We Share Our Biggest, Most Embarrassing Real Estate Regrets

“I sold my townhouse in the Beaches in Toronto in the summer of 2015, right before the huge real estate boom. Less than five years later, the same townhouse is selling for nearly double the price.” – Jen F., editor, HGTV Canada

Related: This Toronto Home Sold for a Whopping $1.2 Million Over Asking

“After living with my parents for a year post-university, I was desperate to move out on my own. I jumped at the first opportunity that arose: a gorgeous old home on Palmerston Avenue in Toronto’s Annex neighbourhood with two male roommates that I knew only sorta well. At 23, the parties and endless takeout pizza seemed great, but by 24, I was ready for new roommates and vegetables. I don’t regret that year, it had a time and a place in my life, but it was certainly short-lived.” – Mia S., digital strategist, HGTV Canada and Food Network Canada

“A lesson in being a naive first-time homeowner: never underestimate the ‘personality’ that comes with a century-old home. The chimney may turn on you and need replacing. The wiring may not be quite up to code. The neighbourhood raccoons may make every attempt to evict you. But I will say, while you’ll be dipping into your contingency fund a little too often, there’s also so much of that personality to love.” – Brittany D., editor, Food Network Canada

“My landlord is a little eccentric, to say the least. One day she randomly decided to install a laundry sink in our apartment, telling us it was a new city bylaw. She installed it at the top of our stairs as you enter our second-floor walk-up. It’s the first thing you see when you walk in. She said she was installing it just for the inspection and would take it out after, hence her choice of a cheap plastic sink. Years later, it’s still there: the eyesore of my apartment.” – Lydia H., producer, Food Network Canada

“Desperate to get out of a declining neighbourhood, we opted for a basement apartment in a nice area. The ceilings were low, the floors were sloped and it was damp in the summer, but we lived there for eight long years. My bones still haven’t forgiven me for the duress!” – Melissa G., editorial assistant, Food Network Canada

“I’d spent nine years in this amazing house by Kensington (on Bathurst), but it had a revolving door of roommates (there was always three of us living there and still so much room!). I tried to have fun with the roommate process once and held an ‘audition’ where I brought in multiple people at a time to hang out on the deck and drink tequila. Here, people could share anecdotes, showcase a talent and we’d get to know them. I picked the guitar guy who sang a great song and made me laugh. It turns out though he had many random talents, cleaning up after himself wasn’t one of them.” – Chloe T., editor, Slice

“When I first moved to Toronto I had nowhere to stay, so I found an apartment on Craigslist. I was desperate, so I moved in pretty much sight unseen. Needless to say, after about a week I learned the entire apartment was infested with bed bugs and my roommate had decided to just ‘live with it.’ I lived there for two months until I found somewhere new and bed bug-free.” – Wylder R., social strategist, HGTV Canada and Food Network Canada

Related: No Regrets: The Best Things We’ve Ever Bought for Our Homes

“I have an upstairs condo nemesis. Water has leaked into my place four times due to her son (it got fixed after she got a letter from the building’s lawyer and me going upstairs to scream at her the fourth time it happened). He also stomps around like a herd of elephants at night. I file noise reports and ignore her intensely when we run into each other. I keep hoping they’ll move. (I was here first).” –
Renee S., manager, digital lifestyle

Related: Our Editors Can’t Live Without These Amazing Cleaning Products