Pre-Approved, Prepared, and Ready to Buy
From helping you understand your budget to strengthening your offer before you start your search, getting
pre-approved gives you a clear advantage when buying a home in the Greater Toronto Area.
With a mortgage pre-approval in place, you’ll know what you can afford, focus on the right properties, and
move forward with confidence when the perfect home becomes available.
ATTENTION: Toronto Homebuyers
Dedicated and Experienced Team
We believe every successful home search starts with the right preparation. Whether you’re buying your first property, moving up, or purchasing again, getting pre-approved helps you understand your budget, shop with confidence, and focus on homes that truly fit your goals.
With a pre-approval in place, you’ll be ready to act quickly when the right property comes along, making your buying experience smoother, clearer, and more efficient.
Building Up Your Credit Score
Improving your credit score takes time and effort, but because it results in getting the best terms on your mortgage, it is worth it. Here's how you can improve your credit score:
#1 Get a copy of your credit report
The first step to rebuilding your credit score is to get a copy of your credit report. You can request a free copy of your credit report from Equifax or TransUnion in Canada. Review your credit report carefully to identify any errors or inaccuracies that may negatively impact your score. If you find any errors, dispute them with the credit bureau.
#2 Pay down your debts
While having debt - if you are paying it off on time - helps you build your credit score, the amount of debt you have limits the amount you can borrow. If you have high credit card balances or other debts, work on paying them down as quickly as possible. If you're using a significant amount of your available credit, this may suggest that you are overextended and may struggle to make payments. The less debt you have, the better your credit utilization ratio will be, which can help improve your credit score.
#3 Start budgeting to pay your bills on time
Start paying your bills on time with no exceptions. Make this the #1 priority each month. Creating a monthly budget helps you take care of your financial health. You can use a budgeting app or a Google or Excel sheet to plan your expenses.
#4 Seek professional help
If you are struggling to rebuild your credit score, consider seeking professional help from a credit counselor or financial advisor. They can help you develop a plan to improve your credit score, manage your debts, and create a budget.
How to Avoid a Money Pit:
Be on the Lookout for these 6 Warning Signs That Could Mean Expensive Repairs...
Roof
Leaks are the most common problem with roofs, and are tough to detect from outside. However, from inside an attic, you can often see water marks where there is a leak.
Plumbing System
Make sure you are confident that both water systems: the one that brings fresh water in and the one that takes sewage out are functioning well before signing on the dotted line.
Electrical Systems
Before you agree to buy you should make sure that you can run all of the appliances you want to and even power tools at the same time without having a power failure.
Heating and Cooling Systems
Be sure to thoroughly inspect the heating and air conditioning systems in any home you are considering purchasing.
Bad Paint and Signs of Rotting
The paint inside and outside the house can reveal a lot about the condition of the underlying material. Check several places on several walls, using your eyes and a screwdriver for poking.
Cracks and other important signs
Cracks in walls, doors not closing properly and uneven floors can all be signs that there is a problem with the foundation. If the foundation is not strong, the entire house could literally collapse, so you should carefully check for these signs.
TESTIMONIALS
What others are saying
"We found the one"
"Danny negotiated strategically, got the seller to address key repairs, and secured a price that felt like a win without risking the deal. We felt supported, informed, and genuinely cared for the entire time"
- Deklon R.
"Communication was immediate"
"I can’t say enough about how professional, energetic, and effective Danny Macedo’s team is. Communication was immediate and consistent, and we always knew what was happening, what came next, and what decisions mattered most."
- Tony Marquez
"Outstanding Realtor Service"
"Thanks again for everything! We really look forward to ha ving you as a resource and being able to refer friends to you for real estate advice."
- Alex Campagnaro
Royal LePage® Supreme Realty, Brokerage
110 Weston Road
Toronto, ON M6N 0A6
Call 416-535-8000
Text 647-931-5151
Copyright 2026. Macedo Real Estate Group, Danny Macedo, Sales Representative, Anthony Rocco Macedo, Sales Representative, Royal LePage Supreme Realty, Brokerage all rights reserved assumes no responsibility for the accuracy of any information shown. The information provided herein must only be used by consumers that have a bona fide interest in the purchase, sale or lease of real estate and may not be used for any commercial purpose or any other purpose.
Elite Broker Blogs
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How to Read a Comparable Sale Before Your Agent Shows You One
What a comparable sale actually is
A comparable sale is a recently sold property that is similar enough to the one you are buying or selling that its sale price tells you something useful about value. Agents call them comps. Appraisers use them. Lenders rely on them. And most buyers see them for the first time in the middle of a negotiation, which is too late to learn how to read them properly.
The idea is straightforward. If a house on the next street, roughly the same size, in roughly the same condition, sold three weeks ago for a certain price, that sale gives you a reference point. The challenge is in the word "roughly." Two houses are never identical, and knowing which differences matter is the whole skill.
The five things that make a sale comparable
Location comes first. A sale on the same street or in the same neighbourhood is more useful than one two kilometres away. Even within a neighbourhood, there are differences. Backing onto a park is not the same as backing onto a railway corridor, and the sale price reflects that.
Size is next, and it means above-grade living area, not total square footage including the basement. A 1,400 square foot bungalow and a 1,400 square foot two-storey are not the same house. The bungalow sits on a larger footprint, costs more to roof, and appeals to a different buyer. Compare like with like.
Age and condition matter together. A 1960s side-split that has been renovated top to bottom is not comparable to one that still has the original kitchen. Renovation quality varies too. A $30,000 kitchen and a $90,000 kitchen are not the same upgrade, and the sale price of each house will reflect the difference.
Lot size and configuration are the fourth factor. In areas like King City or Nobleton, lot sizes vary enormously. A half-acre lot and a two-acre lot in the same community are different products for different buyers, even if the houses on them are similar.
Timing is the fifth. A sale from six months ago happened in a different market than one from last month. In a stable market the gap matters less. In a market where prices are moving, even three months can shift the picture. The more recent the sale, the more weight it carries.
What to watch for when your agent presents comps
Start with how many they show you. Three is the minimum for a meaningful comparison. One comp proves nothing. Two can be cherry-picked. Three starts to show a pattern, and five is better.
Look at the sale-to-list price ratio on each one. If a comp sold at 97 per cent of its asking price, that tells you the seller did not get what they wanted. If it sold at 103 per cent, there was competition. That context matters as much as the raw number.
Check the days on market. A house that sold in eight days faced different conditions than one that sat for sixty. The eight-day sale may have been underpriced to attract offers. The sixty-day sale may have been overpriced and then reduced. Neither is automatically a better indicator of value, but the story behind each one changes how you use it.
Ask about adjustments. If the comp has a finished basement and the subject property does not, the comp's price overstates the subject's value. If the comp has no garage and the subject has a double, the comp understates it. Your agent should be able to explain what they would add or subtract and why.
The question most buyers forget to ask
When you see a set of comps, ask your agent whether there were any recent sales they chose not to include, and why. The excluded sales are sometimes more revealing than the included ones. A sale that was left out because the seller was under financial pressure tells you something about the floor. A sale that was left out because it was a private transaction with no MLS exposure tells you the data is incomplete.
No set of comparables is perfect. The point is not to find three identical houses. It is to understand the range of prices that similar properties have actually achieved, and then to figure out where the property you are looking at sits within that range.
Why this matters before you make an offer
Your agent's pricing advice is only as good as the comps behind it. If you understand how to read them, you can have a better conversation about where to set your offer price. You are not trying to do your agent's job. You are trying to be a better client, which makes the whole process work more smoothly for everyone.
If you want help reading the comparables for a property you are considering, call me at 416-560-4983.
