Has access to property become only a hope? In Quebec, nearly three-quarters of non-homeowners have given up on the dream of one day having their own home, according to a recent Ipsos survey. The duty has collected stories of potential buyers who continue, somehow, to get the keys to their dream home. First meeting: from friendship to co-ownership for Laurence and Jacques.
Laurence and Jacques met a few years ago at work. First office colleagues, then they became friends. And they are now thinking about a new status: why not co-owners?
“I started looking for a property about two years ago,” says Laurence. She had then initiated steps on her own with a real estate brokerage agency and her bank in order to obtain a pre-authorization. At the time, his budget was around $230,000 — an amount that quickly seemed insufficient to him to find his happiness on the island of Montreal.
“I discussed it with Jacques, who was looking to buy as well. We asked ourselves: if we get together, do we have a slightly greater purchasing power? she says. “The idea thrilled us. We went into this thinking it wouldn’t be too hard to find a plex. »
Together, the two friends can afford to buy a property worth $800,000. Their objective: to find a duplex, with a courtyard if possible. But after more than a year of research, more than 50 visits and around twenty offers, still nothing.
“All our offers were made in overbidding, and we were never selected as the first offer”, laments Jacques.
They are ideally looking to settle in Rosemont or Parc-Extension, their favorite places. But recently, they have resigned themselves — reluctantly — to moving away and looking towards Hochelaga.
Do they have a chance?
According to data from the Centris platform obtained by The duty, the average sale price of a duplex in the borough of Rosemont–La Petite-Patrie exceeded $900,000 between January and March 2022, more than Laurence and Jacques’ budget. However, the two friends would have a slightly better chance of finding a property that corresponds to their means in Villeray–Saint-Michel–Parc-Extension (approximately $755,000), and even more so in Mercier–Hochelaga-Maisonneuve (approximately $640,000 ).
“When you think about it, it’s still crazy. We have a good combined salary and we are not even able to find anything,” laments Jacques. And it’s not for lack of looking: “We visited several unlivable properties, which were still sold for more than the asking price, which was already ridiculously high,” he says.
The dream of owning
“Me, I’m lucky”, admits Jacques. “I currently live in an apartment with a cheap rent. But it’s a very small semi-basement and I want a upgrade. However, when I look elsewhere, housing rents are often double what I am currently paying,” he adds.
But the desire to live in a slightly larger place itchs those who grew up in the countryside, north of Montreal, in a large single-family house.
Lawrence too. “As for me, I have a dog and a cat,” she explains. “Right now, I have to try to find a new apartment while waiting to buy, and it’s a real nightmare to find an affordable place, especially when you have pets,” said the young woman. “I want to be an owner so that I can finally feel free and really at home… I want to be able to make a hole in the wall if I feel like doing some work, without asking permission!” she gives as an example.
The two friends do not despair of finding the duplex that will meet their expectations. They already have ideas in their heads: if they have a yard, they will enjoy it together.
And if the duplex has a basement, maybe they could share a workbench? Or build an additional bedroom that could be used if one or the other receives visitors?
Laurence and Jacques are not the only ones thinking of buying with friends to access the property.
According to a housing affordability survey conducted by RE/MAX Canada, one in three Canadian buyers (33%) are developing new strategies to enter the market, and 13% mention pooling their finances with friends or of the family as an option considered.
With Laurianne Croteau