>> (Depending on area), current rents are in about the same ballpark as payments on a new mortgate,
> Not in Toronto, which is like the whole point
Then what is the rent/mortgage situation in Toronto? That was never discussed in the article. In my area rent is 2-3x higher than a mortgage, all I know about Toronto is that property values are high.
The early-90s harbourfront towers by Bay and Queens Quay rent studios/1bds for $1500-1600 incl utilities or buy for $400-500k + maint fees $500-700/month + tax + util
1+1 in the area at the moment will go for around $1800-1900/month. Based on two places I've rented in the Pinnacle centre over the past 3 years(and looking for places in that complex and ones near by).
In the battle of anecdotes, my entry is a studio in the upper third of 99 Harbour Square, 120 degree lake view to the east, rented in July 2014 for $1500 including all fees and utilities. Has it gone up a lot over the past year?
I moved out of my last Toronto place a few months after that so I'm not 100% but I would say no given the rate of increases in the years before that I lived there. I can say that for a few hundred more a month you could almost certainly have a bedroom and a den pretty much across the street. Pinnacle has some of the better amenities in the area too.
> Not in Toronto, which is like the whole point
Then what is the rent/mortgage situation in Toronto? That was never discussed in the article. In my area rent is 2-3x higher than a mortgage, all I know about Toronto is that property values are high.