Cottage owners share the pros and cons of ownership and the Home of the Week: Canadian real estate news for May 25

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Here are The Globe and Mail’s top housing and real estate stories this week and one home worth a look.

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Owning a cottage isn’t what it used to be: Canadians share the financial pros and cons of ownership

The state of Canadian cottage ownership is changing. For people already financially stretched on their primary properties, buying or maintaining a cottage is further out of reach than ever before, write Irene Galea and Salmaan Farooqui. That pressure has led many to see their cottages in a new light: a potential source of revenue, a liability or even a full-time home. Today, cottagers and the communities they inhabit are still reeling from the aftermath of years of change, from the pandemic to increasing housing prices. But there have also been cultural transformations as swaths of city people move to smaller towns, owing to remote work and reliable internet access.

Ontario builder study shows buyers dropping out of the market

Ontario’s new home warranty insurer Tarion said survey data suggest that as many as 250,000 potential new home buyers dropped out of the market compared with 2022, and 34 per cent fewer people overall are considering buying a new home, writes Shane Dingman. In an annual report, respondents said listing size, price and style were key elements of their decision. The slide in new home sales appears even steeper in the Greater Toronto Area. April figures from market researcher Urbanation Inc. showed just 1,461 condominium sales in the first quarter of 2024. As prices continue to increase, buyers are left wondering if available condos are worth the rising price tags.

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Rob Carrick: Facing a costly mortgage renewal, this family decided to downsize and instead saved thousands

We’re in the middle of a wave of mortgage renewals where higher interest rates than we’ve seen in the recent past are driving up monthly payments. Families across the country are asking if they can afford the increasing costs, writes personal finance columnist Rob Carrick. Some are extending amortizations to lower their monthly payments, some are slashing spending or resorting to debt and some will have to sell. But one Vancouver family are choosing to drop their costly payments – especially as their coming renewal could increase their payments by $800 to $1,000 – and downsize to a townhome that won’t force them to compromise their careers and lifestyles.

How the personal-residence exemption can help minimize taxes on capital gains

The federal government has taken a lot of flak for its proposed changes to the capital-gains inclusion rate, writes Tim Cestnick in his weekly tax column. In an effort to reduce their capital gains taxes, many Canadians are looking into how the principal-residence exemption works. If you’re hoping to call a place your principal residence, there are three tests the property must meet – it must be a “capital property,” a housing unit that is not rented out more than half the time, and must be “ordinarily inhabited” by you.

Home of the week: A ‘rough-lux’ retreat in rural Ontario

145059 16th Side Road, Meaford, Ont.

The cabin near the Bruce Peninsula was bought in 2021 by one of the co-founders of DesignAgency, an interior design firm with clients such as Momofuku and The Drake Hotel, who sought to fuse his design expertise with rural log cabin construction. The original cabin didn’t even have electricity, and had to be completely revamped. The new kitchen in the original house has countertops made of huge polished slabs of black soapstone, while the finishes in the new space are modern in application but timeless in terms of technology, evoking old-world European villas. The home retains its original cabin charm, with log walls and barn board ceilings exposed throughout.