It’s no secret that the red-hot Canadian housing market has left many feeling priced out of owning. According to the National Bank of Canada the representative home price in Toronto now lies at $1,146,667.

Many Canadians, especially young Canadians and those who don’t have access to the bank of mom and dad, are being left out in the cold. In fact, it now takes the average urban Canadian homebuyer 28 years to save for the recommended 20% down payment.

There is a real need for new solutions so Canadians can start owning again.

Enter Key’s co-ownership solution. Unlike in traditional homeownership, which requires a 5-20% down payment, with Key, you can start owning for just 2.5% of the value of your suite. Our lower entry point provides a more accessible option for Canadians to get into the housing market.

To understand how our co-ownership model works it’s important to understand the costs that are involved. Here we’ve broken down the key costs involved with co-ownership:

Initial contribution

The initial minimum contribution to start co-owning with Key is 2.5%, this is around 10-15k for most of our suites. You can contribute more to start if desired.

Monthly payments

As a co-owner with Key, each month you have a monthly payment. The monthly payment primarily covers your residency for the portion of your suite you don’t yet own. It also covers important things like maintenance costs, shared building expenses, and property taxes.

Monthly payments are based on market rents and are reduced based on the amount you co-own. Each month a portion of your monthly payment, starting at $50 depending on the building, automatically goes towards building your home equity. You have the option to contribute more at any time, each time you invest more, you own more of the suite, which reduces your monthly rent equivalent.

To see what your co-ownership interest and monthly payment could look like, try our home equity calculator.

Co-financing Benefit

Key also offers an optional Co-financing benefit, to help amplify your returns. With Co-financing, for every $1 investment you make, you receive an additional $1 in leverage until your home equity reaches 25% of the suite value. After this point, it is applied at a lower ratio.

Unlike in traditional ownership, you can benefit from leverage without having to take on the debt. The only cost for the benefit is a small interest charge added to your monthly payment. You can learn more about how Key’s Co-financing Benefit works here.

Closing costs

Co-owning with Key saves the hassles and a minimum of 6% of the costs involved with buying and selling traditional real estate. As a co-owner you only pay a 1% transaction fee on all equity invested and withdrawn, this is as little as 0.025% of your suite’s value.

After the first year, you can leave at any time with just 75-days notice and you will receive your equity, appreciation and appreciation from our Co-financing Benefit back.

After the third year, you have the option to take on a conventional mortgage and purchase the full suite. If you choose to do this you will pay the traditional closing costs associated with buying and selling real estate.

You can learn more about how closing costs work with Key’s model here.

At Key, since day one our goal has been to provide those locked out of owning the opportunity to become a homeowner and prosper from real estate. Through our co-ownership model we are fundamentally changing the way real estate works, making financial prosperity realistic and attainable.

If you have more questions about how Key’s model works, visit our FAQ page and learn more about how our models work here.

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