Bought Millcroft Burlington townhome for $1.11M - sell at a loss or hold?
Hi everyone,
Looking for some real estate-focused perspective on whether it makes sense to hold or sell a freehold townhome in Millcroft, Burlington.
My wife and I bought it at the end of 2023 for $1.11M. It’s a freehold townhome in the Millcroft area. At the time, our household income was around $200K, so the purchase felt manageable based on our income and long-term plans.
Since then, our situation changed quite a bit. I had to go on disability in mid-2024 and was off work for most of the year with little to no EI. I’m back working now, but at a lower salary. Our current household income is around $160K, with monthly take-home income of about $10K.
Current housing/debt picture:
Mortgage balance: approx. $845K
Mortgage rate: 3.75% variable
HELOC: approx. $27K
Total monthly expenses: approx. $12.2K
Housing portion: approx. $5.5K/month
Monthly shortfall: approx. $2.2K/month
To be clear, the house is not the only issue. We also have other debts/monthly obligations (childcare + classes etc) that are contributing to the cash-flow problem, so the overall household budget is bleeding every month.
If we sold today, we estimate the house may sell for around $950K. After realtor fees, mortgage penalty, and closing costs, we likely would not owe the bank, but we would lose our original 20% down payment and about $20K in upgrades.
The alternative is getting temporary help from family. My parents could help with around $40K–$50K, and that would buy us time to stabilize. But I’m trying to think through whether that actually makes sense from a real estate/investment perspective.
My concern is this: if we borrow family money and hold for another 4–5 years, but the property is still only worth around $1M, then we may have simply delayed the same decision while using up more family support and carrying more stress.
On the other hand, if Millcroft/Burlington freehold townhomes are likely to recover meaningfully over the next few years, selling now may mean locking in the worst possible loss.
So my question is:
From a real estate perspective, would you hold a Millcroft freehold townhome bought at $1.11M if you could bridge the shortfall with family help, or would you sell now, rent, and reset financially?
I’m especially interested in thoughts on:
Millcroft/Burlington townhome outlook over the next 4–5 years
Whether holding makes sense if the property needs to appreciate meaningfully just to recover transaction costs
Whether selling now is too reactionary given the market cycle
What price appreciation would realistically be needed for holding to be worth the risk
Thanks in advance. I know there’s a personal finance side to this, but I’m mainly trying to understand whether the real estate upside justifies holding through a difficult cash-flow period.