Aging in Place Renovations vs Moving: What Actually Costs Less in Richmond Hill and Markham

Most people assume staying put is the cheaper option. Sometimes it is. But when families actually add up the full cost of making a two-storey family home genuinely accessible, and set that against the cost of moving to a home that already works, the answer is often the opposite of what they expected. This guide walks through both sides of the calculation honestly for Richmond Hill and Markham homeowners.

Written by a Richmond Hill and Markham Real Estate Expert

At Kirby Chan & Co. Real Estate Team, we are often called after a family has already spent significantly on modifications and is now selling anyway. We have seen a household put a chairlift in one year, convert a main-floor den to a bedroom the next, and then move regardless because the bathroom could not be made to work. Running the full comparison before the first contractor arrives usually changes the decision.

Weighing Renovating Against Moving?

Call Our Dedicated Downsizing Hotline

416-305-8008

Kirby Chan & Co. Real Estate Team

Quick takeaway: Single modifications like grab bars and railings are inexpensive and almost always worth doing. The cost problem appears when a home needs several substantial changes to genuinely work, particularly a full bathroom conversion, a main-floor bedroom, widened doorways and an accessible entrance. In a typical two-storey Richmond Hill or Markham home, a comprehensive accessibility renovation can approach or exceed the total transaction cost of moving to a bungalow or accessible condo, and it does not fix the carrying costs of a large home. The honest test is not the price of the first modification. It is the price of all of them, plus what the house still costs to run afterward.

Start With an Assessment, Not a Quote
Modifications That Are Almost Always Worth It
The Expensive Changes and What Drives the Cost
What Some Homes Simply Cannot Accommodate
The Real Cost of Moving
Putting Both Numbers Side by Side
The Cost Nobody Includes: Carrying the House
How to Actually Decide
Frequently Asked Questions

Start With an Assessment, Not a Quote

First Step An Occupational Therapist Will Tell You More Than a Contractor

A contractor will quote what you ask them to quote. An occupational therapist assesses the person and the home together and identifies what is actually needed, including things families miss and things families think they need but do not. That assessment is the correct starting point for this decision.

An OT assessment typically identifies the modifications required now, the ones likely to be required within a few years, and whether the home can realistically accommodate them at all. That last point is the one that most changes the calculation, and it is not something a contractor is positioned to tell you.

Speak with your family doctor about a referral. Some assessments are available through publicly funded home care programs and others are privately arranged. This guide is not medical advice and cannot assess your specific needs.

Modifications That Are Almost Always Worth It

Low cost, high benefit, and worth doing regardless of whether you stay long-term.

Grab Bars, Railings and Lighting

Properly installed grab bars in the bathroom, secure railings on both sides of every staircase and brighter lighting throughout are the highest-value safety changes available. Together these typically fall in the low hundreds to low thousands depending on how many are needed and whether wall reinforcement is required.

Installation matters enormously here. A grab bar anchored only into drywall is worse than no grab bar, because it creates false confidence. Have these installed by someone who will anchor them into structure.

Removing Trip Hazards

Loose rugs, raised thresholds, trailing cords and cluttered hallways cause a meaningful share of falls at home. Addressing them costs almost nothing and is worth doing this week regardless of what you decide about the house. Non-slip treatment in the tub or shower falls in the same category.

Lever Handles and Comfort-Height Fixtures

Replacing round doorknobs with lever handles helps significantly with arthritis and reduced grip strength, and costs very little per door. A comfort-height toilet is a modest plumbing job that makes a real daily difference. Both are also neutral or mildly positive for resale, unlike some larger modifications.

The Expensive Changes and What Drives the Cost

These are the items that move the comparison. Ranges vary widely by home, so treat these as orders of magnitude rather than quotes.

Bathroom Conversion to a Walk-In or Roll-In Shower

This is usually the single most important and most expensive modification. A basic tub-to-shower conversion in an existing footprint is a moderate job. A genuinely accessible bathroom, with a curbless entry, adequate turning space, a wider door and reinforced walls, is a full renovation and frequently requires moving plumbing and sometimes relocating a wall.

Costs in Richmond Hill and Markham commonly range from several thousand for a straightforward conversion into the tens of thousands for a full accessible rebuild, particularly where the existing bathroom is small, which is typical in homes built before the 1990s.

Creating a Main-Floor Bedroom and Bathroom

Converting a main-floor den or dining room to a bedroom is sometimes simple and sometimes not. It depends on whether the room has a window that meets requirements, whether a closet is needed, and above all whether there is a full bathroom on that floor or one can be added.

Adding a full bathroom where only a powder room exists means new plumbing runs, often into a finished ceiling below, and is a significant job. Where no plumbing exists on that side of the house at all, the cost climbs steeply. This is the point at which many families discover the renovation path is more expensive than they assumed.

Stairlifts and Home Elevators

A straight stairlift is a few thousand installed. A curved stairlift, needed wherever the staircase turns, is considerably more because the rail is custom-fabricated. Residential elevators and through-floor lifts are a different order of cost entirely, typically well into the tens of thousands, and require structural work plus ongoing maintenance and inspection.

Neither adds resale value, and both usually need to be removed before listing. Our chairlift versus downsizing guide covers that decision specifically.

Widening Doorways and Hallways

Standard interior doors in older homes are often too narrow for a walker and almost always too narrow for a wheelchair. Widening a doorway is moderate work where the wall is non-structural and considerably more where it is load-bearing or contains plumbing and electrical. Hallway width generally cannot be changed at all without major structural work, which is one of the practical limits discussed below.

Accessible Entrances and Ramps

A safe ramp needs a gentle slope, which means length. Homes with several steps up to the front door need a substantial ramp run, and many Richmond Hill and Markham lots do not have the space for one at the front. Side or rear entrances sometimes work better. Where grade and space do not permit a ramp, a vertical platform lift is the alternative and carries elevator-scale cost. Permits are typically required for permanent exterior structures.

Want to Know What Your Home Would Sell For?

Call Our Dedicated Downsizing Hotline

416-305-8008

No pressure, just an honest number to work with

What Some Homes Simply Cannot Accommodate

The Hard Limits Money Does Not Solve Every Layout

Some constraints cannot be renovated away at any reasonable cost. Narrow hallways in older homes. A lot with insufficient space for a compliant ramp. A split-level layout with short flights everywhere, which defeats both stairlifts and main-floor living. A bathroom too small to make accessible without taking space from an adjoining room that cannot spare it.

Condominiums add another layer, since structural changes and anything affecting common elements require board approval that may not be granted.

If an assessment identifies one of these hard limits, the comparison is effectively over. No amount of spending produces a home that works, and the decision becomes when to move rather than whether.

The Real Cost of Moving

Be Honest About This Side Too Transaction Costs Are Real and Should Be Counted

Moving is not free and any fair comparison has to include the full cost. On the sale side: real estate commission plus HST, legal fees, preparation and staging, and any repairs needed to list well. On the purchase side: land transfer tax, legal fees, title insurance, home inspection and moving costs.

On a typical Richmond Hill or Markham transaction, the combined cost of selling one home and buying another commonly runs into the tens of thousands. That is the number to set against the renovation total, and it is why small modifications almost always win and large renovation programs often do not.

Our commission guide explains the selling side and our closing day guide covers what gets deducted at closing.

But Moving Can Also Release Equity

This is the part renovation comparisons usually omit. If a long-held Richmond Hill or Markham family home is worth substantially more than the bungalow or condo you would move to, the move does not cost money at all. It returns capital. A renovation spends money you have. A downsize can convert an illiquid asset into funds that support the years ahead. That difference frequently outweighs the transaction costs entirely.

Putting Both Numbers Side by Side

Renovate and Stay	Sell and Move
Bathroom conversion	Commission plus HST
Main-floor bedroom and bathroom	Legal fees on both sides
Stairlift or lift	Land transfer tax on purchase
Widened doorways	Preparation and staging
Ramp or platform lift	Moving costs
Permits where required	Inspection and title insurance
Plus: carrying costs continue unchanged	Minus: equity released, carrying costs drop

The Cost Nobody Includes: Carrying the House

The Ongoing Number A Renovation Is Once. The Carrying Cost Is Every Year.

A comprehensive accessibility renovation solves the layout. It does nothing about property taxes on a large home, heating and cooling several thousand square feet, insurance, lawn care, snow removal, gutters, roof, furnace and everything else a detached family home requires.

Add up what the home costs annually to run and maintain, then compare it against what a bungalow or condo would cost. Multiply the difference by the number of years you expect to be there. That figure often dwarfs both the renovation cost and the transaction cost, and it is the one most families never calculate.

There is also the practical question of who does the work. Maintenance that was manageable at sixty is not always manageable at eighty, and paying others to do it is another recurring cost that belongs in the comparison.

How to Actually Decide

Step 1 Get the Assessment

An occupational therapist assessment tells you what is genuinely needed now and likely within five to ten years, and whether the home can accommodate it. Without this, you are guessing at the renovation scope, and guessing low is the usual error.

Step 2 Quote the Whole Program, Not the First Item

Take the OT list to two or three contractors and get quotes on all of it together, including the modifications likely needed later. Families who quote only the urgent item and proceed almost always end up spending several times that figure over the following few years, one project at a time.

Step 3 Get a Current Valuation and Price the Alternative

Find out what the home would sell for today and what a suitable bungalow, accessible condo or retirement suite would cost in the areas you would consider. Until you have both numbers, the move side of the comparison is guesswork. This costs nothing and commits you to nothing.

Step 4 Compare Over the Same Time Horizon

Pick a realistic period, commonly ten years, and total each path across it: renovation cost plus ten years of carrying the large home, against transaction costs plus ten years of carrying the smaller one, less any equity released.

Then weigh the things the numbers do not capture: staying near your community and your routines, versus the isolation of a large house, the burden of upkeep and the risk of having to move in a hurry after a health event rather than on your own terms.

Recognition

Kirby Chan Awards and Achievements

🏆 #1 Individual Producer in Ontario for eXp Realty 2023

🏆 Top 3 Best Rated Real Estate Agent in Richmond Hill

🏆 Toronto Star Platinum Award for Best Real Estate Agent

🏆 Top Real Estate Agent Award in Markham

🏆 2X ICON Agent Award with eXp Realty

🏆 2025 Community Votes Platinum Award, Thornhill

🏆 2024 Community Votes Platinum Award, Thornhill

🏆 2025 Gold Award for Real Estate Brokers in Markham

🏆 2024 Community Votes Bronze Award, Richmond Hill

🏆 2023 Community Votes Platinum Award, Thornhill

Frequently Asked Questions

Is it cheaper to renovate for accessibility or to move?

It depends entirely on how much work the home needs. Small modifications such as grab bars, railings and lever handles are far cheaper than moving and almost always worth doing. A comprehensive program including a bathroom conversion, a main-floor bedroom and bathroom, widened doorways and an accessible entrance can approach or exceed the total cost of moving, and it does not reduce the carrying costs of a large home.

Do accessibility renovations add resale value?

Generally not dollar for dollar, and some do not add value at all. A well-executed walk-in shower is usually neutral to positive. Stairlifts and platform lifts add no value and are typically removed before listing. Judge these modifications on whether they let you live well, not on resale.

Where should I start?

With an occupational therapist assessment rather than a contractor quote. An OT assesses the person and the home together and identifies what is actually required now and later, including whether the home can accommodate it at all. Speak with your family doctor about a referral.

Are there grants or funding for accessibility modifications?

Various federal and provincial programs and tax credits exist to help with home accessibility costs, and eligibility rules and amounts change. Ask your accountant about current tax credits and speak with your local health authority about any home modification funding available. Do not assume eligibility without confirming it.

What if my home cannot be made accessible?

Some layouts have hard limits: narrow hallways, insufficient lot space for a ramp, split-level configurations, or a bathroom too small to convert. Condominiums may also refuse structural changes. Where an assessment identifies one of these, the comparison is settled and the question becomes when to move rather than whether.

Who can help me run this comparison in Richmond Hill or Markham?

Kirby Chan and the Kirby Chan & Co. Real Estate Team provide the valuation and the pricing on suitable alternatives so you have real numbers for the move side of the calculation. There is no obligation and no pressure to sell. Many people run the comparison and decide to stay, which is a perfectly good outcome. Reach me at (416) 305-8008.

Contact Kirby Chan

Get the Numbers Before You Decide

You cannot compare renovating against moving without knowing what your home is worth and what the alternative costs. I provide both, with no obligation attached. Plenty of the people I do this for decide to stay and renovate, and that is a good outcome too. What matters is that the decision is made with real numbers rather than assumptions.

Book a Free Consultation

Kirby Chan | Kirby Chan & Co. Real Estate Team
kirby@kirbychanandco.com
https://kirbychanandco.com

Dedicated Downsizing Hotline

416-305-8008

Note: Renovation costs, transaction costs, carrying costs and funding programs vary widely by property, contractor, individual circumstance and time, and all change. Any cost ranges referred to in this guide are general illustrations only and are not quotes, estimates or a representation of current pricing. This guide is not medical, occupational therapy, financial or tax advice. Accessibility needs must be assessed by a qualified occupational therapist or other appropriate health professional. Obtain current written quotes from licensed contractors, confirm permit requirements with your municipality, and speak with your accountant about any tax credits before making decisions.