Investing in real estate is a more hands-on way of investing when compared to more traditional forms of investing, such as stocks, bonds, and mutual funds. Investing in real estate can be a great way to diversify your investment portfolio.

Unfortunately, there is no one specific answer to the question of how much it will cost you to invest in real estate in Ontario. If you are looking to invest in real estate in Ontario, you have many choices. 

You can invest passively in real estate by buying shares in a Real Estate Exchange-Traded Fund (ETF), investing in a Mortgage Investment Entity (MIE), Mutual Fund(s), Real Estate Investment Trust (REIT), Syndicated Mortgages, buying units in a Real Estate Limited Partnership (LPs), or buying pre-assigned condos.

Or you can invest more actively in real estate by purchasing a home as your principal residence and keeping it as an investment, buying a home and renting out a room in your home, buying a duplex and renting half of the duplex, flipping houses [How To Start Flipping Homes in Toronto], investing in rental properties, and/or purchasing a vacation property and renting it out as a short term rental property.

In this article, we will provide a brief overview of each of these options. We will be explaining what each option entails and the potential costs associated with investing in each of these options. This guide is meant to be a jumping-off point for those looking to invest in real estate in Ontario but who are not sure where to start.

This guide is intended to help those who want to learn more about what their options are for investing in real estate in Ontario, what they entail and their costs. As with the other blog posts on our site, this guide is not meant to be a be-all and end-all guide for opportunities for investing in real estate in Ontario. 

Your experiences with the costs of investing in real estate in Ontario and experiences with investing in real estate in Ontario might vary from what is described in this guide.  

How much does investing in real estate in Ontario cost?

Your choices for passively investing in real estate in Ontario and how much passively investing in real estate in Ontario might cost you

Real Estate Investment Trusts (REITs)

Real Estate Investment Trusts (REITs) are companies that are income funds that own real estate in trust. REITs commonly own large-scale properties such as shopping malls, office buildings, hotels, warehouses, and apartments. REITs are different from real estate companies because REITs do not tend to develop real estate properties to then later resell. Instead, REITs typically purchase properties that they own and operate.

When you invest in a Real Estate Investment Trust (REIT), you will be able to earn income through the payouts the trust receives from the properties that the trust owns. You can either invest in public or private REITs.

Public REITs

Public REITs are listed on stock exchanges such as the Toronto Stock Exchange (TSX) and the New York Stock Exchange (NYSE) on Wall Street. There are approximately 37 REITs that are publicly traded on the Toronto Stock Exchange (TSX).

This means that if you are buying or selling shares in a publicly-traded REIT, this will be similar to buying or selling shares in any publicly traded company. A publicly-traded company is a company that is listed on the stock exchange. Therefore, the share value for a REIT can be easily determined by the price posted on the stock exchange.

If you want to learn more about the risks and fees associated with investing in a REIT, you can read its prospectus on the Ontario Securities Commission’s unbiased, independent, educational website for investors, GetSmarterAboutMoney.ca.

Private Real Estate Investment Trusts (REITs)

In contrast to public REITs, private REITs are not publicly traded or listed on a stock exchange. This means that these REITs will not be listed on the Toronto Stock Exchange (TSX). Private REITs instead of being sold on a publicly-traded stock exchange, they are sold in an exempt market.

This means that private REITs are usually a more risky investment than a public REIT since private REITs do not have to provide potential investors with as much information or security as a public REIT. If you are considering investing in a private REIT, you will need to meet certain requirements as an investor before you are permitted to invest in a private REIT.

Like any investment, stock, bond, mutual fund, ETF, etc. both public and private REITs have risks associated with them that could impact your investment. But, given that private REITs are sold in the exempt market, the levels of risk associated with buying units in a private Real Estate Investment Trust (REIT) are harder to quantify, value and trade.

Some of the common risks associated with investing public REITs

Rental risk, i.e., what happens if properties remain vacant or tenants do not pay rent

Like investment properties, e.g. if you owned a house and rented it out for rental income, REITs earn profits through the rents tenants pay to use the properties that REITs own. This means that REITs depend on tenants occupying their properties and paying the rent.

This means that if you invest in a REIT and they have a building that remains vacant for a long time, the REIT’s profitability might be affected, and the income you earn from investing in a REIT might be reduced.

Changes in interest rates might affect the value of shares in a REIT

REITs do not generally perform well when increase rates increase since this can mean that the demand for REITs might decline, which could reduce the share values in REITs. This reduction of the value of your shares in a REIT might mean that you might be forced to hold onto your investment longer for longer than you had previously planned.

A few of the common risks associated with investing in a private REIT

Lack of liquidity for shares in private REITs

Given that private REITs are not publicly traded; it is hard to determine their value and the value of their shares. It also might be difficult to eventually sell your shares since shares in a private REIT are generally hard to resell. This means that if you invest in a private REIT, you might be forced to hold onto your shares for longer than you would like.

Lack of transparency for private REITs

Since private REITs are not publicly traded on the stock exchange, they are not subject to the same regulations regarding disclosure that public REITs are subject to. This means that there is even less information available regarding how a REIT is doing. Given the lack of transparency with private REITs means that it might be more challenging for you to figure out how well your investment is performing. 

The potential decline in value for your investment

The payouts you receive when investing in a private REIT and the value of your investment are affected by the value of the properties that the private REIT owns. If the properties the REIT owns are not in excellent condition, have high vacancy rates or tenants who do not make timely rent payments, this might negatively impact your income payouts from the REIT or the value of your investment in the REIT.

High fees associated with investing in a private REIT

Private REITs might have higher management and other fees which have the potential to reduce the payouts it provides investors. These higher management fees might leave a private REIT with less money available to maintain their existing properties or invest in new properties.

Personal Liability associated with investing in a private REIT

If you invest in a private REIT, you might be held liable and responsible for paying the REIT’s financial obligations if they do not have sufficient funds to cover their costs. This is often known as a “capital call.”

Exchange-Traded Funds (ETFs) for Public Real Estate Investment Trusts (REITs)

 A real estate Exchange-Traded Fund (ETF) is an entity that invests in a diverse group of different publicly-traded REITs. It is a more liquid, low-cost way to invest in real estate. You can invest in a real estate ETF for the cost of buying a share or however much money you have invested. This allows you to invest in real estate and REITs with a lower risk.

  A REIT ETF invests in a variety of different d REITs. While investing in a real estate ETF means you might see lower returns than buying and owning a building, this is a much more accessible way of investing in real estate and much less stressful than buying, owning, and operating an investment property.

The dividends you earn from investing a REIT ETF will be based on how much money you have invested in the REIT ETF, so the more money you invest in a REIT ETF, the higher potential payout you will see.

Real Estate Limited Partnerships (LPs)

Limited Partnerships (LPs) are commonly used to develop a property or manage properties that have already been built. Real estate LPs are managed by a general partner who oversees the development of a property.

A general partner might use money from investors to purchase land and develop the land or resell the land at a higher price, which is supposed to give investors in real estate LPs the possibility for growth if the land or development project increases in value. You can invest in a real estate LP for however it costs to buy a unit, which means that in some cases it might be more affordable to invest in an LP than buying a property yourself.

 As an investor in real estate Limited Partnerships (LPs), you can buy units in LPs. However, the majority of real estate LPs are private, which means that your units are not publicly traded on the stock exchange like shares in a public REIT or REIT ETF would be. Given that units in an LP are not traded publicly, it can be difficult to determine their value or resell your units. 

Some of the common risks associated with investing in a real estate LP

Lack of liquidity for your investment

It is important to remember that real estate LPs that are developing property are a long-term investment and your unit might be held for the entirety of the time that it takes to develop the project. In other words, if there are construction delays, permitting delays, or the project goes over budget and the project is delayed, your unit is still here. Therefore, you might not be able to resell your investment in the unit(s) whenever you want, or at all.

There is no guaranteed return on your investment, potential operational risks and a lack of diversity for your investment

Investing in real estates, like investing in anything is risky. There is no guaranteed return on your investment. You might even potentially lose money with your investment. There is no guarantee that your investment will be profitable for you or will be sold at a profit.

The value of your investment will vary depending on whether or not the real estate market is increasing or losing value, or the development goes over budget.

Usually, real estate LPs develop one project at a time. In other words, if the managing partner(s) for the real estate LP never complete the project or the project is never ultimately sold, you could stand to lose some or all of the money you invested into the project. This means if they never complete the project or the project is never ultimately sold, you could stand to lose some or all of the money you invested into the project.

It is essential to understand that the success of a real estate LP ultimately depends on how well it is managed by the general partners who operate the partnership. As an investor in a real estate LP, you will have no official role in the day-to-day management or goings-on in the LP.

It is important to note that as an investor in a real estate LP, you have no official role in the day-to-day management or goings-on in the LP, you have no responsibilities and are a passive investor in this venture.

 Another potential risk for real estate LPs is that some real estate LPs might not have gotten all the required permits and zoning approvals necessary to develop the land they own. So, if you invested in a project and later learned that the general partners’ permit and zoning applications for the project were denied, this would have the potential to create massive delays for the project. These delays would probably negatively impact your investment in the LP.

 Finally, when investing in a real estate LP, as with a private REIT, there is the possibility for a capital call which means you could be held liable and be forced to pay if the project runs out of money or goes over budget, you will be paying to cover these additional costs.

Mortgage Investment Entities (MIEs) 

Mortgage Investment Entities (MIEs) are mortgage financing businesses that pool money from a group of investors to give out loans to people who might not otherwise be able to obtain a mortgage from more conventional lenders such as banks or credit unions. MIE takes investors’ money to provide loans to borrowers. 

The loans the MIE gives out constitute an MIE’s portfolio. These loans might include residential mortgages so people can buy a residential home (condo, house, or townhouse), commercial mortgages for buildings such as office buildings, retail properties or warehouses, and mortgages to buy land.

MIEs make their money on the interest they charge for the mortgages they give out, the financing fees MIEs charge borrowers, mortgage renewals, cancellation penalties, and any other fees they charge borrowers.

If you are investing in an MIE, you would purchase security issued by an MIE. The securities issued by MIEs are typically in the form of shares, limited partnership units, or trust units. The value of these securities is derived from the value of the underlying pool of mortgages that are usually secured by real estate. As an investor in an MIE, you will be able to receive income from the revenue the MIE earns from its portfolio of mortgages.

If you are considering investing in an MIE, you need to understand the MIEs are private. Since MIEs are private, they do not have their securities listed on any type of exchange. MIEs are not publicly traded companies so you will probably not be able to see an MIE listed on the Toronto Stock Exchange. Since MIEs are private, they are difficult to trade, challenging to resell, and it is difficult to determine their value. In this sense, MIEs share some of the same risks that investing in a private REIT.

Some of the potential risks associated with investing in a Mortgage Investment Entity (MIE)

Lack of liquidity and no guarantee for your investment in an MIE

Many MIEs are private, which means they are publicly-traded on a stock exchange. Since many MIEs are private, this means it can be challenging to determine their value. It is also usually challenging to resell your shares in an MIE. If you are investing in an MIE, you should be prepared for the possibility that you might need to hold onto your investment for longer than you might have initially planned. 

You might see some MIEs claiming that they offer investors high annual yields or promoting investments that are ‘secured by real property.’ It is important to note that secured does not mean guaranteed. While a mortgage might be backed directly by real estate, your investment in the MIE is not secured, and you have no rights to the property that secures the mortgage. 

If a borrower for some reason is not able to make payments on their mortgage, this might affect an MIE’s ability to maintain their payouts to investors. If an MIE cannot maintain its paying income to investors, this will undoubtedly negatively affect the value of your investment in the MIE. There are a variety of other factors that impact an MIE’s success, and the returns investors will see on their investment. It is imperative to note that an MIE’s past performance is not a predictor of the possibility of future returns on your investment.

The potential to see a decline in the value of your investment in an MIE, potential issues with the high-risk loans MIEs give out, and the low priority of rights you have if a borrower defaults on their loan

It is essential to understand that if you are considering investing in an MIE that MIEs generally provide high-risk loans. The loans that MIEs provide are higher risk mortgages than mortgages that banks or credit unions will give out. If too many borrowers fail to make payments on their mortgages, you risk seeing a decrease in the value of your investment.

Also, if too many borrowers fail to make payments on their mortgages, the MIE might not be able to provide you with any income. If borrowers default on their mortgages or repay them sooner than previously anticipated, this might affect the value of your investment or the amount of money that will be paid out to you.

In many cases, borrowers who are getting a mortgage from an MIE might be getting their second or third mortgage which is generally riskier. If a borrower fails in making mortgage payments and then the property is liquidated, the lender who gave out the first mortgage will be the first line of creditors who will be getting their money back. An MIE that provided the second or third mortgage will only be receiving its money back if and when the first mortgage and if applicable the second mortgage is paid off.

Syndicated Mortgages

Syndicated mortgages are mortgages that are provided by two or more investors who have directly invested in a mortgage for a property. A syndicated mortgage is different from an MIE in that a syndicated mortgage applies to a single mortgage instead of applying to a portfolio of mortgages as an MIE would. In some cases, syndicated mortgages might be used by investors to fund large scale real estate development projects such as the construction of high-rise condo buildings. 

The cost of investing in syndicated mortgage costs; however much the mortgage costs, there is no set amount of money investing in a syndicated mortgage will cost, this will depend on your situation, however much the mortgage fees, the mortgage costs, and other factors.

It is imperative that you understand that in Ontario, only mortgage brokers and agents who are registered with the Financial Services Regulatory Authority of Ontario (FSRA)are permitted to engage in syndicated mortgage transactions on behalf of a brokerage, and only licensed mortgage brokers (not mortgage agents) are allowed to sign the required investor/lender disclosure statement forms. If you want to see if an individual mortgage broker or company is licensed with the Financial Services Regulatory Authority of Ontario (FSRA), you can contact the FRSA here.

A few of the common risks associated with investing in syndicated mortgages in Ontario

No guarantee for a high return on your investment 

While some syndicated mortgages tout or promise that you will see ‘guaranteed’ high returns, these claims are innately false, and these claims are prohibited by law. Some level of risk is inherent with any investment, and the higher the return rate, the riskier the investment will be.

‘Secured’ does not mean your investment is guaranteed

While some companies make promises that syndicated mortgages are ‘safe’ or are ‘fully secured’ this might necessarily be the case. Yes, your investment in a syndicated mortgage would be used to create a mortgage that is registered and secured directly with a piece of land or building. In the event that something happens with the project in question, the value of your investment only is limited to the land. 

You might even rank behind other lenders, and it is possible that if something happens with the project, you might not receive all or any of your money back. This might happen since the value of the land might only be sufficient to pay any lenders who came before you did and are higher priorities to be repaid. If something happens with the project, you might never get your money back. 

Usually, as a syndicated mortgage investor, you are frequently second or even further back in the line of creditors to be repaid. You will probably be in line behind other lenders who might have already provided loans for this project. This means as said before if the project fails or is never completed, there might not be any money left over to pay you and any other investors in this syndicated mortgage back.

Risks associated with borrowers being able to pay interest rates for the mortgage

It is possible that a borrower receiving a syndicated mortgage might not have any sources of income which will allow them to support them being able to make payments on the interest for the mortgage. As an investor in a syndicated mortgage, you will be completely dependent on the borrower being able to find additional financing or keeping funds in reserve to pay the interest for the syndicated mortgage.

No investor protection insurance is available for people investing in syndicated mortgages

You must know before you consider investing in a syndicated mortgage in Ontario that syndicated mortgages are not insured by the Government of Ontario or any other type of investor protection fund. Since there is no investment protection insurance available for syndicated mortgages in Ontario, there is no way or guarantee that you will get your money back if the project fails or something else happens.

Potential issues if you withdraw early from a syndicated mortgage

In the event that you invest in a syndicated mortgage and for some reason want to withdraw the money you have invested in a syndicated mortgage before the end of a mortgage term, you might need to find a new investor to take your place. There is nothing that will ensure that there will be demand if you are reselling or transferring your stake in the syndicated mortgage.

Real Estate Funds

Real estate funds are a type of mutual fund that mainly focuses on securities that offered by publicly-traded real estate companies. Investing in real estate funds enables investors to take advantage of the benefits provided by investing in a mutual fund while receiving professional support with managing their larger investment portfolio. These are great for people looking for a long term strategy for diversifying their investment portfolio.

When you invest in a real estate fund, you are investing in a fund that is directly invested into assets, and in some cases, some funds are invested into REITs. Many real estate funds have investments in commercial and corporate properties. However, some real estate funds might have investments in raw land, residential apartment buildings, and agricultural spaces.

However, a prospective investor needs to understand that a real estate fund will gain most of its value through appreciation and more often than not, investing in a real estate fund will not provide a short-term income in the same manner that investing in a REIT might.

Investing in real estate funds is as low as the cost of buying a share or however much you can afford to invest in real estate funds. If you invest in a real estate fund, you can take advantage of many of the same benefits that you can enjoy if you are investing in a REIT. 

Pre-sale condo assignments

A pre-sale condo assignment happens when the investor/buyer sells your rights to a completed condo in a pre-construction condo development before the condo is complete. This is called an “assignment” since you are signing your rights to the completed condo to a new buyer. Pre-sale condo assignments of pre-construction condos are often prevalent in hot real estate markets in Canada in cities like Toronto and Vancouver where home prices tend to appreciate more quickly than the rest of Canada. If you are considering doing this, it is important to note that condo developers might charge a 1% or 2% assignment fee.

If you are looking to buy a pre-sale condo and then assign the rights to someone else, there are some indicators you should be looking out for. You should be looking to buy a condo in an area of town where condo prices are expected to continue to increase in the coming years. You can identify these areas by researching plans for future condo developments in a given area and consulting a knowledgeable, experienced, and trusted local real estate agent or broker.

If you are looking to do this you can expect to pay a down payment if you will be financing this purchase, a deposit or series of deposits depending on how far along you will be in the condo construction process since some deposits are spaced out for certain milestones during the pre-construction process, an assignment fee, and any other fees.

How much this might cost you will depend on the condo you are looking to assign, the fees and taxes which apply in this situation as well as other factors. Here is a guide on how many closing costs are in Toronto, this guide should be able to help you to be able to estimate how much your closing costs might be if you are purchasing property in the City of Toronto [How much are closing costs in Toronto?].

Active options for investing in real estate in Ontario and how much it might cost you to actively invest in real estate in Ontario

All of the options that we will be described in this section regarding actively investing in real estate in Ontario will involve you buying property in Ontario. 

Buying a home that will be your principal residence

Arguably one of the easiest ways to invest in real estate in Ontario would be to buy a home to be your principal residence and living here. Even owning a home, especially in Ontario, means that you are investing in real estate. Any improvements, renovations, repairs, and maintenance you are doing are you maintaining that investment, which will ideally help you to sell your home when the time comes for more than you paid for it. 

How much this will cost you, will depend on your specific situation, how much your home costs, how much your homeowners insurance, regular maintenance and repairs cost you, if you do any major work on your home how much this costs, your closing costs [How much are closing costs in Toronto?], how much your down payment is, how much your mortgage and mortgage payment are, property taxes, etc. 

If you are planning on actively investing in real estate by owning and living in a home, this will mean that your home is ‘owner-occupied.’ If the purchase price for your home is less than $500,000, you will be required to make a down payment that is at least 5% and pay for mortgage insurance.

It is important to note that if you are buying a home whose purchase price is greater than $500,000 to $1 million and over you will be required to provide a larger down payment for homes that cost this much. 

Buying a home to be your principal residence and renting out a room in your home

Another way you can invest in the real estate market is by purchasing a home and renting out a room in your home. The costs would likely be the same as if you were considering buying a home to be your principal residence. However, there is the potential to earn rental income which can help to cover your costs of owning your home and maybe help pay your mortgage.

Buying a duplex, living in one unit and renting out the other unit

This is similar to the aforementioned option where you would be renting a room in your home, where your tenant rents a room in your home. The costs for this situation would be similar to the costs you would have if you were renting out a room in your home. However, they might be higher if you are renting out and owning a duplex because there is simply more for you to maintain.

Buying a house to flip and later resell for a profit

Another potential active way to invest in real estate in Ontario is buying a house to flip. In this situation, you would buy a home in an area where you can make repairs and renovations that will add to the value of the house and ideally sell the house for a profit. It is important to note that you must have at least a 20% down payment for investment properties, properties that will not be owner-occupied. Here is a more in-depth discussion about the costs associated with flipping a house in Toronto [How To Start Flipping Homes in Toronto].

Buying a property that will provide you rental income

Another option is a more traditional manner of investing in real estate is buying a home to use as an investment property and renting it out to tenants to earn rental income. For this, you will pay all of the regular costs, mortgage as applicable, minimum 20% down payment for an investment property, closing costs to purchase your investment property, insurance, any ongoing costs, renovations or repairs as applicable, etc. 

When you sell your investment property you will be paying closing costs, capital gains taxes on your net profit, 6% commission to the real estate agent or broker representing you as the seller, paying to get the home ready to sell, attorney fees, etc. 

This also could also work if you were buying a vacation home and renting it out as a short term rental, i.e., maybe in Georgian Bay or a popular vacation area in Ontario. And this does not take into account insurance, maintenance, property taxes, income taxes on rental income, repairs, the possibility that tenants do not make timely rent payments.

Here is a guide on closing costs for buying a home in Toronto which also provides an overview that helps you to estimate how much the land transfer tax might cost you. [How much does the Land Transfer Tax in Ontario cost and who is responsible for paying it?]

Tax considerations for investment properties

Income Tax on any income you earn from rental income

Rental income in Ontario and in Canada is considered taxable income; this means the net profit you make from your income/rental profits will be added to your other income and taxed. However, you will be able to write off many of the expenses you incur owning a rental property that decreases your taxable net profit. You will be able to write off your mortgage interest fees, property management fees, condo fees, utilities, etc.

Capital Gains Tax when selling your investment property

When the time comes to sell your rental or investment property, you will have to pay capital gains taxes. At the time that this article was written, capital gains taxes for real estate transactions that are investment properties are 50% of the profit that comes after the expenses you incur for selling the property. This amount will be added to your regular income and taxed at the regular income tax rate.

Four things a great investment property will do

Provide a steady monthly income

When you have a mortgage for your property, it is not uncommon for your monthly cash flow, with cash flow being defined as rent-minus expenses will probably be minimal. It is not unheard of in Toronto to hear about properties that each month might be $50 to $100 cash flow positive.

Believe it or not, there are many investors who are bringing in too little money for rent to cover their expenses, which makes their monthly cash flow, cash negative. In these situations, negative cash flow investors are hoping to see the benefits of appreciation, building up equity in their property, and/or improvements.

Appreciate over time

Appreciation for an investment property happens when the property increases in value during the time you own it. It is important to consider that the real estate market in the City of Toronto has been growing in recent years, with a 4% to 5% annual appreciation for condos and 10%+ appreciation for detached houses in the City of Toronto as home prices in Toronto have rapidly increased.

However, this is not always the case. This might not happen during the time you own a property. There will probably be years when your investment does not increase over time, experiencing zero growth and years when your property’s value decreases as well. When investing whether you are investing in real estate, the stock market, etc. you should take a long term perspective.

Equity will increase over time

Each month that a portion or all of your mortgage is being paid by your tenant with their rent payments means that you are building up equity in your property. So over time, you will own more and more of your property as you make more payments on your mortgage.

You can consider the difference between what you owe and what your property is worth as the equity in your property, obviously the more you own, the greater the equity you will have in your property.

Savvy improvements will help increase its value

Depending on the type of property you are purchasing, and how you are planning on owning it, you may have the chance to renovate the property to up its value. You could renovate right after purchasing your property, after owning it for some time or right before you sell to help you to get as much money as you can when you sell it. If you are planning on doing renovations, consult a trusted and experienced real estate agent to help to ensure that you are getting the most out of your investment in renovating your property.

Conclusion

Hopefully, after reading this guide, you will have gained greater insight into what your options are for investing in real estate in Ontario, the potential risks, and costs. As a potential investor, there are a variety of options for investing in real estate in Ontario.

You can take a more passive route, investing in a real estate ETF or REIT. Or you could take a more active approach to invest in real estate in Ontario by buying a home to flip it for a profit. You might even consider purchasing an investment property to rent out and earn rental income.

What approach you take when investing in real estate will depend on a few factors, such as how much money you are looking to invest, your preference for risk (low vs. high-risk investments), and whether or not you want to take a more passive or hands-on approach with your investment(s). 

There are options for investing in real estate in Ontario for people with all budgets. ETFs and mutual funds which will allow you to take a more passive approach and will enable you to invest in real estate for the cost of a share. While more involved and expensive ventures such as flipping homes for a profit, owning and managing income/investment properties is another possible path, you might take.

While you might think that investing in real estate is not possible for you because of your budget, the amount of time you have to devote to this, etc. The variety of options for investing in real estate in Ontario makes investing in real estate and diversifying your investment portfolio much more accessible than you might have initially thought. Do not let your budget for investing or fears of having to devote a lot of time to invest in real estate scare you off. 

You might only have a little money and/or time to spare for this now, but if you want to invest and do your due diligence, you can potentially make your small initial investment grow. If you invest well, you have the potential to have your money work for you.

Investing, whether you are looking to invest in real estate or stocks, bonds, mutual funds, etc. investing does not have to be overly complicated. Investing is not only for the wealthy. While you might only have a $100 now to spare but want to start investing in real estate in Ontario, you can still get into the market and become an investor. 

This small initial investment might pay off and might help you to earn money over time. Potentially the money you earn from this small initial investment could help you afford to make a more significant investment. You never know the money earned from this small initial investment might even help you earn money to save up for a down payment for a home one day. You never know what could happen when you take a risk and invest. 

If you decide after reading this article that you are interested in investing in real estate in Ontario, whether you are buying shares in a real estate ETF, units in a real estate LPS, or purchasing a home, be sure to work with a trusted professional. This might seem like it should be a given, but you should only be working with experienced professionals who you believe are knowledgeable, competent, and good at their jobs.

These must be people who you can trust and feel comfortable working with. These professionals, whether they are financial planners, financial advisors, real estate agents or brokers, bankers, etc.are the people who should be advising you, guiding you through, and supporting you during the whole investment process. 

Investing can be complicated and tricky, so make sure that if you have questions or unsure about something ask whomever you are working with. It is better to ask now so you can develop a clear understanding of what you are doing, the present and future implications of your actions, and what everything means. Do not be afraid to ask questions because the people who are supporting you through this investment process; it is their job to help you. 

Did you read this article and are now looking to buy a home for your principal residence or investment property, but are not sure where to begin? You should start your investment journey by finding a real estate agent or broker to represent you as a buyer. If you are unsure what to look for in a real estate agent or broker, we have a guide intended to help you to find the best real estate or broker to represent you as a buyer [How to Pick an Agent When Flipping a House in Toronto]. 

Do not be afraid to call up different agencies and brokerages and meet with different real estate agents and brokers until you find the person who you believe is best suited to meet your needs. And, as always, make sure to do your research and do your due diligence before you decide to make any significant decisions about money, your financial future, investing, life, etc.