Jesse: First, it should be noted that my wife and I agree on pretty much nothing, and this is true of what we wanted in our new house. I wanted to live downtown; she wanted to live in the inner suburbs; I wanted a townhouse or condo; she wanted a house. It is a testament to Shawn’s patience and perseverance that he stuck with us long enough to find a home that we both loved.
Alissa: The original parameters of our search were that we were looking for a three bedroom house, with two and a half bathrooms with a backyard and parking in the midtown area or central areas of Toronto. We also needed to be close to a subway station and within a neighborhood with good schools.
Jesse: In terms of location, I originally wanted to limit our search to anything close to a subway station, but not north of Eglinton. In the end, we focused mainly on the Yonge corridor between Bloor and Eglinton, but ended up finding a house a little further west.
I would say that it’s the ideal compromise between what my wife and I were looking for. It is a short walk to the subway and close to the city, but feels like a neighbourhood. It has three bedrooms, but is not too large. It has a yard, but not a lot of grass (I hate raking leaves and mowing the lawn). And the basement can be used as an office/man cave, which is exactly what I was looking for. It was also move-in ready, which is something we both wanted.
Alissa: The house we purchased is exactly what we were looking for. The house meets all our must haves (rooms, space, backyard) and even has a garage which is a huge bonus in this city. We are close to the subway and are in a very family friendly neighborhood with great schools. We are thrilled with our house!
Jesse: We did have to increase our budget, though. Our original budget was $1 million. We increased it to $1.5 million to get a better sense of what was on the market. In the end, we paid $1.3 million. When we sell, I’m planning to buy a mansion in Saskatoon. Toronto prices are crazy.
Shawn was amazing. He stuck with us through thick and thin and was always available whenever we needed him (I don’t think he sleeps). He not only helped us navigate the market and the buying process, he also did an extensive amount research whenever we showed even a modicum of interest in a house. Our search took awhile, but Shawn helped us find our dream house — and at a time when he was closing a couple other deals. In the end, we came came to think of Shawn as our friend as well as our real estate agent.
Alissa: Shawn is fantastic to work with. This is actually my second time working with Shawn. He helped me find the perfect condominium and now he has helped me and my husband find the perfect house. I had a wonderful experience working with Shawn on both purchases.
Shawn took the time to listen and make sure he understood the type of house that we were looking for and tailored our house search appropriately. He is incredibly knowledgeable and ensured that we understood every aspect of the home buying process (from reading MLS listings, to things to look for in potential houses and the steps to making a successful offer). He is fun to work with and was always available when we needed him – whether to view a house or answer questions we might have. Shawn would also go above and beyond in researching every property to ensure that it met our criteria. He never tried to push us to make an offer and was very patient with us as we hemmed and hawed our way through looking for a house. When the time came to make the offer, Shawn was incredible and supported us through every step of the process. We were very lucky to work with Shawn.
