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Yes, you can pay anyone to do anything, from washing the windows to shovelling the snow to weeding the garden. The freedom comes in when you get to decide who, when and how much to pay. There are freedoms in both lifestyles, and each one has its pros and cons.
 
Good point @PinkLucy

Here's an example: My building decided to replace all of the lobby furniture. It looks terrible. There is no way a designer was used. But guess who had to pay for it? That's the thing about living in a condo. You're at the mercy of the board. Your "freedom" is at the mercy of someone else. So put a dollar value on that I guess.
 
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I rescued this old table from a book in the garbage that shows the last time interest rates were this low. Of note is how long it took for interest rates to normalize. These are US numbers but they give us a historical precedent. Normalization is hard and takes a long time. Notes in the margin are mine. Normalization by 2030?
 

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There is a lot about economic theory and central bank policy that has changed.

Comparing US central banking policy from when they were still on the gold standard is silly.
 
No, I am saying extrapolating future interest rates based on the ww2 time period of a different country is dumb.
 
PinkLucy said:
I lived in a condo for the better part of the last decade (well, two different ones actually) and have just returned to a detached house. I wanted my own front door back and I was sick of elevators, and I missed my garden. I didn't mind paying the condo fees because I know exactly what it got me, and all things considered, my carrying costs will end up being pretty similar. So definitely not a financial decision. Maybe I'll go back to a condo later on (I'm in my late 50s), although if I do, I expect it will be a townhouse, which is actually what we were looking for and then we stumbled upon a house we loved. I really really missed my own front door and my own little patch of the outside world -- balconies just didn't work for me. There's no right and wrong when it comes to lifestyle choices, you have to find what works for you.
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speaking of condo fees, I noticed that they are significantly lower in Vancouver than in Toronto, almost by half. For example there are plenty of condos (not those 300sf micro ones) which charges 200-350$ a months, which would be very rare in Toronto. I understanding lower heating cost might be one important factor but I doubt that alone makes such a big difference.
 
Do those condos have full time management staff and/or concierge staff? Those are two major expenses. What are hydro rates in BC? That's another killer in Toronto.
 
Ex-Montreal Girl said:
Also, I am guessing that those condos are, on average newer. Newer buildings means lower fees.
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No, they are simply cheaper in general. Today even the newest condos in Toronto don't have a condo fee that low. They are usually 0.65$ a sf or higher.
 
Condo prices seem out of control in Toronto. My friend is selling CASA III, a 346 sq ft unit for 380k. Six years ago, I visited a 499 sq ft unit selling for $299,900 at CASA I.
 
ksun said:
No, they are simply cheaper in general. Today even the newest condos in Toronto don't have a condo fee that low. They are usually 0.65$ a sf or higher.
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The Condo I just moved out of was below 60 cents. The new ones were all about 55 cents in my area.
 
The building I'm in went up in 1987 and is currently just over 60 cents. Well managed and in decent condition.
 
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