Bank of Canada Holds at key rate at 2.25%

The Bank of Canada left its policy rate at 2.25 per cent this morning, which is the outcome nearly everyone expected.  But if you are buying in Markham this fall, or you have a mortgage coming up for renewal, the rate the Bank announced is not the number that will decide what your payment looks like.  The number that matters is the bond yield sitting behind fixed mortgage rates, and that one has been climbing quietly all summer while the Bank has stayed still.

What the Bank actually said

The statement itself was measured.  CPI inflation has been hovering around 3 per cent in recent months, driven mainly by persistently higher gasoline prices, while the core measures the Bank watches most closely have stayed near its 2 per cent target.  At the same time the economy came in stronger than the Bank had penciled in, with second quarter GDP up 3.3 per cent against a forecast closer to 2.5 per cent.  Set against that, new American tariffs and Canadian counter-measures were announced after trade talks between the two countries broke down, which cuts the other way entirely.  Governing Council closed by saying it will assess the sustainability of the economic rebound and the outlook for inflation, and is prepared to adjust monetary policy as needed.  That is deliberately non-committal language, and it is worth reading it as exactly that.

Why fixed rates can rise while the Bank sits still

This is the part that catches people off guard every time, so it is worth being plain about it.  Your variable rate and your line of credit are tied to prime, which sits at 4.45 per cent and does not move on a hold, so if you are carrying a variable mortgage today nothing changed for you this morning.  Fixed rates work differently.  They follow the bond market, and the Government of Canada five and ten year yields have been drifting upward since early July, with the ten year now around 3.74 per cent after a move of roughly 36 basis points.  Lenders price fixed mortgages off those yields, not off the overnight rate, which is why you can have a central bank standing perfectly still and a fixed rate quote that is meaningfully worse than the one you were given in June.

The other shift is in expectations.  For most of the past two years the conversation in this market has been about when the next cut arrives.  That conversation has changed.  Roughly 63 per cent of analysts surveyed now expect the Bank's next move to be upward rather than downward, most of them pointing to the first half of 2027, and a couple of the big banks have floated the possibility of an increase as early as October.  I am not telling you to treat that as a forecast, because these calls move around constantly and the tariff picture could turn again.  I am telling you that planning around a cut that may never come is a weaker position than it was a year ago.

What this means for Markham specifically

Our local market is tighter than the national headlines suggest.  Markham recorded 288 sales in July at an average price of $1,131,324 and a median of $1,062,500, with a sales to new listings ratio of 39.4 per cent, the tightest in York Region.  Fewer sellers came out this summer than in the past couple of years, so the well prepared, sensibly priced home is facing less resale competition heading into the fall than it did last September.  For a buyer in Unionville, Cachet, or Berczy, that means the inventory advantage you may have been counting on is thinner than you think, and waiting has a cost on both sides of the ledger now.

What I would actually do

If you are buying, get your pre-approval refreshed this week rather than next month, and hold the rate while you can, since most lenders will guarantee a quoted fixed rate for 90 to 120 days and that hold costs you nothing if rates fall.  If you are renewing in the next year, start shopping four to six months ahead instead of waiting for the letter from your lender, and get a second quote before you sign the one in front of you.  And if you are selling, price against the last ninety days of comparable sales rather than what your neighbour got in a different rate environment, because buyers in this market are doing the payment math carefully and they will notice.

The bottom line

The hold is not the story.  Fixed mortgage rates are being pushed up by bond yields even while the Bank sits at 2.25 per cent, and the market's expectation has quietly flipped from the next cut to the next increase.  If you are buying or renewing in Markham this fall, lock a rate hold now and plan on today's numbers rather than a cut that may not arrive.

If you want to talk through what this means for your own timing, reach out any time.  Over the years we have walked a lot of Markham families through decisions exactly like this one, and it is always easier with the actual numbers in front of you.

Sources: Bank of Canada policy rate announcement, September 2, 2026; Canadian Mortgage Trends, September 2026; Toronto Regional Real Estate Board July 2026 market data.

What Ontario's HST Rebate on New Homes Means for Markham Sellers This Fall

If you are planning to sell a detached home or a freehold townhouse in Markham this fall, the thing that has changed most is not the interest rate, it is who you are competing against.  Ontario's expanded HST rebate applies only to newly built homes, and over the summer it has pulled a meaningful share of buyers toward builder inventory, with single-family new home sales across the GTA finishing July up 246% over the same month a year ago.  What follows is what that shift does to your pricing and your marketing, and where an established Markham home still holds a real advantage.

The July numbers, and why they are unusual

Builders sold 1,018 new homes across the GTA in July, and 781 of those were single-family: detached, semi-detached, linked and townhomes.  That puts the single-family category roughly 50% above its ten-year July average, which is a genuinely unusual reading in a market most people still describe as slow.  At the same time, the benchmark price on those new single-family homes was $1,362,433, down 8.5% from a year ago, while new condominium apartments sold 80% below their ten-year average (source: BILD and Altus Group new home sales release for July 2026, published August 27).

I read those two facts as one story rather than two.  Builders have been discounting, the rebate stacks on top of the discount, and buyers who spent the last two years waiting have decided that the combination is finally worth acting on.  Dave Wilkes at BILD described it as the fourth consecutive month of positive momentum in the single-family category, and the pattern in the numbers supports him.

The part that catches resale sellers off guard

The rebate does not apply to a resale home.  When a buyer sits down and compares your house in Markham Village, Unionville or Cornell against a new release a few minutes up the road, they are weighing your asking price against a builder's price less a rebate that can reach well into five or six figures, and that arithmetic can look unflattering if you have anchored your expectations to what a neighbour achieved in a different market.  I would far rather you hear this from me in early September than work it out for yourself in late October, after a month of polite showings and no offers.

This is not a reason to be discouraged, and it is certainly not a reason to give the house away.  It is a reason to price and present against what is actually on the market right now instead of against memory.

Mature Tree Lined Street in Markham

Where an established Markham home still wins

A new build is a floor plan and a rendering, and for a lot of buyers that is exactly the appeal.  But an established home in Unionville, Markham Village, Berczy, Wismer, Swan Lake or Cornell offers a set of things a builder simply cannot put in a brochure: mature trees and finished landscaping that would take fifteen years to grow in, a school assignment that is settled today rather than promised, a closing date you can actually plan a move around, and no development charge adjustments or occupancy delays waiting at the end of the process.  There is also no HST on the purchase price of a resale home, which is worth saying plainly to any buyer who has been doing the builder math and has not thought it through.

When I take a listing in one of these neighbourhoods, that is the conversation I want the marketing to be having.  Photograph the mature canopy, the established gardens, the finished basement that a new owner would otherwise spend a year and a great deal of money creating.  Sell the fifteen years the buyer does not have to wait.

How I would price into this market

Markham itself is holding up better than the headlines suggest.  There were 288 sales here in July at an average price of $1,131,324 and a median of $1,062,500, with a sales-to-new-listings ratio of 39.4%, the tightest in York Region, and roughly 4.2 months of inventory.  Across York Region as a whole, new listings were down 18.7% from a year ago (source: TRREB Market Watch, July 2026).  Fewer sellers came to market this summer, which means a well-prepared, sensibly priced home is facing less resale competition than it would have faced last fall, even with the builders active.

So the strategy is not complicated.  Price against the last ninety days of sales on streets genuinely comparable to yours, not against a builder's list price and not against 2022.  Prepare the home properly before it goes live rather than after.  And get out in front of the fall traffic, because the Bank of Canada announces its next rate decision on Wednesday, September 2, and the buyers who have been waiting on that news will be looking the following weekend.

The bottom line

The HST rebate has given builders an advantage on price that a resale seller cannot match dollar for dollar, so do not try to.  Compete instead on the things an established Markham neighbourhood already owns: mature setting, certainty, and a closing you can plan around, priced honestly against the last ninety days.  If you are thinking about a fall sale, I am glad to walk through your home, tell you candidly what is worth doing and what is not, and put real local numbers behind the pricing conversation.

Brad

The Zoning on That Listing May Be Out of Date - What's Changing Across York Region

Aerial view of Main Street Unionville © Brad Macdonald

If you are buying a property in York Region for what you plan to do with it, whether that is a second unit for family, a workshop, or a future severance, confirm the zoning with the municipality itself before your conditions come off.  Three municipalities here have rewritten or are rewriting their zoning by-laws at more or less the same time, and the property databases that agents and lawyers pull from have not all kept pace.  The acreage on the deed does not change; what you are permitted to build on it can.

Markham's rewrite is already finished

Council enacted a new comprehensive zoning by-law, By-law 2024-19, on January 31, 2024, and the Ontario Land Tribunal approved it on a city-wide basis on September 19, 2024, save for lands tied to remaining site-specific appeals (source: yourvoicemarkham.ca).  What it replaced is remarkable when you see it written down: forty-six separate parent zoning by-laws, enacted between 1954 and 2004, each with its own definitions and standards.  For most Markham homeowners this was overdue housekeeping and nothing more.  But if you are working from an older listing, an older survey, or a report prepared before 2024, the zoning it names may simply no longer exist, and a small number of properties do still sit under the older rules. Some of the biggest changes occur to the commercial/industrial zoning around Markham’s inclusive industrial zone just east of McCowan road, by CF Markville, with the official plan designating some of this for ‘future redevelopment’ with very different zoning.

Georgina is partway through, and rural buyers should care most

Georgina's Countryside lands, meaning the rural and agricultural areas outside the settlement boundaries, now fall under Countryside Zoning By-law 600, while Keswick, Sutton, Jackson's Point, Pefferlaw and the hamlets remain under the older By-law 500.  Phase two, which updates the settlement areas, began in 2025 and is expected to conclude in 2027 (source: Town of Georgina, Zoning By-law Update).  For anyone shopping in cottage country the practical consequence is significant.  A large rural parcel that once appeared simply as rural may now carry a combination of designations, with Environmental Protection applied to a portion of it.  The land has not shrunk by a square foot, but where you may build, whether an additional dwelling unit is permitted, and what a severance might realistically look like can all have changed.

Stouffville is next

Whitchurch-Stouffville still operates under Comprehensive Zoning By-law 2010-001-ZO, consolidated as recently as July of this year, while its ReZone and ReDesign project works toward an updated by-law and new urban design guidelines (source: townofws.ca).  Nothing has flipped yet, which makes this the right moment for anyone with plans for a Stouffville property to pay attention rather than to assume.

The part almost nobody checks

The property information services that agents and lawyers pull from, and the assessment records behind them, do not always reflect these transitions right away.  You can look a property up in perfectly good faith and be handed a zoning designation that was superseded a year or more ago.  Nobody is being careless about it.  Municipal by-laws simply change faster than the databases that describe them, and there is no flag on the screen telling you that what you are reading is out of date.

So before zoning becomes the reason you are buying a property, confirm it at the source: the municipality's own current zoning map and by-law schedules, not a listing sheet, not an old report, and not the property's historical use.  Look specifically for whether the parcel carries more than one designation, and for site-specific exceptions, which are common and easy to miss.  If your plan depends on the answer, a call to the municipal planning department before the conditions come off is the cheapest insurance you will ever buy, and if the answer is still unclear, that is exactly what a properly drafted condition in your offer is for.

The bottom line

Zoning across York Region is in transition, and the record you look up may not be the record that governs the property.  Confirm the current zoning with the municipality before you waive conditions on anything you are buying for its development potential, and treat rural and large-lot parcels as the highest risk.  Over the years I have found that the expensive surprises are almost never about price; they are about what someone assumed they could do with a property and then could not.

If you are considering a rural or large-lot purchase anywhere in York Region this fall and want a second set of eyes on it before you commit, call me.  I would far rather spend an afternoon on this with you than help you unwind it later.

Getting Your Markham Home Ready for a Fall Sale: A Late-August Checklist

Every year around this time, I get the same call: "We're thinking of selling this fall - when should we start getting ready?"

And every year my answer is the same: now.

Not because there's any panic in it, but because the sellers who do well in the fall market are the ones who spend late August preparing while everyone else is still at the cottage.

Here's the checklist I walk my own clients through, refined over years of Markham falls.

Take your exterior photos now. This is the one people most often miss. The serious fall buyers show up the week after Labour Day, but if you list in late September or October, your hero shot gets taken under grey skies and bare branches. Photograph the outside of your home in the next two or three weeks, while the gardens are full and the trees are green. A great late-August exterior photo will carry a November listing. If you're in Unionville, Markham Village or an established pocket like Swan Lake where mature trees and gardens are half the charm, this matters double.

Deal with the small stuff. Buyers in a market like this one are choosier than they were a few years ago, and small flaws read as neglect. Sticky doors, chipped trim, the downspout that's leaned since spring, caulking around tubs and sinks - a weekend and a few hundred dollars here protects tens of thousands in perceived value.

Service what buyers will ask about. Have the furnace serviced and keep the receipt. Clean the eavestroughs. If your roof, windows or A/C are newer, gather the paperwork. Fall buyers are walking into their first heating season; proof that the house is ready for it is quiet, powerful reassurance.

Declutter with moving boxes, not garbage bags. You're moving anyway, so start now. Pack away a third of what's in your closets and half of what's on your surfaces. Rooms photograph larger, and buyers can see the house instead of the household.

Price to this fall, not to memory. The GTA average price sat at $1,003,956 in July, about 4.5% below a year ago - but new listings were down almost 18%, which means well-priced homes face less competition than last fall (source: TRREB Market Watch, July 2026). The winning strategy in this market is pricing against the last 90 days of sales on streets like yours, then letting the tight supply do its work. Anchoring to a 2022 number is how good homes go stale.

Know your buyer. In Berczy and Wismer, fall buyers are often families who want to close in time to settle before the next school year decisions. In Cornell, it's a mix of first-time buyers and young families watching rates. Around Main Street Unionville, it's lifestyle buyers - and honestly, the village sells itself in autumn; there's no better season to show it. Y our preparation, staging and timing should match who's actually coming through the door.

If a fall sale is even a maybe for you, late August is when the groundwork happens. I'm happy to walk through your home, tell you honestly what's worth doing (and what isn't), and put real local numbers behind a pricing conversation. No obligation - just years of Markham falls put to work for you.

Brad

Main Street Unionville Has Its Sparkle Back - and Jazz Festival Weekend Is the Time to See It

The Unionville Bandshell

If you had tried to stroll Main Street Unionville on a Saturday last summer, you'd have been dodging fencing, gravel and construction hoarding.  The village spent the better part of two years dug up while the street was rebuilt, and I'll admit that even I - and I've watched this community through every kind of change since the 1980s - wondered how the shops and restaurants would weather it.

This spring we got our answer.  On May 31, the city officially reopened Main Street after a $14.8 million restoration, funded jointly by Markham and the federal government, that renewed the street's infrastructure and streetscape while protecting the heritage character that makes the village what it is (source: City of Markham; CBC News, May 31, 2026).  Mayor Frank Scarpitti put it well at the reopening: this street carries nearly 200 years of history, and the point of the investment was to celebrate that history, not pave over it.  Walk it today and you can feel the difference underfoot - the street is whole again, the patios are full, and the businesses that held on through construction are finally being rewarded.

This coming weekend is the perfect excuse to go see for yourself.  The Markham Jazz Festival returns August 22 and 23 for its 29th year, filling the village with live music from Main Street down to the Varley Art Gallery (source: markhamjazzfestival.com).  If you've never spent a festival evening in Unionville, with music drifting past century-old storefronts and the crowds wandering up from Toogood Pond, it's the best introduction to this neighbourhood I know.  Come early, because parking fills quickly, and the walk in from the surrounding streets is honestly part of the charm.

Now let me put my broker hat on, because there's a real estate story here that outlasts the weekend.

We've been selling homes in and around Unionville since 1986, and one lesson has held through every market: public investment in a neighbourhood's bones shows up in its property values, slowly and then all at once.  A street that has just had its infrastructure renewed for the next generation is a street whose biggest capital questions are answered for decades to come.  Buyers rarely price that in consciously, but they feel it the moment they walk the village, and over the years I've watched that feeling translate into steady demand for every pocket within walking distance: the heritage homes off Main Street itself, the mature crescents around Toogood Pond, and the family streets that feed into the village from Carlton Road and Kennedy.

For sellers in the village, the timing is worth understanding.  Homes near Main Street trade rarely - families arrive and stay for decades, which is the best endorsement a neighbourhood can get, but it also means each listing is its own event with little direct competition.  With the construction finally behind us and the street showing at its absolute best, this fall is as strong a backdrop for an Unionville listing as I've seen in years, provided the price reflects today's market rather than a 2022 memory.

For buyers, my advice is to be patient and be ready at the same time.  The right house near the village doesn't come along on your schedule, and when it does, you'll be competing with people who have waited just as long as you have.  Knowing your numbers before that day - what you can carry, what the street's recent sales actually say - is what turns a near miss into a new address.

Either way, start with a walk.  Come for the jazz on Saturday, stay for dinner on a patio, and see what $14.8 million and 200 years of history look like together.  And if the village gets under your skin the way it got under mine all those decades ago, you know where to find me.

Brad

Main Street Unionville, July 2026

The Markham Upsizer's Playbook: Where Detached Homes and Townhomes Actually Make Sense

Upsizing in Markham, Ontario typically means bridging a gap of roughly $400,000 between a starter condo, semi, or townhome and a full detached house - and the neighbourhood you choose matters more than the house, because school catchments, GO station access, and lot vintage drive resale here more than finishes do. For most move-up buyers, the practical shortlist comes down to six communities: Berczy, Wismer, Cornell, Greensborough, Cathedraltown, and Markham Village — with Unionville as the stretch goal. This guide breaks down what each one actually costs, what you get for it, and the street-level details that don’t show up on a listing sheet.

Last updated: July 6th 2026 · By Brad Macdonald, Broker, The MAC Team — RE/MAX All-Stars Realty Inc.

Which Markham neighbourhoods are best for upsizing into a detached home or townhome?

Here’s the comparison most buyers spend three months assembling on their own:

What does upsizing actually buy you in Markham right now?

The move-up ladder in Markham has unusually distinct rungs. This is the spread between them:

Markham upsizer neighbourhoods at a glance — July 2026

Neighbourhood	Freehold townhome	Detached (main segment)	Lot character	Nearest GO	Known for
Berczy	$1.15M–$1.35M	$1.7M–$2.2M	2000s, 36–45 ft lots	Centennial / Mount Joy	Pierre Elliott Trudeau H.S. catchment
Wismer	$1.1M–$1.3M	$1.5M–$1.9M	2000s–2010s, 30–40 ft lots	Mount Joy	Bur Oak Ave corridor, parks every few blocks
Cornell	$1.05M–$1.25M	$1.4M–$1.8M	New-urbanist, rear laneways	Markham (via Cornell Terminal)	Hospital, Rouge Park at the doorstep
Greensborough	$1.05M–$1.25M	$1.45M–$1.8M	2000s, 36–42 ft lots	Mount Joy (walkable)	Best GO-walkability per dollar
Cathedraltown	$1.1M–$1.3M	$1.6M–$2.1M	2010s, compact prestige lots	Hwy 404 instead	Cathedral landmark, 404 commuters
Markham Village / Raymerville	$1.0M–$1.2M	$1.35M–$1.7M	1970s–80s, 50 ft+ mature lots	Markham	Biggest lots per dollar in the city
Unionville (stretch)	$1.3M–$1.6M	$2.1M–$3.5M+	Mixed vintage, premium streets	Unionville	Main Street, Toogood Pond, Unionville H.S.

Source: TRREB MLS® data, trailing 90 days. Bands are orientation, not appraisal.

The Markham move-up ladder — July 2026

Rung	Typical price	Gap to next rung
Condo townhome / stacked town	$850K–$1.0M	+$150K–$250K
Freehold townhome (often POTL)	$1.05M–$1.35M	+$300K–$450K
Link / semi-detached	$1.25M–$1.5M	+$200K–$400K
Detached, 30–36 ft lot	$1.45M–$1.8M	+$250K–$400K
Detached, 40–50 ft lot	$1.7M–$2.2M	—

Two structural notes upsizers consistently miss:

• The townhome-to-detached gap is the expensive jump. If your end goal is detached, an intermediate move into a freehold town often costs more in total transaction friction (see our complete upsizing cost walkthrough) than waiting one more year and jumping directly.

• “Freehold” townhome usually means POTL here. Most post-2005 Markham townhomes are Parcel of Tied Land: you own the home freehold but pay a monthly common-element fee (commonly $75–$150/month) for the private laneway, visitor parking, and snow on shared surfaces. It’s not a red flag — but it is a condominium corporation on paper, which means your lawyer should review a status certificate before you firm up. If that sentence surprised you, you’re in the majority.

Neighbourhood-by-neighbourhood: the upsizer’s read

Berczy: is it worth paying the school premium?

Berczy trades at a premium of roughly 5% over near-identical homes in adjacent Wismer, and the honest explanation is four words: Pierre Elliott Trudeau High School. The catchment premium is real, durable, and priced in — you don’t make money buying it, you preserve money owning it, because catchment demand puts a floor under resale in soft markets.

What to know on the ground: the housing stock between Bur Oak Avenue and 16th Avenue is early-2000s builder stock, mostly 38–45 ft lots, and the streets off The Bridle Walk are where the larger floor plans cluster. Verify the catchment address-by-address with YRDSB before you waive conditions — boundaries in this part of Markham have been reviewed before as schools filled, and “in Berczy” does not automatically mean “in the Trudeau catchment.”

Wismer: the practical default for detached upsizers

If Berczy is the school play, Wismer is the value play with 90% of the same daily life. Same builders, same era, same Bur Oak Avenue retail spine (the plaza-and-park rhythm along Bur Oak is genuinely walkable in a way most of suburban York Region is not), Mount Joy GO on the Stouffville line at its edge, and Bur Oak Secondary School serving most of the community. Detached inventory here turns over steadily, which means more choice per season than Berczy and less bidding pressure per listing.

Cornell: the townhome capital — with one thing to check

Cornell is Markham’s new-urbanist experiment that actually worked: rear-lane garages, porches to the street, and the densest concentration of well-designed freehold townhomes in the city. It’s also home to Cornell Community Centre, Markham Stouffville Hospital, the Cornell Bus Terminal, and it backs directly onto Rouge National Urban Park — trail access from a townhome price point that nothing west of McCowan can match.

The thing to check: laneway townhomes vary enormously in garage configuration and functional parking. Some blocks have double garages plus a lane apron (effectively 3–4 spots); others have a single garage and a no-parking lane. For an upsizing family with two vehicles, this single detail should filter your Cornell townhome shortlist before price does.

Cornell Village, Markham, Ontario

Greensborough: the GO-walk neighbourhood nobody prices correctly

Much of Greensborough sits within a genuine 10–15 minute walk of Mount Joy GO, yet it trades at a discount to Berczy and roughly at par with Wismer. For a household where one earner commutes downtown on the Stouffville line and the other drives, this is arguably the best-priced detached quadrant in Markham. Inventory skews 2000s, 36–42 ft lots, with family-sized floor plans concentrated between Bur Oak Avenue and Major Mackenzie.

Cathedraltown: for the Highway 404 commuter

Cathedraltown, at Major Mackenzie and the 404, is the choice when the commute is by car, not by train. The neighbourhood is instantly recognizable — it’s built around the Cathedral of the Transfiguration, and yes, that is a giant stainless-steel cow (“Charity”) on a plinth that residents have debated since it went up; you’ll have an opinion within a week. Lots are compact for the price tier, so you’re paying for architecture, location, and the 404 on-ramp rather than backyard square footage. Best fit: upsizers leaving a townhome who care more about the house than the lot.

Markham Village & Raymerville: the mature-lot arbitrage

The oldest trick in the Markham upsizer’s book: a 1970s–80s detached on a 50–60 ft mature lot in Markham Village or Raymerville often costs the same as — or less than — a 2010s detached on 36 ft further north. You trade modern layouts for land, trees, and proximity to Main Street Markham and Milne Dam Conservation Park (the largest green space in the city that isn’t Rouge Park, and locals’ default for trails and the fall salmon run on the Rouge River). Budget honestly for updating: kitchens, windows, and wiring of this vintage absorb $150K if the home hasn’t been touched.

Unionville: the stretch goal, priced accordingly

Unionville is the destination neighbourhood - Main Street, Toogood Pond, Varley Art Gallery, Unionville High School’s arts program - and it’s priced like one. For upsizers, the realistic entries are the townhomes and links on the neighbourhood’s edges at $1.1M–$1.3M, or older detached needing work. If Unionville is the goal, start with our Unionville page — the dynamics there deserve their own article.

Main Street Unionville, Ontario

Inside-local knowledge: what only showings teach you

• The Stouffville GO line is the spine of upsizer Markham. Four stations serve the city — Unionville, Centennial, Markham, and Mount Joy, south to north. Parking pressure differs sharply by station; if the commuting spouse drives to the GO, test the actual lot at 7:40 a.m. on a Tuesday, not on a Saturday viewing trip.

• Viva Purple runs dedicated rapidway lanes along Highway 7 — relevant if you work along the 7 corridor, and a genuine amenity for teenagers who don’t drive yet.

• Bill Crothers Secondary School has no catchment. It’s application-based (athlete-focused), so no house purchase gets you in — don’t pay a premium a listing agent attaches to “near Bill Crothers.”

• Catchment maps move. Fast-growing communities here have seen boundary reviews as schools hit capacity. Confirm the current YRDSB/YCDSB boundary for the specific address in writing during your conditional period.

• POTL fees are per-corporation, not per-neighbourhood. Two visually identical townhome rows a block apart can carry fees $60+/month apart depending on how much private road each corporation maintains. It’s on the status certificate; read it.

• Aaniin Community Centre (south) and Angus Glen Community Centre (north) bracket the city — proximity to one is a daily-life factor families weight heavily after moving in, and almost never during the search.

Detached vs. townhome: the honest trade-off table for upsizers

Detached vs. townhome for upsizers

Factor	Freehold townhome (POTL)	Detached
Entry price	$1.05M–$1.35M	$1.4M+
Monthly carrying extra	POTL fee $110–$180	None (all maintenance is yours)
Snow / lawn	Shared surfaces done for you	Yours, entirely
Lot / yard	Minimal	The point
Resale liquidity	High — biggest buyer pool in the city	High, segmented by lot size
Legal wrinkle	Status certificate review	Standard freehold

The next step (no pressure version)

If you’re within 12 months of making this move, the most useful thing we can offer isn’t a sales call — it’s the Markham Upsizer’s Street-Level Shortlist: a custom map built for your budget, school priorities, and commute pattern, marking the specific streets (not just neighbourhoods) that fit, plus our current watchlist of coming-soon and off-market homes in those pockets that haven’t hit MLS®. Request it through our getting-started page — it takes us about two days to build and it’s yours either way.

The MAC Team — RE/MAX All-Stars Realty Inc., 5071 Hwy 7, Unit 5, Markham. Market figures are drawn from TRREB MLS® data and are illustrative; for current numbers, request a valuation or browse our latest market takes.

IndyCar Is Coming to Markham - What the Race Means Beyond Race Weekend

This August, something happens in Markham that has never happened before. The NTT IndyCar Series arrives at Markham Centre for the Ontario Honda Dealers Indy, running August 14 - 16, with race day on Sunday, August 16.

This is not a one-off. The City of Markham signed a five-year agreement to host the event, ending the race's nearly four-decade run at Toronto's Exhibition Place, where it had been held since 1986. Markham is now the home of Canada's IndyCar race - and notably, this marks the series' first new international venue since São Paulo in 2010.

The race itself

Crews are building a 12-turn, 3.52 km temporary street circuit through downtown Markham, featuring a high-speed straight and a double-sided pit lane. The course runs through the heart of Markham Centre, near the York University campus and the Unionville GO corridor. It is being billed as the largest sporting event York Region has ever hosted, with reported estimates of a $50 million economic boost and 10,000 jobs supported over the weekend.

There's a fitting local connection too: Honda Canada's headquarters sits right here in Markham.

Why I think this matters for real estate

I'll be direct - a race weekend does not change what your home is worth. Anyone telling you otherwise is overselling. But I think this event matters for three real reasons. First, the infrastructure is permanent. To prepare the circuit, the City is rebuilding roads along Enterprise Boulevard, Kennedy Road, YMCA Boulevard, University Boulevard, and Unionville Gate - new asphalt, new sidewalks, new traffic signals, and new pedestrian crossovers. The barriers come down after the race, but he upgraded streetscape stays.

Second, the exposure is global. IndyCar broadcasts reach over 200 countries. For three days every August for at least five years, the backdrop is Markham Centre - its condos, its restaurants, its skyline. Cities like Long Beach and Detroit have built lasting identities around street races. That kind of visibility shapes how buyers, investors, and businesses perceive a city over time.

Third, and most important, this is a signal. Major event operators commit five years to a location because they believe in its trajectory. The IndyCar deal joins a clear pattern in Markham Centre: the York University campus, transit investment at Unionville GO, and steady residential growth. In my experience, confidence attracts confidence.

The practical side

Residents near Markham Centre should expect construction-related lane reductions on the affected routes in the lead-up, and significant road closures over the race weekend itself. If you live in the area, plan around it. If you own a condo nearby, expect a noisy but lively weekend - and likely some interesting short-term demand for accommodations as visitors arrive.

The bottom line

Markham has spent twenty years building toward moments like this. Whether you're a racing fan or not, the Ontario Honda Dealers Indy puts our city on a world stage - and reinforces what those of us who live and work here already know. Markham isn't waiting for its moment. It's building it.

If you'd like to talk about what the growth of Markham Centre means for your neighbourhood or your property, I'm always glad to have that conversation.

Sources: City of Markham - Ontario Honda Dealers Indy | IndyCar.com

Sold in 8 Days: What a Clean Sale Looks Like in Markham Village Right Now

The market has been humbling for a lot of sellers in 2025. Buyers are cautious, financing conditions are back, and days-on-market numbers that would have been embarrassing three years ago are now routine. Against that backdrop, we recently closed 3 Bryant Road in Markham Village in 8 days - a straightforward, well-negotiated sale where both sides left the table satisfied. No drama. We don't usually post sold properties on this blog, but this one felt worth noting.

The property

3 Bryant Road is a 2,800 sq ft, 4-bedroom, 4-bathroom freehold detached home on a 44 x 124 lot. The home carried its original 1980s finishes - we priced it to reflect that honestly, not to chase a number it couldn't justify. Updated mechanicals (furnace and A/C replaced in 2020, newer roof, updated windows), a finished basement, and a large fenced backyard with a wood deck rounded out the picture.

Why Markham Village

Markham Village is one of those neighbourhoods that holds its appeal quietly. Mature tree-lined streets, genuine community character, walkable to schools, and close to commuter routes without feeling like a suburb built around a highway. Demand for the right product here doesn't disappear - it just gets more selective. Buyers who want Markham Village know it, and they show up when the pricing makes sense.

What made it work

Honest pricing from day one. Clear, consistent marketing that set accurate expectations. And a negotiation focused on getting both parties to yes rather than winning points. The buyers got a home they understood completely. The sellers moved on with certainty. That's the outcome we're always working toward.

Thinking about selling in Markham Village?

If you're weighing a move in this market and want a realistic conversation about what well-executed looks like right now, we're happy to talk. Contact us or call us directly.

The MAC Team - REMAX All-Stars Realty Inc., Brokerage

REMAX Joins Forces with The Real Brokerage - What It Means

By now, you may have seen the headlines. On April 27, The Real Brokerage announced plans to acquire REMAX Holdings in an $880 million deal — one of the most significant transactions in the history of residential real estate. As agents with REMAX All-Stars Realty here in Markham and Unionville, we wanted to share our perspective on what this means and why, on balance, we see this as a genuinely positive development for everyone involved.

What's Actually Happening

The two companies will merge under a new holding company called Real REMAX Group, combining brokerage, franchising, fintech, and ancillary services — including integrated mortgage and title offerings. Critically, REMAX and Motto Mortgage will continue to operate under their existing brands and franchise models. The name stays. The brand stays. The network stays.

The combined company will support more than 180,000 real estate professionals and their clients across more than 120 countries and territories. That's not a smaller organization — it's a significantly larger and better-resourced one.

Why We See This as a Good Thing

Better technology for agents and clients. Real Brokerage was founded in 2014 specifically as a technology-first, AI-powered brokerage. The newly formed entity will unite Real's AI-powered brokerage platform with REMAX's iconic brand and global reach to deliver a differentiated home buying and selling experience. For agents, that means access to tools that can streamline everything from transaction management to client communication. For clients, it means working with agents who have more support, better data, and faster systems behind them.

The REMAX brand isn't going anywhere. The transaction pairs Real's agent-first, mobile-first technology platform with REMAX's global franchisor footprint and brand recognition — it doesn't replace it. REMAX has spent 50+ years building one of the most recognized names in real estate. That equity doesn't disappear. It gets a modern engine underneath it.

Franchisees and agents are explicitly protected. REMAX CEO Erik Carlson framed the deal in terms of what it delivers for the people in the network — the combination is designed to give franchisees and agents "greater choice, higher productivity and expanded support" by layering Real's technology stack on top of the existing REMAX network.

Scale creates strength. The combined company would support more than 180,000 agents across more than 120 countries and territories — including more than 100,000 in the U.S. and Canada. A larger, better-capitalized organization has more negotiating power with vendors, more resources for training and tools, and more ability to invest in what agents and clients actually need.

What Changes (and What Doesn't)

The deal is still pending regulatory and shareholder approvals, with the transaction expected to close in the second half of 2026. Until then, both companies operate independently — nothing changes on the ground.

Our Take

The real estate industry is evolving fast. Technology is reshaping how homes are found, marketed, and sold. This deal positions REMAX agents to compete at the highest level — with a tech platform purpose-built for modern real estate, under a brand that clients worldwide already know and trust.

We've always been proud to be part of the REMAX family. This next chapter looks like a strong one.

Questions about what any of this means for your buying or selling plans? We're always here to talk.

The MAC Team | REMAX All-Stars Realty Inc., Brokerage

Sources: REMAX official press release (news.remax.com) | HousingWire | Inman | Bloomberg, April 27, 2026

Markham Home Sales Rise as Prices Fall — What March 2026 Means for Buyers and Sellers

Market Update | April 2026 | The MAC Team, REMAX All-Stars Realty

The Greater Toronto Area housing market is showing early signs of a shift heading into spring 2026. According to the Toronto Regional Real Estate Board (TRREB), resale home sales climbed year-over-year in March for the first time in six months — while selling prices continued to ease, creating a notable window of opportunity for buyers.

Sales Are Up — But So Is Your Negotiating Power

GTA REALTORS reported 5,039 home sales through TRREB's MLS System in March 2026, a 1.7% increase compared to March 2025. GlobeNewswire It marks a meaningful turning point after months of declining activity.

At the same time, the average selling price fell 6.7% year-over-year to $1,017,796, while the MLS Home Price Index composite benchmark — representing the typical home — was down 7.4%. CBC News

For buyers, that combination is significant. TRREB Chief Information Officer Jason Mercer noted that buyers currently benefit from "substantial negotiating power" on price, adding that if market conditions continue to tighten as they did in March, selling prices could start to level off as 2026 progresses. BNN Bloomberg

Supply Is Tightening

While buyers hold the upper hand on price today, supply is quietly shrinking. New listings entered into the MLS System totalled 14,442 in March — down 16.7% year-over-year. GlobeNewswire Total active listings across the GTA also decreased 8%, sitting at 21,596. CBC News

That declining inventory, combined with rising sales, suggests the balance of power in this market could shift faster than many expect.

What This Means If You're Buying

This may be one of the stronger buyer's windows the GTA has seen in several years. Prices are down from their peak, inventory — while shrinking — still offers selection, and mortgage rates have improved from their highs. Waiting for the "bottom" is a strategy that often costs more than it saves.

What This Means If You're Selling

Pricing strategy is everything right now. Homes that are priced correctly for current market conditions are moving. Overpriced listings are sitting. If you've been waiting on the sidelines, understanding your home's true value in today's market is the critical first step.

City of Toronto Snapshot

Within the City of Toronto, there were 1,913 sales in March — a 0.9% increase from March 2025. BNN Bloomberg Activity is picking up across the board, though the pace remains measured.

Thinking about buying or selling in Markham, Unionville, or the broader GTA this spring? The MAC Team at REMAX All-Stars Realty is here to help you navigate the market with confidence. Get in touch today.

Source: TRREB — GTA Home Sales Up and Selling Prices Down in March