Home Realty: Buying With Students In Mind

By NextHome Staff
February 03, 2018

Condos near schools, transit are rock-solid investments

With the current cost of real estate pricing so many young people out of the market, it’s becoming increasingly common for parents to help their kids by purchasing them their first condo. Especially when that child is heading off to school and will need a place to live.
Buying your child a condo for their college years provides a dual benefit: your offspring avoids having to pay rent when they’re at school (which you’d likely be bankrolling anyway), and the family then has a solid long-term investment for its portfolio, with the tremendous and ongoing upside as a rental property for other students down the line.
When it’s young people who will be condo’s occupants, the criteria for what constitutes an ideal unit changes than if you’re buying just for yourself. Perhaps most important on the must-have lists for students are locations that are well served by transit and close to quality post-secondary institutions.For example, Parkside, Amacon’s 23-building mega-project in Mississauga City Centre — the city’s largest condo development — has enjoyed unparalleled success with investors and end users thanks in large part to its proximity to Sheridan College. And a number of residential projects are cropping up around the new TTC subway extension in Vaughan, a huge boon for York University and its students, which have been seriously under served in both the housing and transit departments. It’s the same situation in Markham, where York University has announced plans for a satellite campus.
One28 in Waterloo caters to students.
Condo projects in these transit oriented areas are selling out mere moments after launching, speaking to the insatiable demand for modern and well-appointed student accommodations.A new project in Waterloo, One28, is located just minutes from Wilfred Laurier University, the University of Waterloo and the UW Technology Park. The 15-storey complex is unlike other typical student-targeted developments, boasting beautifully appointed and luxurious one-bedroom and two-bedroom suites that promise a completely new experience for residents looking to live in Waterloo’s university area.Projects like One28, which are catering to younger buyers, must have an attractive amenity package, including fitness centres, yoga rooms, activity areas, communal spaces such as party rooms and rooftop lounges, and sustainable features like electric vehicle charging stations and bike storage lockers.Just a note on tax implications: if parents rent out a unit at market rates to a student family member who uses the property as his or her principal home, they can deduct tax losses from the rental activity, deduct the mortgage interest and write off all the other operating expenses, like utilities, insurance, association fees, repairs and maintenance.Whether you’re purchasing a unit for your college-bound child, or you’re a savvy investor buying a unit to rent out to students, you can’t go wrong with a condo as an investment property.Prices have been steadily rising, and many of those who can’t afford to get onto the ladder will be looking to rent for the long-term, making them ideal tenants for these investment units. Best of all, when students are the target demographic, there’s plenty of future potential in a market that continues to clamour for quality housing options.Debbie Cosic, CEO and founder of In2ition Realty, has worked in all facets of the real estate industry for over 25 years. She has sold and overseen the sale of over $15 billion worth of real estate and, with Debbie at the helm, In2ition has become one of the fastest-growing and most innovative new home and condo sales companies. In2ition has received numerous awards from the Building Industry and Land Development Association and the National Association of Home Builders.

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