“We weren’t ready to move to the suburbs yet”: This couple paid $1 million for a Riverdale condo
This couple saved during lockdown and bought a $1-million condo in Riverdale
After saving a ton of money during the pandemic, Megan Ryder, a 27-year-old clinic services director, and Marcus Gverzdys, also 27 and a business development manager, bought a $1,060,430 two-bedroom condo at Queen and Broadview. Here’s how they found their place.
—As told to Andrea Yu
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Megan: Marcus and I met in 2014 at university, at the Ivey Business School. But we didn’t start dating until the end of 2018, after we graduated. A year later, in October 2019, we moved in together, renting a two-bed, two-bath condo at King and Spadina for $3,000 a month. We both wanted to be homeowners soon, but we needed to save up for a down payment.
Marcus: We loved living downtown. We would go out three times a week on date nights or for dinner with friends. We were both working downtown, and I was a three-minute walk to my office and Megan was a 10-minute walk to her clinic. That all ended when Covid started. We turned our kitchen island into a workstation.
Megan: During the pandemic, we became mindful of our spending by cutting down on things like clothes, haircare, tech and gadgets. And we were saving a ton by not going out at night and cancelling vacations—we’d originally planned to travel to Portugal, Vietnam, Bali and Chicago. By September, we’d probably saved more than $35,000 and our condo was starting to feel really small. We decided it would be a good time to buy a place. We realized we could afford a place and spend about the same as we paid in rent month to month.
Marcus: We knew we wanted to stay downtown. All of our friends are here, and weren’t ready to move out of the city yet. We still craved the vibrancy and nightlife that Toronto has to offer. In October, we set our budget at $1 million. We wanted at least two bedrooms and a parking spot for Megan’s car. We loved the idea of having a split-level unit with a staircase.
Megan: In December, we found a great unit in Riverdale. It’s a warehouse that was built in 1914 and later converted to hard lofts. It has that staircase we wanted, and huge south-facing windows. We got the place for $1,060,430—just under the asking price.
Marcus: We’re in love with the area. It’s great to wake up and grab a croissant from the bakery around the corner, or get ciders from Brickworks.
Megan: We weren’t ready to move to the suburbs yet. We’re optimistic about the city getting back to where it was before the pandemic. We want to be here for that.
Do you have a story about buying or selling a property during the pandemic? We’d love to hear it: realestate@torontolife.com
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After saving a ton of money during the pandemic, Megan Ryder, a 27-year-old clinic services director, and Marcus Gverzdys, also 27 and a business development manager, bought a $1,060,430 two-bedroom condo at Queen and Broadview. Here's how they found their place.
—As told to Andrea Yu
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Megan: Marcus and I met in 2014 at university, at the Ivey Business School. But we didn’t start dating until the end of 2018, after we graduated. A year later, in October 2019, we moved in together, renting a two-bed, two-bath condo at King and Spadina for $3,000 a month. We both wanted to be homeowners soon, but we needed to save up for a down payment.
Marcus: We loved living downtown. We would go out three times a week on date nights or for dinner with friends. We were both working downtown, and I was a three-minute walk to my office and Megan was a 10-minute walk to her clinic. That all ended when Covid started. We turned our kitchen island into a workstation.
Megan: During the pandemic, we became mindful of our spending by cutting down on things like clothes, haircare, tech and gadgets. And we were saving a ton by not going out at night and cancelling vacations—we'd originally planned to travel to Portugal, Vietnam, Bali and Chicago. By September, we'd probably saved more than $35,000 and our condo was starting to feel really small. We decided it would be a good time to buy a place. We realized we could afford a place and spend about the same as we paid in rent month to month.
Marcus: We knew we wanted to stay downtown. All of our friends are here, and weren’t ready to move out of the city yet. We still craved the vibrancy and nightlife that Toronto has to offer. In October, we set our budget at $1 million. We wanted at least two bedrooms and a parking spot for Megan’s car. We loved the idea of having a split-level unit with a staircase.
Megan: In December, we found a great unit in Riverdale. It’s a warehouse that was built in 1914 and later converted to hard lofts. It has that staircase we wanted, and huge south-facing windows. We got the place for $1,060,430—just under the asking price.
Marcus: We’re in love with the area. It’s great to wake up and grab a croissant from the bakery around the corner, or get ciders from Brickworks.
Megan: We weren’t ready to move to the suburbs yet. We’re optimistic about the city getting back to where it was before the pandemic. We want to be here for that.
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Do you have a story about buying or selling a property during the pandemic? We'd love to hear it: realestate@torontolife.com){kind=link}