FTHB: Am I getting in over my head buying a 100 year old semi in Toronto?
EDIT: To everyone saying the house is beautiful, thank you but that's not the house! :(
I just pulled that photo off google! :(
THIS is the actual house: https://www.realtor.ca/real-estate/30316983/259-brock-avenue-toronto-little-portugal
Hey everyone,
My husband and I are first-time homebuyers looking at a 2-storey solid brick semi-detached home in Toronto. It has been owned by the same family for over 50 years.
We absolutely love the neighbourhood, but I am terrified of buying a 100-year-old century home. My family is heavily pushing us to look further away (like the suburbs) for a 40–60 year old house that "needs less work."
This house is a classic "contractor special" and we already know it has some immediate needs:
- An active bathroom leak that left a hole in the 1st-floor living room ceiling underneath it (needs a full gut-to-studs remodel + structural check).
- Likely a roof replacement (asphalt shingles).
- It has original plaster and lath walls (though modern forced-air HVAC was retrofitted at some point).
- The basement is unfinished with a separate walk-up entrance but is not legally a secondary suite (low ceiling height). We plan to just use it ourselves for now.
We are budgeting about $80k (including a 15% contingency) wrapped into the mortgage for the initial bathroom gut, leak repair, and roof. We will be hiring contractors—not doing DIY.
My questions for Old house owners:
* Am I completely over my head as a first-time buyer taking on a 1910s double-brick semi with a known leak?
* What are the hidden monsters I need to look out for with plaster and lath or retrofitted HVAC?
* Would you do this again, or do you wish you bought newer?
Appreciate any brutally honest advice or experiences!
Thank you!