The Buyers: Venezuelan expats Adriana Rosemberg, a 29-year-old scriptwriter, and her husband Jonathan, a 32-year-old ad executive.
The Story: The Rosembergs moved to Toronto in June 2009 to escape the violence and political instability of Venezuela. They were accustomed to the noise and street life of Caracas and wanted to live in a vibrant neighbourhood downtown. They also wanted enough space to spread out, and they quickly fell for the idea of a finished attic that could serve as a studio—she writes, he deejays. So the couple set a limit of $800,000—and armed themselves with a home inspection handbook—before setting off last December on a search that would span five months and more than 40 houses.
Yonge and Eglinton is a neighbourhood that loves its cafés and bakeries (witness the Cupcake Shoppe, La Bohème, the Designer Cookie Boutique and Bakeshop, Dufflet, La Bamboche and Jedd’s Frozen Custard). So it’s no surprise that the ’hood is about to be home to Coco Rogue, an haute chocolate and dessert shop with decor to match (think chandeliers and a grand piano). 
No neighbourhood will react the same way to a burst bubble. We talked to market watchers, economists, mortgage brokers and seen-it-all real estate agents for the scoop on where to park your money, what streets to avoid and when to sell, sell, sell 
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