
08 Nov Do you need to be in a relationship to buy a home?
All my single ladies… All my single ladies!!! Really… who needs a relationship when you can buy your dream home on your own? I’ve met many buyers in my career and as a busy real estate broker; one of the thing I’ve always admired was the single ladies buying their dream homes on their own. I bought my first condo at 24 years old. It was my first foray into real estate. I got a two bedroom, one bath, 700 sq.ft. condo near the Plateau. It did have paper thin walls, but the location was amazing and the potential to renovate was better. It was steps from Sherbrooke Street and six blocks from the Main. It was my first big investment and when I sold it a couple years later, I made enough money to start my real estate portfolio – but I digress…
When buying a condo or a house as a woman, it always brings me back to one of my favorite shows, Sex and the City.
Carrie Bradshaw is forced to buy her New York City flat after years of renting when she is given a notice to buy from Aiden or vacate the condo within 30 days. During this process, she proclaimed that she “didn’t want to be remembered as the old woman in the shoe”, after realizing she invested all her money into a $40,000+ shoe collection. All her adult life was spent writing, buying the most envied fashionista’s clothing and investing in her lavish shoe collection. She never saved to buy nor did she keep money aside for a rainy day. After being properly counselled by Miranda, she decided to buy her apartment with the help of Charlotte. However, not all girlfriends are as generous as Charlotte to sell their engagement or wedding ring to help a friend put a down payment on their property. My suggestion to you is to develop the second best thing to a divorcee’s old bling – your new best friends: a financial planner and mortgage broker! And of course, after your finances are all in place and ready to go, call your Real Estate Broker to find you that perfect place.
When I bought my first condo, I took the RRSPs I’d been saving since I was sixteen to put down as my down payment.
I was properly advised at a young age by a financial planner and it came in very handy when I decided to buy and meet with my mortgage broker and later my agent.
Picture this, you’re coming home after a long day at the office and you arrive to your newly purchased condo that you personalized completely to your taste and more importantly, to your clothing and shoe affair. Carrie crammed all her shoes and clothing into a hallway walk in closet because she didn’t have the extra space. Why settle for a hallway when you can have a second bedroom dedicated to your fashion fetish?
Not all real estate investments need to be when you are settled into a romantic relationship.
They need to be done when the market is soft, the mortgage rates are competitive and the budget planning was done in advance to secure the investment. Ladies we can have it all and I can’t believe I’m about to quote Britney Spears here… but “get to WORK… WERK!!!!”
Nancy Kafadarow
Real Estate Broker 2013.
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