Priced out of Toronto, Katherine ventured into cottage country to buy her first house at 31 | Canada Voices

In 2021, Katherine bought a detached three-bedroom, two-bathroom waterfront cottage in Magnetawan, Ont., a small town roughly four hours north of Toronto with a population of 1,750 people. Her first home sits on one acre of land with 170 feet of waterfront and cost $756,000.

At the time, Katherine was 31 and earning $120,000 annually at a fintech startup. She’d spent years building her savings.

Raised by immigrant parents who emphasized frugality, she started contributing to a tax-free savings account shortly after it was introduced in 2009 and eventually maxed out her contribution room. She also worked two jobs for several years and routinely saved more than half of her income.

Even then, she never imagined herself becoming a homeowner in Toronto.

“You look at the property values of Toronto, and you’re like, ‘Well, can I afford that?’” she said. “You run through the mortgage calculators, and you’re like, ‘This is crazy.’”

Then the pandemic upended everything. Like many Canadians working remotely during COVID-19, Katherine realized she no longer needed to live in the city.

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The 500-square-foot downtown apartment she shared with her partner had started to wear on them. When remote work became the norm, it “really opened up a lot of doors,” she said.

Initially, Katherine looked closer to the city, but prices during the pandemic boom felt unattainable. So she expanded her search radius.

“I basically looked at Toronto, and I said, ‘All right, three-hour radius, let’s go.’”

Katherine withdrew the maximum $35,000 through the federal Home Buyers’ Plan from her RRSP and liquidated roughly 80 per cent of her TFSA investments. Together, the accounts helped her assemble a 20-per-cent down payment of $151,000.

Before that, Katherine viewed eight homes and made offers on four. The day she toured the Magnetawan property, a snowstorm had made the drive stressful and visibility poor, but the home felt structurally solid.

“I was like, great. I don’t care what it looks like, as long as the bones, the foundation is good,” she said.

To finance the purchase, Katherine used a digital mortgage broker and secured a five-year fixed mortgage at 1.69 per cent with a 30-year amortization. Her monthly mortgage payment was about $2,141.

Earlier this year, when it came time to renew, she again shopped around before returning to the same broker. She ultimately locked into a three-year fixed mortgage at 4.19 per cent, increasing her monthly payment to $2,843.

The purchase also came with high upfront costs. “The first year of homeownership felt insanely expensive.”

Katherine said she spent close to $30,000 in the first year alone on furniture, appliances, household tools, a lawn mower, snow blower and other necessities that come with maintaining a rural property. To stretch her budget, she bought much of it secondhand on Facebook Marketplace.

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The move itself cost about $1,000 for a U-Haul truck. She also paid approximately $1,100 in legal fees to close the purchase.

But beyond the finances, what surprised Katherine most was how much she enjoys rural living.

As a woman of colour moving to a small town where she knew no one, she initially carried fears about whether she would feel accepted. Instead, she found community.

“When you go and talk to people, they quickly realize you’re just a person, and so are they,” she said.

Her neighbours helped clear fallen trees from her property, checked in on her while she travelled and offered advice on everything from gardening to dealing with mice.

“I almost feel like they’re looking at me like, ‘You poor city kid. We’re going to teach you all the things,’” she said jokingly.

Today, Katherine estimates the property is worth roughly $815,000. She still keeps her Toronto rental apartment for work trips and frequent travel, but Magnetawan has become home.

“I’m really happy with it,” she said, adding if she hadn’t bought the house, she always would have wondered about it.

Purchase price: $756,000

Down payment: 20 per cent ($151,000)

Legal fees: Approximately $1,100

Moving costs: Approximately $1,000 for moving truck

Home inspection: $600-$700

Ongoing costs

Mortgage: $2,843 monthly (previously $2,141 monthly)

Home insurance: $2,500 annually

Utilities (internet, hydro, propane): $300

Repairs and maintenance: $30,000

Property taxes: $900 quarterly

Advice: “You will figure it out along the way,” Katherine said. Even though buying a home can feel permanent and overwhelming, people adapt once they’re in it.

Some details may be changed to protect the privacy of the people profiled. Are you a first-time homeowner who would like to share their story? Send us an e-mail.