Toronto Condo and Real Estate Blog

Zen Lofts is a true testament to an ancient saying: “if you strive for perfection, you will eventually be graced with it.”

An intimate nine-storey building with only 35 new soft lofts located on Camden Street, one of the most sought-after streets on Toronto’s west side. Zen Lofts provides spectacular light-filled living spaces in a tranquil setting steps from the hustle and bustle of Queen Street West.

Some of the features offered by Zen Lofts include 9 to 11-foot ceilings, exposed concrete columns with flared capitals, Oversized solid core hardwood veneer entry doors, spacious terraces and balconies equipped with outdoor lighting, water and natural gas supply.

The minimalist modern architecture, created by Core Architects Inc. and built by Harhay Construction, has an understated presence that exemplifies the inner strength and quality that transcends Zen Lofts.

The “Niagara” area is a mixed residential and industrial neighbourhood. It is now in transition however as the trend is towards more residential accomodations and less industry. Niagara’s Second Empire row-houses and cosy one storey ‘Ontario Cottages’ were built in the 1870s and 1880s. The Niagara neighbourhood also contains pockets of newer townhouse and urban loft developments that reflect the renewed demand for housing in this historic Toronto neighbourhood.

The physical and social centre of Niagara is Stanley Park, a multi-recreational facility that is well used by area residents. Niagara offers convenient access to Toronto’s business and entertainment districts. It is also very handy to the Skydome, Exhibition Place, the Harbourfront, and the Toronto Islands.

Queen Street West provides Niagara residents with an eclectic mix of antique shops, art galleries, bookstores, fashion stores, natural food markets and restaurants. King Street also has stores and restaurants that serve the day-to-day needs of Niagara residents.

Niagara is a close knit neighbourhood with its own small community centre located on the Stanley Park grounds. This centre is used for local residents meetings, community based programming and social functions.

Stanley Park is a favourite neighbourhood meeting place. It contains two baseball diamonds, two tennis courts, a soccer field, a small outdoor pool, and a children’s playground.

Regular streetcar service runs on Queen Street, King Street, and Bathurst Street. Motorists are just minutes from the Gardiner Expressway and Lake Shore Boulevard.

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Contact the Jeffrey Team for more information - 416-388-1960

With a decline in housing starts making headlines Monday, TD Bank economist Pascal Gauthier warns  investors to dig a little deeper into the data.

“While the figures for July are disappointing, one should not read too much into an over-sized drop in multiple starts in a single month,” he wrote in a note. “This month-to-month volatility in this market segment is remarkably high on both the upside and downside.”

Canadian housing starts slipped to an annualized 186,500 units in July, short of the expected 210,000, according to Canada Mortgage and Housing Corp. Ontario led the pullback as its condo and multiple-unit starts pulled back by 28%. Meanwhile, urban single unit starts decreased at a more gradual 7% across the country.

“The trend in single starts is usually more telling, and it remains consistent with our theme for this sector of the Canadian economy, which is that it should experience a cooling after running too hot for too long,” Mr. Gauthier wrote.

“A greater number of existing homes for sale and the continued long-term shift to smaller and relatively cheaper multiple-family units will continue to put downward pressure on single family starts over the next 12-18 months.”

He said that while multiple starts will ease off from the levels seen in 2008, they will likely settle back around the relatively robust levels seen in 2005-07.

“There will be a natural tendency to read too much into this monthly decline and straight-line these figures forward to conclude that construction is falling off the rails,” he wrote. “We think it important to caution observers against such a knee-jerk reaction to this month’s CMHC report. Residential construction is easing and should continue to do so, but at a modest year-over-year rate of 3-5% contraction, not July’s 16%.”

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Contact the Jeffrey Team for more information - 416-388-1960

Canada’s residential real estate markets inched higher in July from June, while prices dropped as sales slowed in the country’s priciest markets, the Canadian Real Estate Association said on Thursday.

Existing home sales in major markets rose 0.1% to 27,889 units from the previous month, according to the Canadian Real Estate Association, which represents more than 94,000 real estate dealers.

On a year-over-year basis, resales were down 10.9%, with last July being the strongest on record. The Canadian Real Estate Association said major market home sales in July 2008 were the third highest ever for the month.

Average house prices fell 3.6% to $327,020 from the year before, mainly due to fewer sales compared with a year earlier in the four most expensive major markets — Vancouver and Victoria, British Columbia; Calgary, Alberta; and Toronto.

Despite July’s price drop, the Canadian Real Estate Association said the market is not set for a U.S.-style housing slump.

“Based on what happened in the first half of the year, the Canadian Real Estate Association’s market analysis shows a record (high) national average residential… price by the end of 2008, but with a much more modest increase than was recorded in 2007,” said Calvin Lindberg, the Canadian Real Estate Association president.

Average home prices rose 10.8% last year, the biggest yearly increase in 18 years.

Millan Mulraine, economics strategist at TD Securities, said the report was “somewhat disturbing” as cooling of home prices picked up in July.

“However, since the declines were mostly in the Western cities, where prices were not too long ago appreciating at a double-digit pace, we remain confident that the extent of the slowdown nationally will remain measured.”

The number of new listings in the country’s major markets rose 0.4% in July to 50,782 units. On a seasonally adjusted basis, new listings were up 11.4%.

Mulraine said that suggests the shift away from a seller’s market to a buyer’s market continued in July.

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Contact the Jeffrey Team for more information - 416-388-1960