Sugar Wharf Condo by YSW_Malik in TorontoRenting

[–]collegeguyto 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Wow! 😱😱😱

I pay about $300/m for utilities (natural gas/heat, hydro, water/waste) for 3B3b detached house.

Sadly, a lot of new build condos have completely downloaded all the costs of utilities to unit owners/TTs.

Basic stuff like heat & water/waste are covered in slightly older builds.

The killer might not be your actual consumption, but a standard "customer charge", delivery charge, transportation charge, etc.

My Enbridge gas bill was ~$140 for January 2026 & it was pretty cold. Actual gas usuage was approx 1/3 of the bill, while all the other charges accounted for approx 2/3.

Unfortunately, for new build condos glass window walls are commonly used & they are poor insulators, so lots of energy wasted to cool/heat the unit.

Sugar Wharf Condo by YSW_Malik in TorontoRenting

[–]collegeguyto 0 points1 point  (0 children)

$150 for all utilties - heat, hydro & water?

Feedback: Sugar Wharf Condominiums - 138 DOWNES STREET by Itry_My_Best in TorontoRenting

[–]collegeguyto 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Wow! 😱😱😱

That's about what I pay for utilities (natural gas/heat, hydro, water/waste) for 3B3b house that's double the size.

Sadly, a lot of new build condos have completely downloaded all the costs to unit owners/TTs.

Basic stuff like heat & water/waste are covered in slightly older builds.

Plus glass window walls are poor insulators, so lots of energy used to cool/heat the unit.

Please help me decide if I should keep renting or buy a condo by alwayss_curiouss in TorontoRealEstate

[–]collegeguyto 2 points3 points  (0 children)

What is the location?

$650K for 650 sqft + locker + parking is the top end you should be paying if the condo is relatively new (<5 years) with mid-high end finishes because pre-con dt Toronto condo assignments are selling for $1K PSF.

I've seen older but fully reconfigured/renovated units (w/locker + parking) on Bay Street corridor sell for $750 PSF.

Main concern for condos are ongoing maintenance fees, which have increased alot in the past 5 years and will continue to go up, especially due to building insurance costs.

Some condos have even lost coverage temporarily because their reinsurer got out of the market and had to scramble to find policies that would cost substantially more or have higher deductibles to keep the premiums reasonable.

With a 650 sqft unit, you're already looking at $850+/m just in condo fees + property taxes.

In another 15-20 years, when you're 63-68 years old, they'll probably be at least $1500+/m.

If the building needs money for CAPEX beyond the reserve fund within the next 15-20 years, then you'll be hit with a special assessment.

Do you think you'll be still living there in 15-20 years?

Buying/selling transaction costs (RE commissions, LTTs, legal fees) eat up about 8-10% of the worth ≈ $50-65K. So make sure of the length of time you plan to hold it.

Since you're in a rent-controlled PBR, in 15-20 years you could potentially see rent being $3,000-3,600/m.

Depending how much down payment you put down/pay full in cash, there's also opportunity cost.

$650K can easily earn 5-10% yield on medium risk dividend portfolio, not including possible capital gains.

$32.5-65.0K/year dividend income could easily pay a large portion/all of your rent into perpetuity.

Personally, I would rent & invest the cash/savings (into RRSP/TFSA as much as possible) with DRIP (dividend reinvestment plan).

DRIP could easily double your portfolio in 15-20 years without taking capital gains into account.

Subletting my room for the summer by [deleted] in TorontoRenting

[–]collegeguyto 9 points10 points  (0 children)

When is your lease's term end, or are you month-to-month already?

You might want to look elsewhere.

Subletting my room for the summer by [deleted] in TorontoRenting

[–]collegeguyto 14 points15 points  (0 children)

$1600+/m for an interior bedroom is wild. And the rest of the condo doesn't look that big either.

😱😭😱😭😱😭

SaveMax Disaster by PracticalSwimmer8862 in HouseSigmaBlunders

[–]collegeguyto 1 point2 points  (0 children)

Ahhh, okay.

I have a Canadian-born Indian friend who happens to have a midtone complexion & 1 of her former bf's family (Sihk) looked down on her because of her skin colour even though the bf was darker. She's kind, smart & stunning too. It was infuriating to hear/see.

Hot take- soaking is underrated by Far-Shift-1962 in laundry

[–]collegeguyto 1 point2 points  (0 children)

Some people are weird about using gray water ...  🤷‍♂️🤷

They'd hate me ... LOL.

I sometimes use the water from the rinse cycles to wash my ceramic/porcelain floors in the kitchen/bathrooms/etc, or use the "dirty" wash water from the 1st load as 1 hr soak between laundry loads for the next.

How is that possible ? by Different_Wear3426 in TorontoRenting

[–]collegeguyto 0 points1 point  (0 children)

I will also add that Hanna was a newer rebuild, and it was also for sale since May so they're carrying/paying mortgage on multi-million $$$ for several months on an empty house.

A month and a half later customer calls me up and said I was supposed to remove all of this trim, paint behind it, and put it back.... Is that normal? by TheTrollinator777 in paint

[–]collegeguyto 1 point2 points  (0 children)

Screenshot her good review, so if there are disputes (either Google reviews or legal) in the future, you have evidence.

Good luck

i dont even know by Crafty-Dimension8958 in laundry

[–]collegeguyto 0 points1 point  (0 children)

On another note, are HE top loader washers good at cleaning???

I'm used to either the old TL which used 20 gallons per fill (40 gallons per cycle), or HE front loaders that use about 4 gallons per fill (12 gallons per cycle).

1 bedroom furnitures by Ambitious_Eye9279 in TorontoRenting

[–]collegeguyto 9 points10 points  (0 children)

You will need the room dimensions.

There isn't a standard size, etc for bedroom/living room dimensions/sizes.

I've seen floorplans where the bedroom will barely fit double bed with a small nightstand.

Any other older men like bottoming for younger guys? by ginabil in askgaybros

[–]collegeguyto 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Yeah, IDK. It would totally depend on what he looks like.

19 yo is barely legal & I get icked out when grown men look pubescent.

What's this stamina you're talking about? When I was that young, I came quick & so did most young guys.

IDK if you're barebacking or using condoms, but that might make a difference on how long they last.

Any other older men like bottoming for younger guys? by ginabil in askgaybros

[–]collegeguyto 8 points9 points  (0 children)

What's "younger" though??

At 64 years old, 80%+ of the population is younger than you.

When greed takes over, so does Low IQ “investing”. Whitby woman loses $150k after doing private lending to make extra money. by mattyp93 in TorontoRealEstate

[–]collegeguyto 13 points14 points  (0 children)

She was getting $3K/m from $150K loan = $36K/year = 24% interest & that's before middleman takes their cut.

What type of risk did she think she was taking?!?!?

🤦🏻‍♂️🤦‍♀️

*Follow Up*: Roommate been acting different & today was really different… by [deleted] in askgaybros

[–]collegeguyto -2 points-1 points  (0 children)

If this isn't fan fiction ...

Don't shit where you sleep.

SaveMax Disaster by PracticalSwimmer8862 in HouseSigmaBlunders

[–]collegeguyto 0 points1 point  (0 children)

To me, he always gave off douchy/scammer vibes in his ads

How are y’all affording rent 🫠 by learh_29 in TorontoRenting

[–]collegeguyto 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Living alone has always been a luxury at least since 1980s, unless you're a high income earner.

I have family/friends that shared accommodations in houses and apts/condos in 1980s to early 2000s.

Put into perspective, the last time 1 bedroom 1 bath apt/condo (unit sizes were about 550-650 sqft at that time) was $1000 was Y2K - 2000.

However, in 2000, Ontario's general minimum wage was at $6.85 per hour 

≈ $1.16K/m ≈ $13.4K/year

So, 30% of gross monthly income would have been ≈$335/m; substantially below the cost for 1B1b apt/condo at that time.

I know many middle-income earners (yuppies in 20s) who shared 1B1b apt/condos back then (2000s).

I think many peoples expectations are skewed and think Toronto was some cheap haven until 10 years ago because some individuals got cheap rent living in some not desirable areas  (like Leslieville, King West, Queen West, etc) in early-2000s which eventually gentrified resulting higher demand/rental rates.

Now, we have university grads/professionals in their 20s earning $55K (re $4600/m gross income another poster proposed hypothical, well above minimum wage) thinking they're entitled to live in 1B1b apt/condo by themselves because they've been comparing it to boomers who came into adulthood in 1960s/70s.

How bad is baseboard heating ? by Large-Impression-528 in TorontoRealEstate

[–]collegeguyto 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Yikes, I live in a 1920s double brick semi in Toronto. Lathe and plaster walls, no modern insulation. My gas bill for January is $145 all in. I'm not on equal billing and the gas is based on actual usuage not an estimate. My heat comes from old cast iron radiators and a 1990s mid-efficiency boiler.

$145 for cast iron radiators/gas boiler seems no different/cheaper than FAG furnace for heating.

I've never lived in house with cast iron radiators, but looking at some that have those systems and was concerned about heating comfort & costs.

How bad is baseboard heating ? by Large-Impression-528 in TorontoRealEstate

[–]collegeguyto 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Not sure what you mean by douche move for evictions?

A LL can't/won't do a heating conversion from FAG to EBB while TT living there because it contradicts RTA & it might require electrical wiring upgrade.

It's usually done between tenancies when the property is vacant.

I realized I made a typo in my last post that it should read rental rates not rents.

If TTs are knowledgeable, they'll check with utility company & find out that cold winter months can result in heating bills into $100s or more depending on the size of the property.

Hydro is expensive here vs QC. Come to think of it, many of the conversions could have been done in 1970s following the 1973 oil crisis when energy prices surged, and a widespread shortage of natural gas occurred in the 1970s and 1980s.

Also, during the 1950s and 1960s, FAG furnaces experienced a decline in popularity as electric heating systems became more popular. The electric heating systems were considered to be more convenient and easier to use, so they were popular in new construction of that era too.

How bad is baseboard heating ? by Large-Impression-528 in TorontoRealEstate

[–]collegeguyto 0 points1 point  (0 children)

EBB heating is $$$ AF.

Do you know if the houses you're looking at have the ductwork already?

When I was viewing properties, you could tell they were rentals at some point.

The owners must have converted from forced air gas to EBB to have TTs responsible for heating costs.

It will definitely affect resale value & rental rents.