Some questions about buying a house in Canada

[prairiechicken]

So I've been researching real estate in Canada a little, at least looking at what we might be able to buy for the same amount we think our house in Scotland is worth. All part of working out whether a move is a realistic thing/whether we could get more house for our money etc etc. However, there are things I don't know, which could have an impact. Can anyone help with these questions?

1) If a house is listed at a particular price, would you expect to offer more than that price, or less? If more, then would there be a percentage over the listed price that the vendor would expect to get? Or is it more normal practice to offer an amount under the asking price and hope that your offer isn't too cheeky?

2) Are there other costs like tax that we can expect to pay? How much can they be?

I know these might be 'how long is a piece of string' type of questions, but I want to make sure we're being vaguely realistic in our expectations

 

[scylla]

1) Depends what the real estate market is in that city / neighbourhood, how in demand (or not in demand) that specific property is (or that type of property), how long the property has been on the market, etc. This is where a real estate agent comes in very handy in providing guidance. For example, typically (I'm really generalizing) you can purchase a condo in downtown Toronto right now at or maybe just below the asking price. If you're interested in a house in the same area, right now you would probably have to pay asking at an absolute minimum and most houses are going for above asking (i.e. 5%-20% or even more over asking). Again, really depends where you are buying and what you are buying.

2) Short answer is that the additional costs can be tens of thousands. However it varies from province to province and city to city. It also depends if you are buying a brand new property (i.e. brand new condo or house that's just being built) or are buying pre-owned. Google "closing costs" + the city name you're interested in.

 

[kaisin82]

how much is the deposit to buy a house? and what are the interest rates for the mortgages

 

[scylla]

Down payment is minimum 5%.

Rates:

http://www.canadamortgage.com/ratesshow/showrates.cfm

 

[future2010]

Hi Kaisin,

I am a mortgage agent in Windsor Ontario. I migrated to Canada last year so I know the whole process. I bought my first home three months after arriving.

If interested send me an email. I can do mortgages in any place in Ontario and few in other providences.

Regards,
Enrique

 

[Jamgirl.]

In saskatchewan, you purchase lower than the asking price, never over