Homes for sale run the gauntlet. From first-time homebuyer homes to townhouses to estate homes to condos—we’ve got it all. But which one is best suited for you? And more importantly, which one is best suited for your budget?

Here at The Wilding Team we pride ourselves on finding the right home for our buyers. One that accommodates all of their needs and most of their wants. We also ensure that our clients never overpay—or overbuy, by buying more home than reasonably fits into their budget.

Houses for sale

When we help people decide what type of home they can afford, we look at the following:

• Wants vs. Nice-to-haves vs. Needs

  The first thing we do is decide what are needs, what are wants and what are nice-to-haves. For example, a three-bedroom house to fit their 4 children is a need, a four-bedroom home is a want and a 6-bedroom home is a nice-to-have. But beyond simple size we look at what wants/nice-to-haves can be incorporated into the house later, like an extra bathroom, a main-floor laundry or a fireplace.

• Intelligent Pricing and Offers

  You can’t put a price on a home but you can on a house. We look at myriad of features when deciding what price-point our clients should be at. We look at recent market trends and house prices and do home-to-home comparisons. We don’t believe in the “oh I’ll just offer the seller 5% under list price” approach because not all houses are priced properly, some prices are over priced by 10, 15 or 25%. Others might be under priced and therefore likely to drum up competitive-offer situations.

• More Than a Downpayment

  After decades of experience in the business we know that buying a house costs homebuyers much more than just the downpayment. There is also land-transfer tax—including provincial AND an additional tax if you’re relocating to Toronto, lawyer’s fees, inspection costs, closing costs, moving cost, possible utility hookup, house insurance, etc. You need to factor these into your home-buying budget.

• Bridge Financing

  We recommend that all our buyers look into bridge financing—just in case their dream home isn’t available the exact day they want.

• Moving

  If you’re moving to a condo or apartment you need to schedule elevators and ensure your furniture fits into your apartment and its hallways and elevators as buying new furniture will get expensive—especially right after buying a home. You also need to think about if furniture will fit up a curved staircase or other odd-shaped areas of the home.

There are throngs of elements to consider when deciding how nice of a home you can afford. To determine what type of home you and your family can afford, fill out the survey below and calculate what type of home for sale is in your budget.