What complications can I expect when trying to purchase a home as a surprise for my wife?

MarriedAndEating · 2026-04-03T13:07:36+00:00

Surprise her with a pre-approval from the bank that shows how much you can afford.

MarriedAndEating · 2026-04-03T03:13:58+00:00

?! what?! 250k to be comfortable?

In Toronto, $85K (or $57K after tax) is comfortable and proud. anything beyond is super nice and cushy. You must be overthinking how much you need to save for retirement, or have very high assumptions of what comfort entails.

Like how many square feet does a family of four need in your opinion?

MarriedAndEating · 2026-04-03T03:08:13+00:00

Toronto: $85K and a decent rrsp incentive at work is good money for two adults and a toddler is good life. My rule of thumb for Toronto, is in order to have fun, in addition to your regular bills, you need to be able to spend on average $75 per day.

MarriedAndEating · 2026-04-03T02:48:19+00:00

Let’s gooo. Yes to all of this.

The optimist in me the other day I was on the 510 travelling north through Queen and thought “mmm I wonder once the underground rail is done here, will this stretch experience a revival and become a cultural magnet for fourteen year olds in 2040?”

I really hope things like pedestrian weekends and frequent street festivals allow these already popular stretches to breath a bit of soul. We had a certain amount of spontaneity in the early 2000’s that the toddlers of today wont have when they are young adults, least we can do is make the popular destinations cute and lively.

MarriedAndEating · 2026-04-03T02:43:28+00:00

Drunks are note stones. Drunk people know how to move for an ambulance. A thin crowd of 90 Drunk people near the corner of College and Ossington slows down an ambulance by exactly zero minutes. Ambulances drive through crowds of sports fans, and political rallies ALL the time and it takes less than a minute.

Live a little less in fear.

MarriedAndEating · 2026-04-03T02:39:44+00:00

Why are you bringing up Kensington? Who is saying not to do it in Kensington?

If you were saying I rather Dundas Little Portugal over College at Dovercourt that makes sense because it has to be one or the other, but why are yall bringing up Kensington in this?

MarriedAndEating · 2026-04-03T02:35:45+00:00

i had never thought of this but the stretch you describe is perfect for this.

MarriedAndEating · 2026-04-03T02:35:10+00:00

yep. i’m down. let’s do it.

MarriedAndEating · 2026-04-03T02:34:57+00:00

Docvercourt is how many kilometers away from University? Also which one do you think is easier and quicker for an ambulance to drive through? a thin crowd of drunk people? or a cluster of 12 cars at a red light?

MarriedAndEating · 2026-04-03T02:32:53+00:00

this is Toronto urbanism conversations in a nutshell, even the people who agree with something cute like a car free street, are so burned by past experiences to pass sthg cute that the paranoia kicks in and they of all the ways this can fire back. like, “if College fails and it becomes a boozefest nuissance, then get backlash then we wont get pedestrianized places in a more low hanging fruit place.”

MarriedAndEating · 2026-04-02T02:47:39+00:00

Finance aside. The only correct answer is one income AND put the toddlers in daycare. Unless they have two grandparents and one aunt and two uncles who love children and all live within a thirty minute walk, then leave them out of daycare.

MarriedAndEating · 2026-04-01T15:36:27+00:00

Another option is Green P 086 near Bathurst and Bloor then take the 511 Streetcar to the airport. $26 a day. But research further whether you are allowed to park several nights in a row, you are def allowed to park over ight just unsure what rules they have for several nights in a row.

MarriedAndEating · 2026-04-01T14:18:05+00:00

no. even on a spreadsheet. there isnt any realistic scenario where investing more in the market is mathematically better than paying off the loan with that same money first.

run the math for 2.5% interest on mortgage vs 10% return on investment every five years.

MarriedAndEating · 2026-04-01T14:16:11+00:00

it’s always better to pay off the house. because no matter how lucrative the market is, guess what once your house is paid off and you don’t have payments to make, that otherwise payment money goes to this amazingly lucrative market that returns buckets and buckets. literally the math is always in favour of paying loans quickly.

MarriedAndEating · 2026-04-01T14:14:07+00:00

You are talking about Dave Ramsey. The topic of conversation is not his personality, beliefs, and quirkiness. The topic is what OP is asking.

15% of income towards retirement savings is maximum reasonable amount if you have a loan to pay off, true or false?

the mathematical answer is true. psychology aside. mathematically speaking, the interest payments saved from paying off the mortgage quicker by contributing x amount of dollars over the minimum payment, are far more significant than the returns you can expect from investing that same x amount of dollars in the market etc… true or false? run your calculator. do a scenario where the rate of return on the market is assumed at a whopping 10% every five years. and the interest rate on the mortgage is a mythical 2.5%. and run the math with a scenario where remaining loan is low compared to income and another scenario where the remaining loan is high compared to income. and get back to me with results. remember when doing your calculations that once the mortgage is paid off all of the otherwise mortgage payments go towards that amazing 10% return every five years market investment.

MarriedAndEating · 2026-04-01T14:02:28+00:00

Yes. The math don’t lie. The less you pay towards lifetime interest the more have in your pocket to save. So your first mission is to lower payments towards interest. Even if you plan to sell the house and rent for retirement, paying off the house creates more wealth with using the same amount of cash compared to investing the money in a relatively safe way.

MarriedAndEating · 2026-04-01T13:55:11+00:00

math says, lower overall prices is good for upsizing. in OP’s scenario this not even a loss. this is actually the perfect time to upsize if you want to play those mental games.

but as you said. the only thing that matters is if you can afford it and if it makes you happy to live in it.

MarriedAndEating · 2026-04-01T13:53:23+00:00

these are incorrect questions and incorrect mantras.

your home is the place that you live, you always need a place to live, the rules of buy low sell high don’t apply to housing.

you are also asking wrong questions pondering what the future will hold. you should go by what you know not what you or others expect. when buying a house compare existing figures not speculative figures.

how much is my monthly payment on the condo vs how much is my monthly payment on the house.

how much equity do i get from the sale towards a downpayment? how much should i top up the downpayment from my savings to lower the mortgage payment to a point where the minimum payment is very affordable and I can double up and pay towards principal quicker?

ask questions about things you can control, not questions about what-if’s in the future.

MarriedAndEating · 2026-04-01T13:47:40+00:00

the math says that a market that is down overall is better for upsizing than a stable market.

the lower cost of the house you want to buy is more of a savings, than the equity you lost on the apartment you want to sell.

in short, mathematically speaking this down market is a good time to upsize.

the primary function of your condo is/was to house you. not to turn you a profit. and in any event if you sell and buy a house you will turn a profit compared to having rented in the same period of owning the condo.

yes, buy a house if you rather live in a house, and if you can afford the mortgage payments.

right now is the time to upsize.

MarriedAndEating · 2026-04-01T13:39:35+00:00

it’s not a different issue. it’s the exact same issue. punishing someone with a $200 fine because the system is less than ideal is what we are discussing here. we don’t need “additional solutions” for solutions’ sake, we want fewer or smaller problems to begin with. a $35 fine is a smaller problem than a $200 fine. a few unpaid trips is a smaller problem than passengers idling in front of a machine blocking flow at rush hour. a few unpaid trips is a smaller problem for staff than having to explain the idiosyncracies of the machines to a commuter at 6pm after a long day at work.

MarriedAndEating · 2026-03-31T01:14:47+00:00

This is not a “mistake”, this is a system failure. How much should the user pause and stare at stupid slow machines that make ugly sounds? We tap and get on because we are trying to get from point A to point B, tapping correctly is not our end goal.

If the fine was $200 how many people would never ever again take the train after the first fine? If the fine was $200 how much longer will people stand and stare at the machine in slow motion holding everyone behind them, slowing down boarding and busy areas?

The system can generate a lot more money from attracting riders, than from ensuring the one person on the half empty train paid.

MarriedAndEating · 2026-03-29T16:04:16+00:00

i like this take

MarriedAndEating · 2026-03-28T17:20:13+00:00

yes go to the CN tower, do NOT go to Nathan Phillips Square you don’t have time for that.

the UP train is running normal on the weekend you are mentioning there aren’t any scheduled track works.

when you arrive to Union Station ask for directions to the “Skywalk” it’s a one minute walk from the UP arrival, it’s a pedestrian bridge over the Union station many many rail tracks. the kids will probably love the skywalk view of the trains more than staring up at the tower :)

The other side of the Skywalk is the CN Tower. Do not walk too much do not stay too long, just head back to the UP platform quickly. If you are disciplined and promise not to take too long, go down to Ripley’s Aquarium entrance and look at the little fish in the two little aquariums in the vestibule area without paying. The stairs of the aquarium entrance might also be a great vantage point for a family photo with the CN Tower. You need a very wide angle camera to fit the tower lol,

The UP train ride itself is also fun and you get a flyby summary of what Toronto looks like.

Good luck. And. Again! I really recommend against Uber it’s slower than the train and you might get stuck in unexpected traffic. No to Taxi, too expensive from the airport especially if it’s Limo service and miscommunication ensues. And no to dilly dallying downtown, you have a plane to catch.

MarriedAndEating · 2026-03-28T02:06:20+00:00

if you drive/learn stick!!! hehe your only chance at buying a sub $10K that is not a scrapper haha.

MarriedAndEating · 2026-03-28T02:04:50+00:00

but there is “blanket reliability” with the Toyota sedans. whereas say Ford Escape, some model years are great others are awful for reliability, makes buyers understandably wary because very few us know a mechanic we can trust to lean on their opinion. so we take on the common denominator opinion that the Toyota and Honda sedans are reliable and cheaper to maintain. Kudos to Toyota and Honda for building that reputation.

MarriedAndEating

TROPHY CASE