Moving Up to a Bigger House in Toronto: The Numbers Behind the Step

Moving up costs more than the price gap

Most people planning a move up hold one number in mind: the difference between what they sell for and what they pay. The true cost is always larger.

Take an illustrative move from a $750,000 condo townhouse to a $1,450,000 detached house. The gap is $700,000. The full bill looks like this.

Item	In this example
Difference in price	$700,000
Ontario land transfer tax on $1,450,000	$25,475
City of Toronto land transfer tax on $1,450,000	$25,475
Legal fees on the sale and the purchase	Quoted by your lawyer
Commission on the sale	Set in your listing agreement
Moving and early work on the house	Varies

A home in the City of Toronto carries both taxes and both are paid when the transfer is registered. The first-time buyer refund and rebate need a buyer who has never owned a home, so they do not help on a second purchase. Our guide to land transfer tax in Toronto shows the brackets, the calculator runs any price and the closing costs guide lists the rest.

Condo to house: what the jump looks like in Toronto

TRREB’s August 2026 medians for the City of Toronto show the size of the step.

Property type	Median price, August 2026
Condo apartment	$550,000
Condo townhouse	$661,650
Freehold townhouse	$962,000
Semi-detached	$981,000
Detached	$1,170,000

Source: TRREB Market Watch, August 2026, City of Toronto. On those medians, a move from a typical condo apartment to a typical detached house is a step of $620,000 before any costs. The Toronto house prices page tracks these figures each month.

Why a rising market adds to the gap

This is the piece of arithmetic most worth having straight, because it runs against instinct.

When you move up you are selling the cheaper home and buying the dearer one. If both rise by the same percentage, the dearer one gains more dollars. In the example above, 10 percent on $1,450,000 is $145,000 and 10 percent on $750,000 is $75,000, so the gap grows by $70,000.

A falling market works the other way and narrows the gap. We cannot tell you which way the next year will go and nobody can. What we can do is show you how each direction affects your specific move, which is a fair input to the timing.

Sell first or buy first when you move up

You are buying and selling at once and no order removes all the risk. You choose which risk to carry.

Selling first turns your budget into a known figure. On a move up that matters, because most families are stretching and want to stretch to a real number. The trade is that the next house may not be found yet.

Buying first secures the house. That matters in Toronto, where the street or school area a family wants may see only a few listings a year. The trade is that you own two homes until the sale closes.

Closing dates on both deals are negotiable, which is the lever people forget. A longer closing on your sale buys time to shop. A purchase that closes a few days before the sale gives you room to move without a night in between. Our blog post on selling first or buying first works through the same choice from the downsizing side and the closing mechanics are the same.

Bridge financing, porting and insured limits

Three financing questions come up on almost every move up.

Bridge financing covers the days between your purchase closing and your sale closing, so money from the sale is available for the purchase. Lenders set their own terms and costs and many want to see a firm sale before they approve it. Arrange it early with your lender and your lawyer.

Porting means carrying your existing mortgage to the new property, usually with extra borrowing added for the higher price. Whether it beats breaking the mortgage depends on your rate and the penalty. Ask your lender to quote both in writing.

Insured mortgage limits set how much you must put down. Since December 15, 2024, insured mortgages have been available on purchases up to $1.5 million. The minimum down payment is 5 percent of the first $500,000 and 10 percent of the rest, so a $1,450,000 house needs at least $120,000 down. At $1.5 million or more, the minimum rises to 20 percent. Our post on the mortgage stress test explains how lenders test what you can carry and the mortgage calculator estimates payments.

Where Toronto families look for a bigger house

TRREB’s community medians for April to June 2026, across all property types:

TRREB community	Median price, Q2 2026
High Park-Swansea	$1,175,000
Annex	$1,240,000
South Riverdale	$1,257,500
High Park North	$1,345,500
The Beaches	$1,600,000
North Riverdale	$1,799,000
Leaside	$1,850,000

Source: TRREB Community Housing Market Reports, Q2 2026. These medians include every property type, so they mix condos with houses and should be read as a guide to price level rather than the cost of a detached home. Our guides to High Park, The Beaches, Riverdale and Leaside describe each area and family-friendly neighbourhoods compares more of them.

If schools are part of the decision, confirm the boundary with the school board for the exact address. Boundaries are set by the board and can change and a listing is not a reliable source.

Should you move up at all

Before listing, it is worth pricing the other option properly.

Put the full cost of moving, both land transfer taxes and commission included, beside the cost of an addition, a finished basement or a reworked main floor and consider what that work would add to your home’s value. Ask the City what approvals a project would need before you plan around it.

When the figures are close, staying and building is often the better choice, even if it is less exciting. We would rather say that before you list than have you find it out a year later.

Weighing a move up

Bring us two numbers: what you think your home would sell for and what you are hoping to buy. We will lay out the real cost of the move, both land transfer taxes, the order of the two closings and what bridge financing might cost for your likely gap. A home valuation is a good first step.

There is no obligation. If this is not the right year we will tell you. You can contact us whenever you are ready.