Dream of owning your own home? Get a roommate, says Toronto’s chief planner
The Toronto Star
Jennifer Pagliaro, City Hall reporter
22 April 2016
Dear millennial,
If you, like so many of your peers, are squirreling away hard-earned
cash in hopes of one day making a down payment on a piece of real
estate in this city you know what it feels like to live with false hope.
You have stared, mournful at your desk, at the insane listings
showcased on Toronto Life ($1.15 million for a dog-friendly condo with
valet parking, don't even get me started on the actually houses).
You are no doubt aware that the struggle is real, with even properties only worth tearing down going way over-asking.
Well, here's your daily wake-up call: Toronto's chief planner Jennifer Keesmaat says its time to lower your expectations. "Fancy countertops"? Not in your lifetime.
Amid rising real estate prices, CBC host Matt Galloway has been asking
an interesting question on Metro Morning this week: "Who are we
building the city for?”
After having Vass Bednar – a millennial and the associate director of
cities for the Martin Prosperity Institute, who is less than optimistic
about Toronto's future and affordable housing – on the show, on Friday
morning, Galloway interviewed Keesmaat.
“It’s hard for Torontonians to appreciate, but we are in fact
relatively affordable on the global scale for a large city," said
Keesmaat, who lives in a red-brick detached home near Yonge and
Eglinton. She said cities are looking to appeal to millennials by
boosting the number of amenities as part of condo developments. And,
she said, the frustration that decision makers are catering to the
concerns of boomers already invested in the market is valid.
But, Galloway said, millennials still seem to feel owning a home remains unaffordable.
renting out a portion of your condo
That frustration is real, Keesmaat acknowledged. And then offered this:
“Part of it is about expectations. You
know, buying a house and renting out two thirds of it and living in one
third of it as a way of getting a foothold if you’re interested in
ownership in the market.
Historically that’s actually been a really good approach – getting into
the market and renting out a portion of your condo. Renting out a room
in your condo is a way of bringing your costs down. It means you live
in less space. You know, you might need to buy a fixer-upper instead of
maybe buying a place that has fancy countertops but I think there are
innovative and creative ways to still get into our market.”
Though it's not uncommon these days for new homeowners to immediately
become landlords by renting out a level or two to put towards mortgage
payments, Keesmaat's second suggestion for you millennials is to rent
out a room in a condo – assuming they had enough money to put a down
payment on a two-bedroom condo in the first place. In other words: Just
get a roommate.
One listener (an anonymous user posing as a raccoon) tweeted at the
radio show's account calling Keesmaat "delusional." Another offered
more constructive criticism: "Guest is ignoring the fact that
(millennials) can't afford down payment to buy house to rent out,
perpetuating myth of entitlement."
For those of you currently renting with one, two or more roommates, the
dream of homeownership may still include marathoning Grey's on Netflix
while your perpetual roommate demands brunch plans that include a
bucket of Gatorade.
a place to call
your own
For others, that dream might not involve the expectation of "fancy
countertops," but it may centre, at the very least, on a place to call
your own.
The woman in charge of building the city up, says even that may be too much to hope for.
Sincerely,
Your city hall correspondent (a fellow millennial)
top contents chapter previous next