Very often I receive calls from Buyers looking for a suite that has it all… and at a good price as well… of course.

Typically the criteria includes a Loft in a great neighbourhood like King West with double height ceilings, one bedroom with a den large enough to be used as another bedroom, 2 washrooms, a large terrace and underground parking. Don’t forget it has to have lots of natural light, face West for sunsets, radiant heated floors, designer finishes and why not two storeys as well!

It can be really hard, or impossible, to satisfy a Buyer’s wish for such a loft. Every Buyer needs to make compromises during their search and I’ve never had a client find the ‘perfect’ place. Some lucky Buyer will grab this suite though, a penthouse loft in the Massey Harris building at 915 King St W. It has all the above criteria, next door to a nice little park and priced under $550k. With little quality inventory on the market at the moment, the nice suites like this are the first to sell.

Have a look at the video and if you’re interested, let us know asap while we can still get you in for a visit.

For more details about this suite, please click here Massey Harris Loft For Sale.

As the baby boomer generation ages, we’re starting to see the first signs of this demographic interested in selling their family homes in exchange for single level condominium living. Many empty nesters have the same criteria:

- over 1300 sq ft
- significant outdoor space
- TTC within a 5 minute walk
- 2 bdrm plus den with 1 parking spot
- prefer not to have to do any renovations
- lots of natural light

You would think that there would be lots to choose from but not so. In particular, it’s hard to find a suite like this in a new building that’s not marketed and priced towards the luxury million dollar plus crowd. There are exclusive new construction options with suites that meet this criteria but most are priced over $700 per sq ft. By far, the hardest single criteria is having significant outdoor space to replace a garden or backyard. Most are reluctant to abandon their homes if they have to lose their own private outdoor oasis where they enjoy our short summers. The move to a condo will always require some sacrifices but it’s very nice to have an outdoor space large enough for a table and chairs where you can occasionally share a meal or grow some planters.

One great option is the following suite for sale which is 1417 sq ft with another 313 sq ft terrace. The building, West Harbour City, is less than 2 years old so it really is an oppourtunity to simply move in and enjoy. It has the highly sought after split 2 bdrm floorplan with a seperate den located on the North East corner of the building which gives lots of natural light. Most older buildings don’t have the ammenities that the newer buildings offer such as a 10,000 sq ft recreational facility with a pool, guest suites and party room. At $469 per sq ft, it’s very hard to beat this value.

For more details about this suite, please click here West Harbour City Condo For Sale.

Here is a video of the suite as well.

In September, the number of condos available for sale in the C01 district was up to 1004 from 987 in August. The number of condos sold was down from the previous month to 356 from 371 for a ratio of 0.35. More available, fewer sold… market pushed down into balance market.

The only month where we saw lower prices in 2011 was in January, it’s the best time to buy in the last 10 months. The level of supply is quite close to typical but it seems the buyers are slowing down a bit. Since there have been no changes in lending practices, it’s very likely that buyer’s are being affected by the economic concerns of a second recession. Although buyers may be a little less confident, employment rates and interest rates all indicate a sustainable market.

The median price for August was slightly down to $361,900 from the previous month’s $365,000. The average number of days on market for the month was the same at 30 days.

The median price has come down about $13,000 from it’s peak this past June. It’s rare to see the average days on market push past 30 and that’s exactly where it’s been hovering for the past 3 months. Usually prices are very flat for the last 3 months of the year but the number of transactions in December is half of what it usually is.


*Graphs apply to most recent C01 district data.

Living on the subway line is a convenient feature, having direct access (not having to go outside) is much better and very rare in Toronto.

On days with rain or snow, heat or cold, it’s nice to have the option to stay indoors. Some people who’s work is connected to the underground Path system and live in these condos don’t even have to put on a coat to commute to their office. Despite the hundreds of condos along the subway lines, I have found four with direct access. Their shoes always look new and they don’t seem to complain as much as the rest of us about bad weather days.

I’m compiling a list of condos with this unique feature, so far the lucky buildings include:

8 Park Rd
Maple Leaf Square (55 & 65 Bremner Blvd)
College Park (761 & 763 Bay St)
110 Bloor St W

A condo with a view always commands a higher price. Typically, the higher the floor, the better the view. When buying new construction from a developer, buyers pay a premium for higher floors. In a high-rise building, usually around a $1,000 per floor. You start to see the really nice views around the 15th floor an up in most buildings such as 110 Charles St E or Spire. Buyers shouldn’t be looking for impressive views in low rise buildings, especially lofts.

Buyers value views of the urban landscape, a panorama of skyscrapers, parks, trees and especially if a landmark building can be viewed from a window. In Toronto, views of the water are among the most prized, especially by those following the principles of Feng Shui. An empty parking lot is a red flag for a future development that could potentially obstruct your view. This is where the expertise of an agent specializing in condos is important to any prospective condo shopper. Your buyer’s agent should contact the City to find out if there are approved plans for the construction of new buildings that would obstruct a potential view.

We had a client that spent $200,000 renovating their property and because of personal circumstances needed to sell with having lived in the suite for less than 2 years. The repeated feedback we received was that the view made the buyers hesitate to buy despite the impressive new finishes. A great view can help a seller command a premium but a poor view is an obvious objection when asking top dollar.

I think we’ve all dreamed about living in a large, stylish loft at one time or another in our lives. Typical owners are single professionals or a couple, usually no children as these wide open spaces aren’t ideal for families. Owners usually range in age from late twenties to downsizing boomers. Ingredients for your personalized dream loft include:

1 converted warehouse with high ceilings, lots of light and character
1 suite in that building, over 1200 sq ft, over 13 foot ceilings
1 owner with vision and financial ability to make dream come true

There are some great, hard lofts in Toronto. Hard lofts are converted warehouses and former commercial spaces. Soft lofts are new construction buildings made to look like a converted warehouse. Soft lofts never quite cut it though… they usually only have 9 foot ceilings and some exposed concrete. My favourite hard loft buildings are The Candy Factory, Broadview Lofts, Brewery Lofts, The Monarch Building and Merchandise Lofts. Many suites in these buildings are still blank canvasses in that owners have not undergone significant personalization of their suite. With so much space, there are a lot of options to install mezzanines, chef kitchens and spa-like bathrooms.

We just happen to have *cough, cough* one of these spaces available. Large, bright, corner suite in Brewery Lofts for sale. This is the perfect suite for someone who wants to move in and enjoy the loft in it’s excellent condition or take on a larger project. I believe Brewery Lofts is one of, if not, THE best value hard loft building in the city and it also has very low monthly carrying costs considering how big the suites are. Not only is this suite ideal, it comes with an 800 sq ft roof-top terrace facing directly West with a view of downtown, I can’t tell you how rare this combination is.

I was impressed by the images of work done in the Brewery Loft by Alan John Marsh Design, have a look at some of the amazing work he’s done in that building. This suite would be the perfect candidate for a lucky owner looking for something special.

The incredible shrinking condo.

Twenty years ago, developers built one bedrooms mostly over 700 sq ft. The market just wouldn’t accept smaller sizes. Today it’s very common to see 1 bedrooms starting closer to 500 to 550 sq ft. We believe this is due to developers wanting to be able to market entry level prices to the large first time buyer and investory segment. To be able to provide product in the $300k price range, the rise in the cost of land, construction, city permits and taxes only allows a very small suite to be profitable for the developer. With new construction prices commonly around $575 per sq ft, a 500 sq ft suite with parking is affordable for someone looking to buy their first condo. The residents that end up living in these condos are willing to trade size for access to the urban lifestyle.

A condo shopper should keep in mind, if you’re looking for a more space, older condos offer better value… especially for a first time buyer. Condos such as 801 King St W offer much better bang for your investment dollar. Many of their one bedroom plus den condos, price around $315k, would be the size of 2 bedroom condos in newer buildings like Tableau or Theatre Park. If you think the condos in Toronto are too small, check out the suites in Vancouver. A new development called Burns Block has rental suite sizes that start at 270 sq ft.

Many clients ask us if it’s better to buy a new condo or an old condo. We will call a condo built less than 5 years ago ‘new’ and an ‘old’ condo 15 years old or more. As with every search, buyer’s have different criteria and priorities. We’ll have to use many generalizations and we know there are always exceptions, but let’s try and summarize the most common differences in the two options:

Old Condos
- Lower price per square foot.
- Larger room sizes and larger suites.
- Less investor owned suites vs owner occupied suites.
- Common areas such as lobby, hallways, fitness rooms and other amenities appear ‘tired’ and dated.
- Building may require significant aesthetic updating, or garage repairs which may result in a special assessment if reserve fund isn’t adequate.
- 8 foot ceilings.
- Building’s architecture and aesthetics may not be in fashion.
- Usually carpets or parquet flooring.
- Electric forced air heated instead of Gas forced air.
- Less natural light as suites usually do not have floor to ceiling windows.
- More likely to come with a parking space or two.
- Typically higher maintenance fees per square foot.

Newer Condos
- Suites won’t require any expensive renovations for many years.
- More aesthetically appealing architecture and amenities.
- Amenities are much more extravagant, extensive and modern fitness area, large pools and expensive home theater rooms.
- Higher proportion of smaller suites and room sizes.
- In many cases, 9 foot ceilings.
- Lower maintenance fees initially, although you should expect them to increase.
- Floor to ceiling windows, lots of natural light.
- Smaller locker spaces.
- Often the building does not have enough parking spots for every unit.
- More growing pains establishing condo by-laws, pet policies and troubleshooting issues.

These differences may help you decide which path you want to take. There are benefits and disadvantages to either option and the more educated you are during your search, the more confident a decision you’ll be able to make.

A high maintenance fee puts downward pressure on prices. When a buyer is determining how expensive a condo they can afford, they look at their monthly budget to calculate how much of a mortgage they can afford. They need to take into account the property taxes, mortgage, utilities and the maintenance fee. Obviously the lower the carrying costs, the more the buyer can put towards a mortgage payment… and a higher purchase price is affordable.

We see this time and time again with buildings which have high maintenance fees. They should be $0.50 to $0.60 per sq ft but some buildings in the city are over $0.80. In a 1000 sq ft suite, that can make a difference of around $300 per month. At today’s low interest rates, $300 per month is the equivalent of a $50,000 loan. So that can be the difference of your condo being worth $375,000 or $425,000.

A real life example of this are the Palace Pier and Palace Place buildings. These are luxury buildings with good amenities but more significantly, great service. I lose count of the number of staff I see working when I visit these buildings… multiple security staff in the lobby, parking garage attendant, valet parking, concierge, cleaners etc. I don’t see a fitness room as adding great cost over the long term but it’s easy to calculate the cost of all these staff. Having this staff is important to some people though so I don’t mean to criticize that choice but it’s important for buyers to understand that they result in a higher maintenance fee which results in lower suite prices.

If you live in a building with a high maintenance fee, perhaps your board could look at reducing costs by limiting concierge hours, re-negotiating cleaning and service contracts or a more aggressive reserve fund study. Although it may cause short term pain, if your maintenance fee is high because your building is trying to grow it’s reserve fund, a special assessment may be a better solution. This way you could keep your maintenance fee lower which would help keep suite values high and still grow your reserve fund. Simple to prove on paper but I’m sure would meet a lot of resistance in it’s application.