How to Downsize When You're Over 65: What's Different About Senior Downsizing in Toronto

By Jacquie Othen, SRES  |  May 2026  |  9 min read

Why senior downsizing is a different process

Most people think of downsizing as simply selling a larger home and buying a smaller one. For clients over 65, that description doesn't come close to capturing what the process actually involves. It's not just a real estate transaction. It's a life transition that tends to touch almost every part of a person's world at once.

The home you're selling has likely been yours for 20, 30, sometimes 40 years. There's furniture from three generations in it. There are decisions to be made about what comes with you, what goes to family, what gets donated, and what has to be sold. There are legal documents that may need to be updated before you can list. There are family members who have opinions. And underneath all of that, there's a real emotional weight that doesn't go away just because the market conditions are good.

I've worked with hundreds of clients through this process across Toronto, from Leaside to Lawrence Park to Don Mills. What I can tell you is that the clients who move through it most smoothly are the ones who understand from the start that this isn't something you should try to do alone, and it isn't something a generalist real estate agent is trained to handle.

That's not a knock on generalists. It's simply that senior downsizing in Toronto requires a different kind of support. Let me walk you through what that actually looks like.

What the SRES designation means and why it matters

The Seniors Real Estate Specialist (SRES) designation is a credential granted by the National Association of Realtors to agents who have completed specific training in the financial, legal, and emotional dimensions of real estate transactions involving clients over 50. It's not honorary. It requires coursework, continuing education, and a demonstrated understanding of the issues specific to this market segment.

What that means in practice is that an SRES-designated agent understands the principal residence exemption and can have an informed conversation with you about the tax side of your sale. They understand what a continuing power of attorney for property is and why having one in place before listing can protect you and your estate. They know how to slow down the process when a client needs more time and how to run interference when well-meaning family members are adding pressure rather than support.

Simply put: when you're selling the home you've lived in for decades and buying a property you may be in for the rest of your life, the person guiding you should be trained for exactly that situation. Not adapted from something else. Trained for it.

You can read more about Jacquie's background and approach on the Othen Group team page, or get a sense of what the full seniors real estate service looks like before you reach out.

The team around you: who does what

One of the biggest differences between a standard real estate transaction and a senior move is the number of people involved. In a typical sale, it's essentially you, your agent, a lawyer, and maybe a home inspector. In a senior downsizing, there are often five or six professionals working together, and understanding what each one does helps you make better decisions about who you actually need.

Your real estate agent is the coordinator. In a well-run senior downsizing, the agent isn't just handling the listing and the offer. They're helping sequence the whole process: when to start decluttering relative to the listing date, what staging decisions make sense given the timeline, and how to time the purchase of the next property against the sale close date. That coordination work is what I spend a significant part of my time on.

A professional organizer who specializes in senior moves can be genuinely invaluable for the decluttering phase. This is different from a general organizer. Senior-focused organizers understand the emotional complexity of sorting through a lifetime of belongings and work at the client's pace, not the market's. If the volume of items in your home is significant, starting this process six to twelve months before your target listing date isn't unusual.

A senior move manager handles the physical relocation itself: packing, transportation, unpacking, and setting up the new space so it feels like home from day one. In Toronto, several firms specialize in this and coordinate directly with real estate agents. I have relationships with providers I trust, and I'll point you toward them when the time comes.

An estate sale company comes into play when there are significant belongings that won't come with you and won't go to family. A reputable estate sale company can handle the valuation and sale of furniture, art, collectibles, and household contents, often in a single organized event. This removes an enormous burden from the family and can generate meaningful proceeds.

Your real estate lawyer handles the legal close on both sides of the transaction. If you're also updating a will, naming a power of attorney, or dealing with estate considerations, you may also be working with an estate lawyer. Those are two different practices, and it's worth being clear about which one you're talking about and for what purpose.

The legal and financial realities unique to seniors

There are a few legal and financial topics that come up almost universally in senior downsizing transactions, and being informed about them early saves a lot of scrambling later.

The principal residence exemption is the most important tax consideration. In Canada, when you sell your primary residence, you generally do not pay capital gains tax on the proceeds. But the exemption has rules: the property must have been your principal residence for each year you're claiming the exemption, and you need to report the sale on your tax return even when the gain is fully sheltered. If you've owned a secondary property, a cottage, or a rental unit at any point, it's worth speaking to an accountant before listing your home, not after. Most clients are in a clean position, but you want to know that before, not at closing.

A continuing power of attorney for property is a legal document that authorizes someone you trust to make financial and real estate decisions on your behalf if you become unable to do so. In Ontario, this document must be signed before incapacity, not after. If you don't have one in place and something happens mid-transaction, completing the sale can become seriously complicated. I always encourage clients to have this conversation with their lawyer before we list, not as a formality, but as genuine protection.

On the buying side, financing can look different for clients over 65. If you're purchasing with cash from your sale proceeds, this is simple. If you're carrying a mortgage, some lenders are more flexible than others on qualifying criteria for older borrowers. A mortgage broker who works with senior clients regularly can make a meaningful difference in what options are available to you.

For clients considering relocation out of Toronto as part of the transition, there are additional financial considerations: land transfer tax in a new municipality, differences in property tax rates, and the timing of capital availability between the sale close and the purchase close. These are all workable, but they require planning.

What to look for in the property on the other side

The question of what to buy next is one I spend a lot of time on with clients, because it's easy to focus so heavily on the sale that the purchase gets less attention than it deserves. The next property isn't just about what you want now. It's about what you'll want in five years, and what you'll need in ten.

For most clients in their 60s and 70s, a condominium in a well-maintained building is the most practical landing spot. No exterior maintenance, no driveway to shovel, access to amenities, and often a central location with walkable services nearby. In Toronto, neighbourhoods like Yonge and Eglinton and Don Mills have strong condo inventory that suits this demographic well, with good transit access, nearby medical facilities, and established communities.

When you're evaluating a condo building, the physical layout of the unit matters as much as the square footage. Step-free entry, wide doorways that can accommodate a walker or wheelchair if needed, lever-style door handles rather than round knobs, a walk-in shower rather than a tub-only bathroom: these are the details that determine whether a unit will still work for you in a decade. It's much easier to choose a unit with these features already in place than to retrofit later, and many buildings have them as standard in units built after 2010.

Building amenities and services are worth examining carefully, too. A concierge or security presence, on-site superintendent, visitor parking, and accessibility between the lobby and your unit all matter more than they might seem during a showing. Ask how the building handles emergency calls. Ask about the elevator maintenance history. These are not dramatic questions. They're practical ones.

Some clients, particularly those who've lived in a detached home in Leaside or Lawrence Park for decades, find the adjustment to condo living harder than expected. For them, a bungalow townhome or a smaller detached property can be the right call, particularly if there's a strong preference to stay in a specific neighbourhood. The right-sizing conversation is worth having before you decide: sometimes what feels like a downsize is actually a right-size, and the target property looks different depending on which lens you use.

The emotional side of the process

I want to be direct about something that doesn't come up enough in real estate conversations: the emotional weight of a senior move is real, and it doesn't always follow a predictable schedule.

You might feel completely certain about the decision in January and find yourself paralyzed by it in March. You might sort through an entire house efficiently and then spend two weeks unable to deal with one box of old photographs. That's not a weakness. That's a normal response to a genuinely significant life change, and any agent who tells you to just push through it isn't giving you useful advice.

What I've learned over 15 years of working with clients through this is that pace matters more than schedule. The clients who try to compress the process to meet an arbitrary deadline tend to arrive on the other side feeling unsettled. The clients who give themselves enough time to make deliberate decisions about what to keep, where to go, and which chapter they're starting tend to land well.

Family dynamics are another real factor. Adult children often want to help, and sometimes that help comes with opinions about timing, about the target property, and about what to do with the family furniture. Those conversations are easier when there's a clear professional at the centre of the process who can absorb some of the logistics and keep the decision-making focused on what you actually want. That's part of what working with Othen Group means in practice.

If you're just beginning to think about this and want to understand what the full process involves before committing to anything, a free home valuation is often the right first step. It gives you a grounded sense of what your property is worth in the current market, which makes every subsequent conversation about timing, budget, and what you can afford on the other side more concrete.

Frequently Asked Questions

What does an SRES realtor do differently from a regular real estate agent?

An agent with the Seniors Real Estate Specialist (SRES) designation has completed specialized training in the legal, financial, and emotional aspects of real estate transactions involving clients aged 50 and older. In practice, this means they understand the tax implications of selling a long-held principal residence in Canada, they're familiar with estate planning documents like powers of attorney and how they affect a transaction, and they're experienced in managing the slower pace and additional complexity that senior moves typically involve. They also tend to have relationships with the broader team of professionals that senior downsizing usually requires: professional organizers, senior move managers, estate sale companies, and estate lawyers. A generalist agent can complete the transaction, but an SRES-trained agent understands the full context of what that transaction means for you.

Does selling my home as a senior affect my taxes in Canada?

If the home you're selling has been your principal residence, you are generally exempt from capital gains tax on the sale proceeds under the Canada Revenue Agency's principal residence exemption. You still need to report the sale on your tax return in the year it closes, even if no tax is owed. If you've owned a cottage, a secondary property, or a rental unit at any point, the calculation becomes more nuanced, and you should speak with an accountant before listing. For most clients selling a family home they've lived in for many years, the exemption applies cleanly, but confirming that with a tax professional early in the process removes uncertainty later.

Do I need a power of attorney in place before I can sell my home in Ontario?

You are not legally required to have a power of attorney in place to sell your home. However, having a continuing power of attorney for property signed and in place before you list is strongly advisable. If something happens to you mid-transaction, an incapacity event, an unexpected hospitalization, that affects your ability to sign documents or make decisions, having a named attorney for property in place allows the transaction to continue without a court application. In Ontario, the power of attorney must be signed while you have legal capacity. Once capacity is lost, it's too late to execute one. Your real estate lawyer can advise on this and may be able to refer you to an estate lawyer if the document isn't already in place.

How long does senior downsizing typically take from decision to move-in?

For most clients, the realistic window from the initial decision to being settled in a new home is six to twelve months. This includes time to sort and declutter the current home, prepare it for listing, sell it, find and purchase the next property, and complete the physical move. Clients who have a significant volume of belongings to sort, or who are working through complex estate or legal considerations, sometimes need more time on the front end. Clients who have already done substantial decluttering and have a clear picture of what they want on the other side can sometimes move more quickly. The most important thing is not to arbitrarily compress the timeline. The decision you're making is significant and deserves the time it needs.

Should seniors sell their home first or buy first in Toronto?

For most seniors downsizing in Toronto, selling first is the lower-risk approach. Knowing exactly what your proceeds are before committing to a purchase removes the financial uncertainty of carrying two properties, and in Toronto's market, the equity in a long-held family home is typically substantial enough that the purchase budget becomes very clear once the sale closes. Selling first also eliminates the pressure of a forced purchase: you can take the time to find the right next property rather than buying quickly because you have a closing deadline on the sale. Bridge financing exists if you find the right purchase before your sale closes, but it carries costs and some risk. The Othen Group team can walk you through the sequencing options specific to your situation.

What should I look for in a senior-friendly condo in Toronto?

Beyond the neighbourhood and building reputation, there are specific physical features worth prioritizing: step-free building entry, elevator access between the lobby and your floor, wide unit doorways that can accommodate a walker or wheelchair if needed, a walk-in shower rather than a tub-only bathroom, and lever-style door handles rather than round knobs. At the building level, look for a reliable concierge or security presence, an on-site superintendent, and a well-maintained elevator system. Buildings constructed after 2010 are generally more likely to have these features as standard. For neighbourhood fit, areas like Yonge and Eglinton, Don Mills, and North York have a strong supply of senior-friendly condos with walkable services, transit access, and proximity to medical facilities.

What happens to the furniture and belongings I can't take with me?

There are several practical paths. Items that family members want can be arranged before listing. Items in good condition that won't fit the new space can be donated to organizations in Toronto that accept furniture and household goods. For clients with significant furniture, art, collectibles, or household contents, an estate sale is often the most efficient option: a reputable estate sale company will assess, price, and sell items over a one or two-day event, typically taking a commission on proceeds. What's left after an estate sale can be donated or disposed of. A professional organizer who specializes in senior moves can help you sequence all of this well in advance of your listing date, which removes the pressure of trying to handle it all at once. The estate sales page on the Othen Group site has more details on how that process works.