This week let’s talk about how Canada’s hot housing market helped drive the economy to a very healthy first quarter. Who are we kidding. If you live in Toronto and you keep one eye on the city’s real estate market, you’ve probably already read Toronto Life’s story about the couple who bought a “crack house” and spent more than $1-million on renovations. If you haven’t seen the article yet, boy, do we have a treat for you.

There are a few lessons that you can learn from the article:

1. Don’t hire a toothless guy off the street to perform serious renovations around your house (even if he claims to be an engineer)

2. Child modeling is not a get-rich quick scheme

3. You all need a rich British godfather to

bail you out

This isn’t a simple story about a family ch

 

oosing a shady contractor or getting in over their heads in a gritty neighbourhood. The Internet quickly figured out that the family in question also had a luxury condo, a cottage (purchased on a line of credit!) AND owned a property in Mexico. This Vice headline pretty much says it all.

If you somehow still feel a bit of sympathy for the Jheons… there’s a tongue-in-cheek GoFundMe to help this “brave gentrifier family”. Sigh. The Home Stretch: Why Hiring A Random Guy Off The Street Is Not A Sound Renovation Strategy