All Forum Posts by: Phil Bailey

I'm a little biased here as I'm a realtor in London, Ontario, but if you do buy outside of your city I would highly recommend using a local agent.  I work with a lot of investors that have hardly ever been to my city and there are several red flags to watch out for in terms of neighbourhoods that some people miss if they use someone that doesn't understand the market well.

I'd be interested in this if you'd take on a real estate agent in London.  

How about London?  Lots of GTA investors thinking about this area and only a couple hours down the highway.  

Come on down to London - lots of GTA folks buying here :) 

Following this thread as I have run into this issue with investor clients in the London, Ontario area.  COVID-19 is unprecedented territory and there will be some that take advantage of this to not pay rent or not vacate a home even after being provided with notice.  Here's my concern - if a client buys a home with a tenant and makes an offer with a clause regarding "vacant possession" but then shows up on closing date with a tenant still in the home, what is the recourse?  I'm not a lawyer but have included additional walkthroughs to make sure the tenant is "gone" or close to moved out in advance of the closing date.  Perhaps we can ask for a hold back or just refuse to close, as that isn't the buyer's fault and the contract says vacant possession.  I think extra protection is needed in these situations. 

My understanding is that there is a backlog in certain areas of Ontario.  Are you in the GTA by chance? 

Agreed - really like the idea of adding an additional apartment downstairs to a freehold.  Older condos can be really tough with the rising condo fee and potential special assessments.  I always caution my clients around this.

Agreed @Alex Kovalenko - you have to watch those condo fees, especially when they keep going up! 

I'm a real estate agent in London, Ontario and have had an influx of investors from the GTA contacting me to purchase in the area.  Price point is attractive, the students in the area (COVID-19 may change this a little this year) drive demand, and you can still purchase a single-family with a separate entrance and make the numbers work by adding an additional apartment.  This also helps you avoid condo fees.  That said, be careful about rental license requirements in London and, this year, anything under 400,000 seems to go in multiple offers so taking the emotion out of it in advance and running the numbers makes a ton of sense. 

This is a concern in London, Ontario where I do most of my business.  We have two large post-secondary schools in a relatively small city (under 400,000 total population) and this has concerned a lot of the investors I work with in the area.

Make sure it is properly vented and consider installing a timed fan.  I find most people use the timed fan more than a fan that they immediately will turn off when being done in a steamy shower, which is not advised.  Funny enough, I find having a fan avoids so many moisture issues in the bathroom and it is something I look for and mention to almost all my clients.