Partially discharged

Regarding the schools issue, I think most schools in Mississauga, Oakville, Burlington, York Region etc in the price point that you are looking at will all give a very similar level of education for your children. I'm in Ottawa but lived in the GTA pre kids and I don't get the sense that parents make big life changing decisions about which area to live in based on the schools that their children can attend as they may do in the home counties or Hale Barns.

At the price point you're going after there will be a number of children who will go to private school and if you are the type who isn't averse to some non-secular education then there is the RC option.

Canadaherewecome5

.......one agent my husband met this week actually asked us if we had thought of converting to Catholicism......seems a bit extreme to me!!

HGerchikov

You don't have to be Catholic to send your kids to Catholic school. Just not averse to significant religious instruction in the school.

HGerchikov

You get more for your money in Aldershot than Oakville or the Eastern end of Burlington because the commute is further. There is nothing wrong with the area at all. There are some really lovely spots there but, unless your husband works really odd hours I would think very hard. The commute would be a nightmare with the traffic.

HGerchikov

This is a problem where the unwary can get badly burned. There is a complicated dynamic going on at the moment with the listing prices of houses. It has been the practice in Toronto for some years now to underlist a property (so if, for example, the house is worth around $1.1Mi, the agent would list it at $800-900k), and then set a date and time for all offers. This strategy attracts those that know what its really worth and are prepared to pay for it, and also those that think they are going to get it for the list price, thus generating multiple offers. The more offers there are then generally the more over the list price the property goes for. So this strategy can net you 1.3mi for that 1.1mi house if you get enough offers and one person crazy (or competitive) enough to pay that price. $1.3mi then becomes the new benchmark for the street - hence the leaps in prices. Remember the bidders have no idea what the other offers are.

In Oakville and Burlington, homes have until the last few months mostly been listed at what the agent thinks its worth, Oakville agents working with buyers know this and also have access to previous sold prices to help them determine for themselves what the house is worth, however some, not all, Toronto agents, whose clients want to buy in Oakville, do not want to join the Oakville real estate board and therefore do not have full access to previous sold listings, are assuming that the homes are underlisted by a $200-300k margin as they are in Toronto. End result they overbid for the homes and the prices in Oakville have rocketed too. Sometimes the homes in Oakville are underlisted too, the problem for you is knowing which ones.

Canadaherewecome5

Thanks for all the info. My kids currently attend a C of E school so are not averse to RE although not sure I am prepared to go down the Catholic route.
I think Hubby needs to spend a few nights in West Burlington to see what the commute is like as has been suggested - after all it's him who's going to be doing it, not me.
The house that went over by 200K was north of the QEW and apparently he was the only non Chinese buyer looking round - it had 8 offers that day. On the other hand, one he saw in Burlington didn't reach the asking price. It's a minefield out there.

Lychee

This is my understanding as well. Choosing where to live based on the quality of school is a very UK-minded way of choosing where to live in Canada because it assumes there are drastic differences in quality of education from one school to the next. Canadians don't seem to do this because the quality of education does not vary as much as you may be anticipating. Choose a neighbourhood or an area you like based on the look, feel, community, and amenities. The local school will be fine.

Also, I too agree that renting is better for the first year. Why? What looks good on paper does not always reflect reality. Cultural nuances of the community and whether you feel a part of your new community or whether you fit in with the local customs, etc. - that is something that will become apparent after you live there for about a year. Think about the cultural nuances of the various neighbourhoods in other large cities. It takes time to navigate this.

HGerchikov

It really is. Oakville is definitely attracting the Chinese investors at the moment. I recently sold my own house, south of the QEW. There were 28 showings, 26 of them were Chinese. The other two were developers who wanted to knock it down and build a mega mansion on the lot.

Canadaherewecome5

That's a very reassuring comment - thank you. The school situation has been bothering me because I had to do it 2 years ago when we moved back to the UK from Sydney...and finding places for 3 kids in the same primary was a nightmare!

HGerchikov

The other thing here is that your kids go to the school in the neighbourhood where you live, there are options to select another school but its not commonly done, and its not that easy. On the upside, your kids are guaranteed a place in the local school, so you don't have to worry about them not getting in. I am certain about that for Halton region (Oakville, Burlington), I called the school board some years ago to ask them how much advance warning they needed if a child moved into the area and the reply was none (although it is appreciated) as they are obliged to take all kids residing in the catchment area. I have not had a similar conversation with Peel board (Mississauga) but I think its the same. Primary school education is extremely relaxed here.

Siouxie

Burlington is lovely and very family friendly - it would be my first choice, however, it's a bit of a hike to where he works.

Have you considered Milton, Carlisle or Waterdown? He could get the 401>427

https://www.realtor.ca/Residential/S...Ontario-L0R2H0

https://www.realtor.ca/Residential/S...Ontario-L0R1H2

https://www.realtor.ca/Residential/S...Ontario-L7M4Z1

It may be cheaper to find one without a pool but with a larger plot and put one in later.

https://www.realtor.ca/Residential/S...Ontario-L8B0G6

There's tons on Realtor.ca

DandNHill

Yes you do at elementary level. Anybody can go to catholic high school!

Siouxie

Not strictly true, there are apparently a few Catholic School Boards that allow children of a different faith to attend elementary schools.

https://www.thestar.com/yourtoronto/...ll_faiths.html

Halton:
I think it really depends on where you are.

DandNHill

Ok. There might be the odd one. Peel, Simcoe and Hamilton don't. Which covers a big portion of the area.

plasticcanuck

That's interesting. I'd have thought the Catholics would have wanted to get the children at their most gullible.