Hi desis,

I have been in Canada for almost three years now, got a reasonably good job, own a condo and car, thinks it is time to sell the condo and get a house.

Can anyone suggest a good location to buy a house? Of course, I know that it is a personal choice, but, some kind of serious input will help. I am looking at Mississauga, Brampton and places closer to that (Vaughan?) But, Mississauga looks a bit beyond my budget. Which are the good locations in Brampton to look for a house? Any particular areas to avoid? My criteria would be a peaceful place and places with good schools. I am planning to stay in this house for at least 5-6 years.

This question is particularly relevant to me as I live on the east end right now even though I work in Mississauga and I am not at all familiar with the west end.

I am the only working person in my family right now; my wife looks after the small child and thanks to god, we can afford it.

Thanks for your help

Madrasi…

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"Future belongs to those who believe in the beauty of their dreams"

Hi Mr. Madrasi,

Its good to know that within 3 years of your stay and job in Canada, you already own a place of your own with a good job and thinking of moving up. Its really a good achievement. Congrats.

You have not mentioned about the price range you would like to go for and/or how many bed rooms you want in the house and whether or not you would like to go in for a house with finished basement apartment which you can give on rent. Hence, if you are not averse to the idea of renting out the basement (which you can do as you only have a small kid and may not relly require basement for your use, you might as well rent the same to supplement your mortgage payments) then Mississauga could be the best option as it is a nice place, close to your work and not very costly in comparison to houses in Brampton, Markham or Vaughn and a peaceful place with good schools and basically that's what you are looking for.

It basically comes down to the amount of 'monthly payments' you can afford for the house. The mortgage rates are quite low and if you lock in for a 5-7 year term, you cetainly would find the house more affordable as you also must have built some equity in the Condo by way of paying down the mortgage and cost escalation. Should you want, you can call me and I can do a 'cost analysis' for you and tell you exactly how much payments you can expect along with other closing costs which may help you in making this decision.

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Pramod Chopra
Senior Mortgage Consultant
Mortgage Alliance Company of Canada