up to $100,000 tax-advantaged toward a first home, and a couple up to $200,000. Most people use one and miss the rest.
FHSA
First Home Savings Account. Contribute up to $8,000/yr to a $40,000 lifetime cap. Deductible going in, tax-free coming out for a first home. The best of an RRSP and a TFSA in one.
Home Buyers' Plan
Borrow up to $60,000 from your own RRSP ($120,000 as a couple), tax-free, to repay over 15 years. Stacks on top of the FHSA.
Land transfer tax rebate
Ontario refunds your land transfer tax up to $4,000 (full tax on homes to $368,000). In the City of Toronto you also get up to $4,475 more.
Total you can assemble
FHSA + HBP together, tax-advantaged, toward your first down payment. Double it as a qualifying couple. Worth planning a year ahead.
What you actually walk away with
Sale price is not your cheque. This is the number that matters: what lands in your account after the mortgage, commission (plus HST), and closing costs come off. Know it before you list, not after.
Discharge penalty on a fixed mortgage can be far higher than the placeholder if you break early. Your lender gives the exact figure. Ask me to confirm before you count on this number.
What's your home really worth?
Not an online estimate scraped from stale data. I carry an appraisal background, so you get a real comparative valuation: recent sales, honest adjustments for what beats your home and what your home beats, and a pricing strategy. Fill this in and it opens a ready-to-send message to me.
Thanks, I'll pull the recent comparables and get you a real valuation, usually within 24 hours. Want it sooner? Book a quick call.
What actually moves the needle
Where prep money earns its keep, and where it doesn't. You do not need to renovate. You need the house to photograph well and show without objections. This is the short list that returns the most for the least.
Read the market like an appraiser
Forget the headlines. Three numbers tell you what's really happening in a neighbourhood, and once you know them you'll never be spun by a hot-take news story again. Ask me for this month's numbers in your specific area.
List-to-sale ratio
Sale price divided by list price. Over 100% means bidding wars and a seller's market. Under 97% means buyers have room to negotiate. It tells you how hard to push, in either direction.
Days on market
How long homes actually sit before selling. Rising days on market means momentum is cooling and patience pays. Falling means move fast and firm.
Months of inventory
How long it'd take to sell everything for sale at the current pace. Under 4 months favours sellers, over 6 favours buyers, and 4 to 6 is balanced. This is the single best read on who has leverage.
What actually happens, offer to keys
The Ontario transaction, week by week, so nothing catches you off guard. Timelines flex, but this is the shape of it.
Offer accepted
Price and terms agreed and signed. Your deposit is delivered, usually within 24 hours, and held in trust.
Conditions period
Financing, home inspection, and (for condos) the status certificate review. This is your window to verify everything. Nothing is firm yet.
Firm up or walk
You waive the conditions and the deal is binding, or a condition isn't met and you walk with your deposit back. This is the real commitment point.
Lawyers and lending
Your lawyer runs title searches and prepares documents, your lender finalizes the mortgage, and you line up home insurance (required to close).
Final walkthrough
We confirm the home is in the condition you agreed to buy and that everything included is still there.
Keys
Funds and title transfer between the lawyers, land transfer tax is paid, and the home is yours. Move-in is usually that afternoon.
Your team, not just your agent
A deal takes more than a realtor. These are the people I actually work with and trust. When you work with me, you get the whole bench.
Emily & Chantal, my go-to brokers, from first-timers to cross-border and self-employed income. No pressure to switch if you already have your own.
Ask me to introduce youNiagara Law. Works with our friends and clients from Niagara to Toronto and everywhere in between. We also have many other amazing lawyers we can refer.
DraperS@niagaralaw.caAnna & Maggie. Placement and removal handled, staged homes photograph better and sell faster. I coordinate the schedule with you.
Ask me to coordinateHome inspector, contractor, cleaner, painter. I match you to the right person for your property and area. Just ask.
Ask for a referralGore Team Realty is us.
Steven and Jessica Gore. Husband and wife, and yes, that is our real last name.
Over 10 years in, we sell more homes a year than 99% of agents in Canada, and we rank in the top 0.05% across the GTA and Niagara combined. We built our name at RE/MAX and Keller Williams, earned a Sports and Entertainment designation at KW, and brought our team to eXp Realty, one of the best brokerages in the world, so we can sell homes anywhere with the best resources going. Two time ICON award winners at eXp.
Here is the part that actually matters. Somewhere along the way this business got pushy and sales driven, agents chasing the deal instead of the person. That was our opening. We would rather stand out by giving a damn, contributing to our communities, helping people, and growing together. That is the whole motivation.
Building relationships that last a lifetime is what gives this meaning. Selling homes is just how we get to do it. Our track record and our 25 five star Google reviews are out in the open for anyone to read, because the best way to earn trust is to let you check for yourself. We care about our friends and family, we want our kids safe, and we want our neighbours to win. We are just people, same as you, who happen to be very good at this one thing.
Let's run your real numbers.
These calculators get you in the range. A 15-minute call gets you the exact numbers for your situation, your area, and your timeline. No pressure, no pitch, just the straight read.