Recent Blog Posts by Randy Ramadhin

New Detach Homes in Durham Offer Excellent Value

According to the Toronto Star February 2012, new detached homes in Durham Region offer excellent value on a price per square foot basis, a measure commonly used in highrise condominiums. In Durham Region, the average price of a new detached home is $414,296. That gets you 2,243 square feet of living space (plus basement) on a 40-foot lot — all for the equivalent unit price of $185 per square ...

Investors Coming to Oshawa

As per the Canadian Real Estate Magazine, great growth potential in Oshawa has investors looking to this area 60km east of Toronto. As General Motors has been at the forefront of the Oshawa economy, many wrote off the area in 2009 with the plant closing. But Oshawa not only survived, but thrived since.  Oshawa has a diverse economy with affordable property values and a growing university. Read ...

Pickering Airport

The Greater Toronto Airports Authority is urging Transport Canada to make a decision on a Pickering airport. Instead of investing billions into Pearson for renovations, opening a Pickering airport will alleviate some of that spending. Also, of the 30 000 people who work at Pearson, about 1400 live in Durham. There are compelling reasons to open a Pickering airport including the increased travel. Read ...

Planning of the Pickering Airport Lands

Ajax-Pickering MP Chris Alexander says the Pickering Airport Lands can’t be allowed to continue to hang in limbo. Despite that sentiment, and a promise last summer in the needs assessment survey to create a plan “in the coming months,” there’s still no timeline to develop the land in north Pickering. Read More

Strong Year for Durham Home Sales

DURHAM REGION, January 5, 2011– The resale housing market in Durham Region cooled in December with 517 sales which was ­­­­254 fewer sales than in November. “This kind of market activity is very typical for this time of year. Overall 2011 has been a strong year with a total of 9,807 sales in the region,” commented Christine Marquis, President of the Durham Region Association ...

Oshawa’s Student Housing Battle

Oshawa has hosted students renting in this city ever since Durham College was established in the late 1960’s. With this smaller campus quite north of the main city, students were hardly noticed. Quite the difference a few decades later to the overwhelming presence of a college aged population, Oshawa is becoming something of a University town. Trent University has expanded their Oshawa branch ...

Public Housing Project Near Concord’s Condo Sites Cancelled

The proposed affordable housing project in the Railways Lands condominium development is now in limbo due to the Toronto Community Housing Corporation’s lack of funding for the project. This has caused quite a stir in the area for residents and potential investors. The location serves residents of nearby condo towers built by Concord Adex. The land was allocated for two schools, a community centre, ...

Oshawa is Making a Comeback

Oshawa is booming once again! While most Canadian cities saw economic growth slowing in 2011, Oshawa ranked third highest for economic growth and expects GDP to rise by 3.5% according to the news release by the Conference Board of Canada. In the last five years, Oshawa has devoted countless resources in giving their downtown a good facelift. This has attracted a whole new community of working professionals ...

Highway 407 East and Durham Links

If you drive east past Brock, just north of Taunton, you’ll see that the construction has started Highway 407 East along Winchester. This highway will be a publicly owned toll road, operated by the province. The design and construction of this highway is expected to create and sustain roughly 13,000 jobs throughout the Durham Region. The highway will be constructed in two phases, from Brock ...

How can investing in condos work with the high maintenance fee?

I get asked this all the time from already and newbie real estate investors why and how I invest in condominiums. I get comments like “You can’t cashflow with the maintenance fees!” or “The prices just don’t make sense!” I usually respond by saying cashflow with freehold is usually just an illusion. Most investors pocket this net cash inflow after expenses every ...

Did you know that you are entitled up to $7500 from your builder for delayed occupancy?

Most new home buyers don’t know and why would the builder want you to know this anyway?! Empowered buyers are using Tarion to fight back. I encourage you to consult with your lawyer on this matter. For more details go to www.tarion.com. Condominium buyers do you know that most builders will give permission to assign your unit during the interim occupancy period for a fee?Why is this a better ...

Brampton Housing Development – Preston Homes

As with many areas across Ontario, Brampton is seeing an explosion in housing development presently. And this exciting new trend is set to continue with Preston Homes leading the way. With their innovative approach and experience, the new residents of the community are likely to be well looked after; no matter what individual or family budgets are. Read More

Where to Invest in a Condominium- Using a Rent to Price Ratio

I recently discussed with an investor class a question: “Where should I invest in a condominium?”. The question of freehold versus condo has already been answered because the investors were interested in a low hassle investment, read other blog titled “How Can Condo Investing Work with High Maintenance Fees“.I asked, if you bought a 1 bedroom plus den downtown Toronto versus ...

Where Are These Condo Buyers Coming From?

Urbanation has just released their first quarter numbers in 2011 for condo sales. They announced sales as being just under the amount of last year this time. The average price per square foot is $480 compared to $443 last year.   Read More

Long Term Transportation Plans for Halton Region

On Tuesday, April 5, 2011, I listened to the Transportation Master Plan for Halton Region. This region consists of Oakville, Burlington, Milton, and Halton Hills. Why has the average value of homes in Oakville increased to $572,909 in March 2011 and seen a 6% increase year over year. Why has Milton increased to an average home price of $409,207 in March 2011 and has similarily a 7% increase year ...

How mortgage rule changes affect you!

The Canadian government is averting potential overleveraging of Canadian families by a) not insuring HELOCs or Home Equity Line of Credits over 80% of the appraised value of a home, b) not allowing homeowners to refinance more than 85% of the appraised value of a home (previously been up to 90% of the value), and c) not allowing amortizations to exceed 30 years (previously been up to 35 years). What ...