Ontario home sold at massive $430,000 loss after court drama

A Toronto home was finally sold at a staggering $430,000 loss this month following years of legal drama between the property’s sellers and a potential buyer. 

The property, which is currently set up as a duplex, was first sold in March 2022 for a mind-boggling $1.83 million, at a time when cheaper borrowing rates drove up demand across the region’s real estate market. 

According to its listing, the home can also be converted back to a five-bathroom, four-bathroom home with a basement apartment, or be kept as a duplex to generate additional income for the buyer. 

Just over a year later, the home was re-listed for $1.74 million, and again in September 2023 for the same price. Failing to attract any buyers, the home was put back on the market at a slight reduction in April 2024. 

Finally, after three failed attempts to sell, the home was successfully sold for $1.4 million last week — representing a loss of $430,000 when compared to its price just two and a half years earlier. 

The home’s sale this year was preceded by extensive legal issues between the sellers and a potential buyer, who put in an offer of $1.72 million back in 2021. According to court documents, the sellers took the buyer to court for breach of contract after the latter allegedly failed to pay multiple deposits on agreed-upon dates.

The buyer responded by registering a Certificate of Pending Litigation on the property and also sought damages for fraud, negligence, and breach of fiduciary duty, however, the judge eventually sided with the sellers and awarded them a deposit of $53,000. 

Increased choice in Ontario’s real estate market meant that many buyers successfully purchased homes below their original prices over the past few months, including a home in London that was sold at a loss of $650,000 following four attempts to sell, as well as a custom-built home in Oshawa that sold at a staggering $800,000 loss.

According to the Toronto Regional Real Estate Board’s (TRREB) latest market report, home sales actually increased year-over-year in September, as buyers began to take advantage of more affordable market conditions brought about by interest rate cuts and lower home prices. 

“As buyers take advantage of changes to mortgage lending guidelines and borrowing costs trend lower, home sales will steadily increase in relation to population growth,” said TRREB President Jennifer Pearce. 

“With every rate cut, a growing number of GTA households will afford a long-term investment in home ownership, including first-time buyers.” 

In total, GTA realtors reported 4,996 home sales through TRREB’s MLS System in September, up by 8.5 per cent compared to the 4,606 sales reported in the same month last year. 

On the other hand, the MLS Home Price Index Composite benchmark was down by 4.6 per cent year-over-year in September. The average selling price, at $1,107,291 was down by a lesser one per cent compared to the September 2023 average of $1,118,215.

“The annual improvement in September home sales was more than matched by the increase in new listings over the same period. This resulted in a better-supplied market and increased negotiating power for buyers re-entering the market,” added TRREB Chief Market Analyst Jason Mercer.

“The ability to negotiate on price, led to moderate year-over-year price declines, particularly in the more affordable condo apartment and townhouse segments, which are popular with first-time buyers.”