Uncertainty is the most expensive thing a buyer can bring to a real estate transaction. Before making an offer on a home in London, Ontario, there are 25 questions every prepared buyer should have answered — covering financing, negotiation strategy, home inspection, neighbourhood due diligence, and closing. Buyers who ask the right questions before they offer avoid the mistakes that cost others thousands. Ty Lacroix, Broker at The Envelope Real Estate Group, has spent 24 years helping London buyers get to the right answers before they sign anything.
Uncertainty is the most expensive thing you can bring to a real estate transaction. The stress, the second-guessing, the fear of making a costly mistake — I hear about them from buyers every week. Almost always, the root cause is the same: the right questions weren't asked early enough.
After 24 years in this market and countless conversations with buyers who wish they'd known more before making an offer, I've compiled the 25 questions every London home buyer needs answered before making an offer. Not after. Before.
These questions fall into four categories — and each one covers ground that most buyers don't think to ask until it's too late.
The Financial Questions
What are the five critical numbers to know before making any offer? What should you ask your mortgage lender before signing anything? How do credit scores actually affect what you can borrow — and what's the number that matters? What are the carrying costs beyond the mortgage that buyers consistently underestimate? And what does your lender won't volunteer about rate, terms, and the true cost of borrowing over time?
Getting these answers before you start looking — not after you've found a home you love — is what keeps emotion from driving a financial decision.
The Strategy and Negotiation Questions
How do sellers actually price their homes in London's current market — and how much should you offer? Who else is involved in your transaction and how do you stay in control of the process? What are the five most expensive mistakes London buyers make, and what does each one actually cost? And when competing for a well-priced home, what gives a prepared buyer the edge over one who isn't?
In London's current market — 5.0 months of inventory, homes selling at 97.4% of asking in a median of 26 days — prepared buyers move with confidence. Unprepared ones hesitate or overpay.
The Home Search and Inspection Questions
What are the six things to look at in every home beyond the finishes and the kitchen? What are the six signs of expensive hidden problems in a foundation or roof — the ones a casual walkthrough misses? What five questions should you ask at every single showing? And what's the best system for keeping track of what you've seen when you've viewed a dozen homes, and they're starting to blur together?
The Closing and Moving Questions
What three things worry buyers most about closing — and what's the solution to each? What does a stress-free closing timeline actually look like? And once the keys are in your hand, what are the immediate priorities before moving day?
Where to Get the Answers
These 25 questions are the foundation of every buyer conversation I have before an offer goes anywhere near a table. Some of the answers are straightforward. Some depend entirely on your specific situation, the property you're considering, and what the market is doing in that specific neighbourhood at that specific moment.
If you're preparing to buy in London and want to work through these questions before you're sitting across from a seller with a deadline on the offer, that's exactly the right time to have this conversation.
Don't bring uncertainty to the table. Reach out for a private conversation and let's work through what you need to know before you offer — no pressure, no pitch.
For the complete buyer framework:
