If you have the good fortune to live in Ontario, then you know all about its natural splendour and the beautiful towns and urban centres. It’s an enormous province, has some of the world’s best fishing, and is a two-day drive down south to one of North America’s largest cities in Toronto.
However, living here isn’t cheap, especially with all the various fees that inevitably come when you buy or sell a property. Let’s take a closer look at some of these fees to give prospective buyers a taste of what to expect.
Closing Costs
While the cost of housing in Ontario is currently outrageous, it’s even higher than you think! Closing costs may not be immediately disclosed in the price breakdown, but you’ll find out about them inevitably, and you won’t like it one bit.
Typical closing costs can be anywhere from 1.5% to 4% of the house. In Toronto, where the median detached home costs just over $1.3 million, you may need an extra $50,000 on the closing date. The first-time buyer rebate may cover a few thousand, but you’ll be out tens more.
Buying and Selling Agent Fees
If the sticker price of a house isn’t enough to shock you, you need to pay the real estate agents usually another 5% of that. Usually, the buying and selling agent split this fee 2.5% down the middle.
However, only the seller needs to pay these fees. This doesn’t help people move from one home to another. You even need to pay sales tax on the commissions, making an extra fee out of an extra fee.
Even if you aren’t charged this fee directly, it might be baked into the purchasing price of the property.
What Nobul is Doing to Bring Transparency to Real Estate Fees
Digital innovator Regan McGee built Nobul, an open digital real estate marketplace, to bring transparency to real estate transactions. As Mr. McGee said in an interview, “People think buying and selling real estate is complicated, but that’s a way for agents to justify their fees.”
A lot of the real estate fee pay structures were created when homes sold for tens of thousands of dollars, whereas now it’s routine for properties to go for over a million. Whether you’re buying or selling a home, you’ll appreciate working with incentivized agents who save you money on fees and immediately disclose what their rates are.
On Nobul, users can compare verified agent profiles and pick the right one for them. The platform doesn’t accept money from agents to get listed or ranked, so the data on the platform is trustworthy and reliable.
Most people looking for a home now are struggling to make the finances work. The last thing they need is yet another charge, one they didn’t initially expect and budget for necessarily. Don’t take hidden fees for granted — be on the active lookout for them, and use real estate technology for a simpler, more affordable, and more transparent real estate experience.