Christine Ung had only been living in her one-bed-plus-den condo in Ottawa for a few months when she met Jack Glick on dating app Hinge in April, 2023. Mr. Glick lived in a three-bedroom, two-and-a-half-bathroom townhouse 20 minutes away in Gatineau.
"It was a lot of back-and-forth," Ms. Ung said about commuting between their two homes. Mr. Glick shared his home part-time with Zev, his five-year-old son from a previous marriage. On weeks that he didn't have Zev, Mr. Glick would stay at Ms. Ung's place. The couple both worked in Ottawa as senior policy advisers in different departments of the federal government, on hybrid schedules working in office three days a week.
In 2024, the couple began thinking of moving in together. "At that point in our dating journey, it felt like we were living together without actually living together," explained Ms. Ung. They figured they could sell their respective homes to purchase a larger property together. They were approved for a mortgage up to $950,000 but hoped to keep the purchase under $800,000.
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The couple considered a few different options at first, such as purchasing a new-build townhouse in the Ottawa suburb of Riverside South or further west in Kanata, Ont. But since Zev would be starting kindergarten in September, 2025, and Zev's mother still lived in Gatineau, where they planned for Zev to attend an English school, they figured that living in Gatineau made more sense. Plus, their budget would stretch a bit further there, allowing them to upgrade their goal from a townhouse to a detached home. "Mentally, people don't think of Gatineau as a viable place to live if you work in Ottawa," Mr. Glick said.
Now focused on Gatineau's Aylmer neighbourhood, they hoped to find four bedrooms (one for Mr. Glick and Ms. Ung, one for Zev, one for Mr. Glick's mother who visited often, and one for a potential future child), a double garage that would allow Mr. Glick and Ms. Ung to park their vehicles side-by-side, plus a den or space to set up a home office, since they both worked hybrid schedules.
In late 2024, the couple connected with real estate agents Jonathan Sigouin and Lili Seymour of Flash Immobilier, who helped them strategize their home-buying plan. "In their case, they had not only one house to sell, but two homes to sell," Ms. Seymour explained. Based on the real estate market at the time, they decided to put Ms. Ung's condo up for sale first, then wait until they'd found their next house to sell Mr. Glick's condo. "The one that takes a little bit longer to sell, pop that one on the market ahead of time," she said. "Then prep the other home with pictures, so the day that they accept an offer, we are ready to put that home on the market." By early 2025, the couple began their search in earnest. Here's how it went.
This 1,900-square-foot home was built in 2006 but was renovated over the past five years with new kitchen counters, a new upstairs bathroom and recessed lighting on the main floor. It had three bedrooms on the upper level, one bedroom in a finished basement and three bathrooms. The couple really liked the loft space on a mezzanine level, which they envisioned using as a playroom for Zev, and the double-width driveway would let the couple park both cars side-by-side. However, the primary bedroom didn't have an ensuite bathroom. "My family thought that was going to drive us crazy," Ms. Ung said. The property was also one of the largest in the neighbourhood, which mostly had semis and smaller homes. That made them feel concerned about the home's ability to appreciate in price. Location-wise, it was a 15-minute walk from Zev's future school, and a 15- to 25-minute drive to Ms. Ung and Mr. Glick's respective offices in Ottawa. The home was listed for $719,000.
The couple looked further east in Aylmer to find this home, in an upscale waterfront neighbourhood with big homes and large, treed lots. "It felt bougie," Mr. Glick said. The house, built in 2007, was priced at $844,000 and had four bedrooms and two bathrooms on the upper level, plus two more bedrooms and a bathroom in the finished basement. The 2,122-square-foot home felt spacious and had great natural light, aside from a darker sitting room on the main floor. There was a two-car garage, which the couple required, and it was a five-minute drive to Zev's future school and a 20- to 25-minute drive to their offices in Ottawa. While the home was outside of the current flood zone, based on historical data, they considered whether that might change given the home's proximity to the Ottawa River.
At 2,700 square feet, this four-bedroom home, built in 2008, felt "huge" to the couple. It had four bedrooms and two bathrooms on the second floor, plus a playroom and bathroom in the basement, where there was also a nook that the couple could set up as an office space. The property came with an above-ground pool, which Zev would like. And Mr. Glick, who is an avid golfer, liked that the home was just next to the Gatineau Golf & Country Club, which he frequented. The neighbourhood itself was also appealing, with well-maintained houses, large trees and bike lanes. It was a 15- to 20-minute drive to the couple's Ottawa offices and just seven minutes to Zev's future school. Priced at $950,000, this house was past the upper limit of their budget, despite being approved for a mortgage of that amount. "I remember Christine saying, 'That sounds irresponsible'," Mr. Glick recalled.
The couple put offers in on all three homes listed above but lost out on the first two properties to no-conditions bids, since the couple's purchases would be contingent on selling Mr. Glick's house. But when it came to the spacious-four bedroom house near the golf course, which had already been on the market for three weeks, they clinched a deal, settling on a final price under asking at $936,500.
"We were really happy," Ms. Ung said of their purchase. "It was kind of surreal because it came together so quickly."
Now that the sale was confirmed, Mr. Glick was able to sell his townhouse in April with a July close while Ms. Ung's condo took a bit longer, selling in May, 2025, also with a July close. They moved into their new home in July, 2025.
"We're still decorating, trying to furnish it and make it our own," Ms. Ung explained. She's set up her office in a spare bedroom on the upper level while Mr. Glick's office is in the basement nook. They love that their new living room gets tons of sunlight, so they've placed plenty of plants in it.
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The family made good use of their above-ground pool in the summer, inviting friends and family for pool parties. They've also purchased a discounted arcade basketball game from Costco for their basement rec room. "We'll go down there just to play that some evenings," Mr. Glick said.
Despite the purchase being over their initial budget, the couple said that their mortgage payments and cost of living have felt manageable so far. With an abundance of space, Mr. Glick and Ms. Ung see themselves staying put for the long haul.
"We're even talking about how we would renovate things in the future, like eventually redoing our bathroom," Ms. Ung explained. "It's definitely a house that we will be in for a very long time."