How Buyers Actually Find Good Deals in Toronto Real Estate
Everyone says they’re looking for a deal right now. And on the surface, it makes sense. Prices have come down. Inventory is up. Buyers have
more leverage.
So naturally, people assume this should be the easiest time to find a deal. However, deals aren’t obvious. And they’re definitely not labeled for you.
If you’re expecting to scroll through listings and instantly spot a “great deal,” you’re going to miss how this market actually works.
Deals Are Created, Not Found
The biggest misconception buyers have is that deals just exist out in the open. They don’t. No seller is going to list their property and say, “Come take this off my hands at a discount.” If anything, the opposite happens. The best-looking properties, priced well and showing well, are still getting attention and still selling.
So where do deals actually come from? They come from situations.
You’re Not Buying a Property. You’re Buying a Situation
The opportunity isn’t in the listing itself. It’s in the seller behind it.
You want to understand the seller’s motivations:
Why are they selling?
Are they under pressure?
How long have they been trying to sell?
It sounds obvious, but this is where the leverage comes from. A seller who just listed last week to “test the market” is very different from a seller facing real pressure. You have completely different deal potential with a seller who:
Already bought another home
Is carrying two properties
Has been sitting on the market for 60+ days
Why “Obvious Deals” Usually Aren’t Deals
It’s normal to think that these are where all the deals come from:
Power of sales
Off-market deals
Assignment sales
Most people think this is where the hidden opportunities are. But the reality is that these make up a very small portion of the market.
Power of sales make up a fraction of total listings, less than half a percent of all sales. And when they do come up, they often come with issues:
Condition problems
Outstanding liens or complications
Missing components
Off-market deals sound great, but the reality is about 95% of transactions happen on the open market.
So if you’re only looking for “hidden” deals, you’re ignoring most of the opportunities that actually exist.
Where Deals Actually Are
If you want consistency, you need to focus on what’s in front of you. And the biggest signal is simple: Time.
Listings that have been sitting for 30, 60, or 90+ days are the ones where the opportunities lie. But not every stale listing is a good deal.
So, your job is to figure out:
Is this sitting because it’s overpriced?
Poorly marketed?
Or actually flawed?
What looks like a problem, is probably just an opportunity that hasn’t been understood yet.
If Everyone Loves It, You’re Not Getting a Deal
This is another obvious and hard truth.
Buyers usually want turnkey homes, with perfect layouts, in great neighbourhoods, and in move-in ready condition. Those properties get all the attention.
If you want a deal, you need to be willing to look at:
Properties that need light work
Layouts that aren’t perfect
Listings that didn’t photograph well
Tenanted properties that don’t show well
Negotiation Is Not Just Price
A common mistake buyers make is focusing only on price. Yes, price matters. But it’s not the only measuring stick.
You can also negotiate with flexible closing timelines, conditions, deposit amounts, and inclusions/exclusions. Even pulling on heart strings.
Sometimes you don’t win by paying the least. But you will win by being the easiest deal to accept.
Stop Trying to Time the Bottom
A lot of buyers are still waiting for lower interest rates, lower prices, and more certainty. The problem is, the bottom only becomes clear after it’s passed. Hindsight is 20/20. When confidence comes back, so does competition.
Instead of trying to time the entire market, focus on finding the right opportunity within the current market.
Deals don’t happen when everything feels perfect. They happen when there’s uncertainty.
What a Deal Actually Means
At the end of the day, a “deal” is personal.
For some people, it’s getting a lower price than last year.
For others, it’s securing a rare property they’ll hold for 20+ years. Or buying something with long-term upside.
So before you even start looking, define what a deal means to you. Because without that, everything just looks like noise.
Final Thought
If you want to find a deal in Toronto real estate, stop looking for obvious discounts.
Start looking for motivated sellers, overlooked properties, and situations where you have leverage.
That’s where deals are actually made.