For Buyers
Most agent websites are built to convert visitors into clients. This one is built to answer the questions buyers actually have.
What the GTA market is doing right now, how working with a buyer's agent actually works, and what signing on commits you to. The Ontario first-time buyer programs worth knowing about. When we're the right team for your purchase, and when we're not.
Read what's useful, skip what isn't.
Our gift for buyer clients
Your agent and your designer, on the same team.
Becoming a homeowner is one of life's most exciting milestones, and we are always honoured to go on that journey with our clients. As a buyer with Justin Borg, we would love to celebrate that moment with you.
We are thrilled to introduce your exclusive gift: a complimentary design consultation with Rowen & Rayna Interiors. Lead designer (and my fiancé) Lareina Yu will come to your new home, sit down with you, and spend an hour getting to know your vision, answering your questions, sharing her expertise, and helping you see the possibilities your new space holds. You will walk away with a personalized design package, thoughtfully curated just for you and your home.
Working with us is never just about finding you a house, it is about being a team you can count on, for whatever comes next. Because finding the right home is just the beginning. The real joy is in making it yours.
How working with us actually works
Five stages. The work doesn't start with a property search and it doesn't end at closing.
1.
First conversation
Before anything else, we need to understand you: what you're looking for, your timeline, what your budget actually supports, and what you've already worked out on your own. The format is yours to choose. Some of these conversations end with us telling you it isn't the right time to buy, and that's a legitimate outcome.
2.
Establishing the relationship
If we both decide to move forward, we sign a Buyer Representation Agreement before looking at properties. We don't work on handshakes or implied relationships. The BRA puts our commitment to you, your commitment to us, and the commission structure in clear writing, and we'll walk you through every part before you sign.
3.
Search and shortlist
With the agreement in place, we set up MLS alerts tuned to your actual criteria, not the widest possible net. You decide what's worth seeing in person. When a property becomes a serious contender, we put together the comparables, listing history, and our read on the asking price before you go further.
4.
Offer and negotiation
When you find the right place, we build the offer around comparable sales, current conditions in that specific pocket of the market, and your timeline. Every situation calls for a different approach, whether that's a strong opening number, structured conditions, a longer closing, or something else entirely. We walk you through the strategy and the numbers every step of the way.
5.
After possession
We coordinate the inspection, lawyer handoff, final walkthrough, and possession-day logistics. When you buy a home with The Borg Team, you get a complimentary design package from our in-house interior designer. A walkthrough of your new place, a paint and colour palette, a layout plan for your main room, and a written design direction with a mood board. No cost, no catch. Just a better start in your new home. After you have keys, you have our number for as long as you own the place: trusted trades when something breaks, an honest answer on whether a renovation is worth it, and market updates actually relevant to your property.
How buyer representation works
Most buyers don't learn how their agent gets paid, what they've signed, or what they've committed to until the offer process. Here's the plain-English version, ahead of time.
The Buyer Representation Agreement (BRA)
A BRA is a written contract between you and our brokerage that defines the working relationship: what we'll do for you, what you're agreeing to in return, how long the agreement runs, and how our compensation works.
Some agents delay signing one for as long as possible to avoid scaring off prospective clients. We sign one before we start looking at properties, because an undefined relationship is vague and doesn't serve you or us.
The BRA includes the geographic area it covers (typically the markets you're actively shopping in), the property types it applies to, the term, and how either side can end the agreement early if things aren't working. We'll walk you through every section before you sign, and you should take whatever time you need to read it.
How we get paid
Our fee is almost always paid by the seller's side, out of the commission the seller has already agreed to pay their listing agent. In a typical GTA transaction, the listing brokerage receives a total commission from the seller, and shares part of it with the buyer's brokerage. Out of that share, our brokerage pays us. What this means in practice: in most transactions you work with us on, you don't write us a cheque. The fee comes off the seller's proceeds at closing. There are exceptions, and we'll flag them upfront if they apply to your situation. A handful of listings (some private sales, some new construction) don't offer buyer-side cooperation, or offer less than market. If you're considering a property like that, we'll tell you before you see it, walk through what your options are, and decide together whether to proceed and on what terms. Nothing about the fee will be a surprise at offer time.
What you're committing to when you sign
Three things: First, that during the term of the agreement, you'll work with us as your buyer's agent for the property types and area defined in the BRA. If you find a home you want to offer on within that scope, you'll make the offer through us. Second, that if the seller's side doesn't cover our full fee (the exception case above), you'll cover the gap. We'll always tell you what that gap is before you decide to write an offer, and we'll never let you find out about it at closing. Third, that you'll be straightforward with us about your search. If you're talking to other agents, considering a major change in your search criteria, or thinking about pausing, you'll tell us. We'll do the same in the other direction.
How either side can step away
A BRA isn't a trap. If the working relationship isn't fitting, either side can request to end the agreement early, and we'd rather know than not know. The agreement spells out the process; in practice it usually involves a short conversation and a written termination. The one piece of fine print worth understanding: most BRAs include a "holdover" clause, which means that if you buy a property we introduced you to within a defined window after the agreement ends (usually 30 to 90 days), the commission still applies. This protects against a scenario where a buyer sees a property through their agent, ends the BRA the next week, and tries to buy the property directly to avoid the fee. We'll point this clause out specifically when you sign.
We work well with buyers who:
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Want to understand the numbers behind a recommendation before acting on it
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Have a timeline measured in months rather than weeks
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Are willing to walk away from a property that doesn't make sense at a defensible price
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Want a long-term advisor for the property after closing, not just an agent until possession
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Prefer direct, written communication over high-pressure salesmanship
We're probably not the right team for you if you:
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Want an agent who will push you to act quickly to "win" a property
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Are looking for the single lowest possible price regardless of fit, condition, or timing
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want daily MLS-dump emails of every listing in a wide radius
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Are uncomfortable signing a Buyer Representation Agreement before starting the search
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Prefer an agent who tells you what you want to hear over one who tells you what the data says
Ontario first-time buyer programs
For confirmation on what applies to your situation, talk to a mortgage broker. We can connect you with ones we've worked with for years. These programs change often and we can't guarantee the figures above still reflect current rules.
Ontario Land Transfer Tax Rebate
Refund of provincial LTT for first-time buyers. Toronto buyers get a separate municipal rebate on top.
RRSP Home Buyers' Plan (HBP)
Tax-free withdrawal from your RRSP toward a first home. Must be repaid over 15 years.
First Home Savings Account (FHSA)
Tax-deductible contributions, tax-free growth, tax-free withdrawals for a first home. The most generous first-home vehicle in Canada.
First-Time Home Buyers' Tax Credit
Federal non-refundable tax credit in the year that you buy.
GST/HST New Housing Rebate
Partial rebate of GST/HST. Applies only to new construction and substantially renovated homes.
How Much Can I Afford?
Frequently Asked Questions
Should I wait for rates to drop before buying?
Maybe, maybe not. Lower rates usually bring more buyers back into the market, which tightens supply and pushes prices up. The combination of waiting for a better rate and then competing with everyone else who waited often nets out to roughly the same monthly payment, or higher. The honest answer is that we can't tell you what rates will do. We can tell you what the carrying cost looks like at today's rates, what it would look like if rates moved by half a point in either direction, and what the comparables in your target neighbourhood actually support. The decision is yours.
Do I need to be pre-approved before talking to you?
No. We're happy to have a first conversation before you've talked to a lender. That said, a pre-approval makes the search meaningfully more productive, because it tells you what you can actually borrow at today's rates rather than what you think you might be able to. If you don't have a broker already, we can introduce you to ones we trust before or after our first conversation.
What happens if I see a property I love but it's listed by another brokerage?
Nothing different. We can show you and write the offer on any property listed on MLS, regardless of which brokerage holds the listing. We can also write offers on properties not listed on MLS (private sales, expired listings, or properties we know are coming to market) if those make sense for your search.
How much should I have saved before I start looking?
At minimum: Your down payment, plus closing costs (typically 1.5 to 4% of the purchase price for land transfer tax, legal fees, title insurance, and adjustments), plus a small reserve for moving, immediate repairs, or anything the inspection turns up. For a $700,000 purchase with 20% down, that's $140,000 down plus roughly $15,000 to $25,000 in closing and reserves. Less down (5 to 10%) is possible on purchases under $1M, but requires mortgage default insurance, which adds to the total cost.
Can I see open houses without you?
Yes. Open houses are public and you don't need an agent to attend. Two things to know if you do. First, the agent hosting the open house is working for the seller, not you. Their job is to sell the property, and anything you tell them about your interest level, budget, or timeline can be used in negotiation. Second, if you sign in at the open house with your name and contact information, you may be considered a "lead" of the listing agent, which can complicate representation if you later want to make an offer on that property through us. The safest approach is to give your name and our name when signing in. We can talk through how that works in the first conversation.
What if I'm not actually ready to buy and just want to understand my options?
That's a legitimate reason to have a first conversation. Some of the most useful calls we have are with buyers who are 12 to 24 months out from being ready, want to understand the market, and want to start thinking about timing, neighbourhoods, and savings targets. There's no expectation that an early conversation leads to a transaction.
The GTA Market in May 2026
Updated July 2nd, 2026
The GTA market has held a broadly balanced footing this spring, but the balance is starting to tip. Sales are climbing, inventory still gives buyers more room than they've had in years, and while prices are down year-over-year, they firmed again month-to-month in May. The clearest story in the data is the fault line between strong submarkets (detached freeholds in established neighbourhoods) and weaker ones (condo apartments, especially investor-held downtown units).
The numbers, as of May 2026:
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Average sale price: $1,069,700, down 4.6% year-over-year but up 1.7% from April
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6,583 homes sold in May, up 6.3% from May 2025
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17,698 new listings entered the MLS in May, down 18.9% year-over-year
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26,927 active listings across the GTA, working out to roughly 4.8 months of inventory (balanced-market territory)
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The MLS HPI benchmark, which controls for property mix, sits at $943,500, down 6.7% year-over-year
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Homes sold for roughly 98% of asking price on average, down from the bidding-war years but still solid
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Average time on market: 27 days, up from 25 a year ago
Peel, Halton, and our patch specifically:
Our service area is running slightly softer than the GTA-wide averages, which is normal for the western corridor in a balanced market. Mississauga sold 568 homes in May at an average of $971,047, with about a 31-day average time on market and a 97% sale-to-list ratio. Halton Region (Burlington, Oakville, Milton, Halton Hills) sold 816 at an average of $1,248,277, with a 30-day average time on market and a 96% sale-to-list ratio.
The practical implication: in our markets, properly priced listings are still moving, but the days of an offer date with five over-asking bids are largely gone outside specific niches. Buyers still have a touch more room to negotiate than the headline GTA numbers suggest, though with new listings down nearly 19% year-over-year, that cushion is thinning.
How this is showing up by property type:
Detached freeholds are outperforming. May detached sales came in at 3,236, with an average price of $1,358,131 (down about 4% year-over-year, the smallest decline of any major segment). The strongest demand is for move-in-ready homes in the $900K to $1.3M range in established neighbourhoods.
Condo apartments are the softest major segment. 1,535 apartments sold in May at an average of $639,468, with prices still down year-over-year even as freehold values stabilize. Standing inventory in larger downtown buildings remains high, and investor-owned units in particular are sitting longer.
Mortgage rates have eased meaningfully. The Bank of Canada overnight rate is at 2.3% and the prime rate at 4.5%. Five-year fixed mortgages are running around 6.09% and one-year rates around 5.49%, well below where they were 18 months ago. That said, affordability still drives most buying decisions. Many buyers are pre-approved at one rate and shopping for what fits the resulting monthly payment, not what fits the original wish list.
What this means if you're buying right now:
You still have more time and more negotiating room than buyers had two or three years ago. The trade-off is that the "wait and see" math is getting more complicated. New listings are down sharply year-over-year (18.9% in May), and sales are picking up faster than supply. If that continues, the inventory that has given buyers room all spring keeps getting absorbed, and TRREB now expects prices to flatten and eventually firm. Waiting another six months might mean lower rates and lower prices, or it might mean less choice and more competition. Both remain plausible, but the balance of risk has shifted slightly toward the latter.
Our honest read for most buyers: if you find the right property in the right neighbourhood at a defensible price, this is a reasonable window to act, and the negotiating leverage is real today in a way it may not be in six months. If you're stretching to buy or trying to time the absolute bottom, waiting is defensible too. We can't tell you what rates will do. We can tell you what the comparables in the neighbourhood you're targeting actually look like today.
Lets have the first conversation
A short note is all we need to start. We'll be in touch within one business day to set up a first conversation at whatever time works for you.