Tag Archives: loft
New in Toronto real estate: Sanctuary Lofts
Robyn Urback – blogTO
Sanctuary Lofts just might be that real estate “haven” you’ve looking for (see what I did there?) if you don’t mind stairs and covet direct unit access. A collection of 14 two- and three-storey lofts, this project involves the restoration and conversion of the near century-old Dufferin Street Presbyterian Church, which was constructed in the early 1900′s by venerable architect William R. Gregg. Though the interior will be overhauled with smooth ceilings (shame, but better than popcorn) and your choice of cabinetry finishes, the exterior will retain its stone detailing, red brick, and ability to incite feelings of guilt in innocent (seemingly) passersby. Here’s a closer look at Sanctuary Lofts.
SPECS
Address: 1183 Dufferin Street
Exterior: Heritage church, east addition
Total number of units: 14 (Four units in addition, 10 in church)
Type of units: One bedroom plus den, two bedroom plus den, three bedroom plus den
Unit sizes (in square feet): 600 – 1,765
Ceiling height: 9′
Prices from (available suites): $349,000
Number of parking spaces: 11
Parking cost: $34,000
Parking maintenance: $50/mo
General maintenance: Approx $0.48/sf
Developer: Concept Loft Developments
Expected occupancy: December 2013
THE GOOD
Church conversions, apparently, are the latest Toronto real estate craze, and it’s good to see at least one that tries to maintain the integrity (literally and figuratively) of the space. While some other church conversion projects might try to cram in as many units as possible and/or plop an eyesore of a structural “accompaniment” alongside (yeah, I’m talking about you, St. Clements), Sanctuary has kept it relatively modest. Granted, the addition planned for the back of the Sanctuary church isn’t exactly charming, but it does demonstrate a little restraint on the part of the developer since it only incorporates an extra four units. Or do we just expect such insatiable greed on the parts of developers nowadays that a modest add-on is seen as worthy of praise? In any case, fewer units means Sanctuary Loft suites actually come with a real living room, and at about $550 to $600 per square foot, you’ll certainly get more bang for your buck than in most new downtown builds.
But the big Sanctuary Loft boon speaks directly to my Socially Awkward Penguin side. (For the layman and lazy reader: that means I have trouble relating to others.) While Sanctuary is, technically, a loft build, its units present pretty much as townhomes. With the exception of the two upper-level lofts situated in the church add-on, each unit has its own direct access to outside. That means no awkward elevator chitchat, no neighbours letting their cats roam the hallways, and no vapid weather discussion as you fumble for your keys. Hermits, prevail! And for those, say, two times per year when you actually invite over guests, it’s nice to have them arrive at your very own front (or side) doors. Big balconies and patios are added bonuses, with gas barbeque connections provided for summertime cookouts.
Honorable mention to the skylights that come standard in each three-storey lofts situated inside the church. A win for natural light and the feeling of living in an actual home, rather than a box.
THE BAD
Sanctuary Lofts is right by one of the saddest little malls in all of Toronto. The Eeyore of Toronto retail, if you will. Sorry, Galleria, that’s you. But who knows? Maybe Zellers’ ultimate departure will have catalyzed a rejuvenation that is long, long overdue? Or maybe not. Regardless, it’s clear that the Wallace Emerson area has still yet to achieve “hip” status, meaning you’re in for a bit of a walk (or more likely, a drive) if you want to find some good shopping, coffee, or restaurants to explore. Living in a heavily residential area does have its perks (namely, far fewer incidences of street side vomiting as compared to a condo on Richmond Street) but the retail component of this area is certainly lacking. Time to invest in a stovetop espresso maker and a bread machine, I guess.
So, when did separate fees for parking spaces officially become a “thing?” Silly me, I always figured that general monthly maintenance fees went into a communal pot to cover communal expenses such as a shared parking garage. Separate fees are, perhaps, a little more justifiable in a condo where only a small percentage of residents actually own parking spaces, but Sanctuary has 11 parking spaces for 14 units. That’s hardly a small minority. You have to wonder, then, how fees are being handled, especially since this project has no superfluous shared amenities. Residents already have to fork over a hefty chunk of change to purchase (I use that term loosely) a parking space, so why should they hand over an additional $50 per month in maintenance?
The units themselves seem not half bad, though the units’ tall and lean frames leave buyers little room for layout customization. Stairs can be wonderful, especially when it comes to the monotony of cookie-cutter new Toronto condos, but they do take up an awful lot of room.
THE VERDICT
Do not purchase if you have bad knees.
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Contact the Jeffrey Team for more information – 416-388-1960
Laurin & Natalie Jeffrey are Toronto Realtors with Century 21 Regal Realty.
They did not write these articles, they just reproduce them here for people
who are interested in Toronto real estate. They do not work for any builders.
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The single family home outpaces the condo in the value building race
Carolyn Ireland – The Globe and Mail
As uncertainty continues to overshadow Toronto real estate, people from industry insiders to idle observers are speculating about the extent to which the condo and the single-family home portions of the market have split in two.
Real estate agent Geoffrey Grace of ReMax Hallmark Realty Ltd. offers up a fluky tale of three sales that provide a good snapshot. The numbers, he believes, illustrate well the divergence in value in the broader market.
“It just seems that people are betting on the single-family house.”
Mr. Grace points to the action in a former mattress factory that has been converted to a cool loft building near Bloor Street and Lansdowne Avenue. The second setting is Boston Avenue in Leslieville. The story starts in 2009, when Mr. Grace helped a client sell his loft and buy a detached house in Leslieville for $10,000 more than the selling price of the loft.
Now fast forward to October, 2012, and the purchaser of the loft decides to sell. She calls Mr. Grace because he knows the unit. Coincidentally, the owner of the house in Leslieville decides to sell because he’s moving to Hamilton and he too calls Mr. Grace. The loft sells for $399,900. The house on Boston sells for $440,000.
So, in the same period, the loft increases in value by 19.4% while the house swells in value by 27.5%.
“The single detached home in Toronto is the prize that everyone is after,” says Mr. Grace.
Still, Mr. Grace did not set an offer date for the house because he knew the market had slowed.
The house was listed with an asking price of $449,900 and sold for $440,000 after eight days.
Mr. Grace says that supply and demand is one factor: Many more condos are going up than single family houses. But also, condo prices have reached a level that doesn’t make sense to a lot of buyers.
Compared with the house in Leslieville, a nearby loft with the same square footage would cost $700,000, says Mr. Grace.
“It seems people believe the freehold house market will keep going strong.”
Even freehold houses are taking longer to sell, he notes. Buyers hold more power in this market.
Comment: Buyers hold no power when it comes to detached houses. They used to take mere hours to sell, now it is a week. And we are calling this a long time? We are saying buyers hold power because there isn’t a bidding war on 3 of 4 houses? Think about that for a minute…
“If the house is over-priced, they’re still letting the sellers sit and sweat. But if you have a reasonable price, people will buy.”
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Contact the Jeffrey Team for more information – 416-388-1960
Laurin & Natalie Jeffrey are Toronto Realtors with Century 21 Regal Realty.
They did not write these articles, they just reproduce them here for people
who are interested in Toronto real estate. They do not work for any builders.
—————————————————————————————————–
Incoming search terms
Related posts:
- Single family homes becoming ‘precious commodities’ Strong immigration to the GTA, unbridled investor confidence in Canada...
- In Toronto, GTA, upmarket spells highrise as single family homes become scarce While the sale of Toronto condos hit record levels in...
- Single-detached Toronto home — first choice, last option Bob Finnigan – New Homes & Condos Magazine Is the...
- Two of downtown Toronto’s last single-family homes for sale Old as they are, the houses at 122-124 Peter Street...
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What you need to know before you buy a loft
Buyers are paying big money for lofts, but are they the right fit for you?
David Fleming – TheGridTO.com
We could be talking about boiled eggs, water, or even your chest, but today we’re talking about lofts, and how some buyers prefer their lofts soft while others prefer them hard.
The term loft gets thrown around far too often in Toronto: It seems like the only prerequisites for a condo to be called a loft are a door, a roof, and (hopefully) four walls. Lofts are so popular that the mere use of the word will bring in more interest and more money, so buyers have to be savvy enough to know whether what they’re looking at is the real deal. Perhaps a loft is something different to everybody, but for me, it’s either a conversion from an old non-residential space, or a new-build condo that was made to look like a conversion. Each style has its pros and cons, and each has its fans and opponents.
A building that was converted from an industrial or commercial space, such as an old warehouse or a 100-year-old factory, is a true hard loft. Picture a space with exposed brick walls, timber beams spanning 14-foot ceilings, and majestic windows. On Queen Street West, Candy Factory is home to some of the most beautiful examples in the city, with more brick and beams than almost any loft in Toronto.
These buildings typically have more original character and always come with more history. Some of the best hard lofts in the city tell a story, such as Toy Factory in Liberty Village, which Irwin Toys constructed in the early 1900s. One thing to look out for if you’re considering a hard loft is that developers sometimes keep the historic windows, which can mean out-dated, inefficient thermal nightmares. (Just ask the residents at The Wrigley Lofts on Carlaw Avenue what their heating bills are like.)
Comment: And the Irwin factory was a paper mill before that! Irwin did not build it, they just took it over. And speaking of the Candy Factory, that used to be the Cede factory. Remember “Rockets”? That is where they were made. And the Wrigley Factory is where Double Mint and Big Red were made before they moved to a new facility on Leslie.
A soft loft is a building that was purposefully constructed as housing, but has been made to mimic a hard loft by having similar features like open-concept spaces, high ceilings, large windows, and some of that raw, industrial feel. The explosion of soft lofts began in the early 2000s when the city of Toronto was running out of old buildings to convert to residential condominiums. So developers began constructing lofts anew and marketing them as a more liveable version, with a clean, polished look.
Comment: Those of us in the biz, we call them “condos with high ceilings”…
Soft lofts often have a little more warmth than those converted from commercial space, and since they’re built new, they often have better finishes. A building constructed from scratch can take advantage of advances in plumbing, heating, electrical, and any other system that one erected 100 years ago might lack. East Lofts on Princess Street is a newer example of a soft loft, but the building next door, Abbey Lane Lofts, is one of the most striking soft-loft buildings in the city, as you”d swear the units were indeed hard lofts. It’s tough to get your hands on one, too—there are only 29 units in the building.
Comment: And new soft lofts are protected by Tarion, which conversion are not. Something that needs to be rectified IMMEDIATELY.
Then there are the lofts that are both hard and soft at the same time. This usually occurs where a developer converts an existing structure into lofts but also adds several new floors to the top. The Toy Factory features an original four-storey warehouse converted into hard lofts, with an additional three storeys of soft lofts. The lesser-known Robert Watson Lofts on Sorauren Avenue, near Roncesvalles, also features a combination of the two, as there is an original building fronting on Sorauren and a new red-brick soft loft behind it that looks like a shinier version of the first.
The most passionate loft enthusiasts will think that a true hard loft is the only way to go, and anything else is an imposter. I tend to agree from an aesthetic standpoint, but when it comes to things like sound-proofing, weather resistance, and wear-and-tear, hard lofts often fall far behind. Nevertheless, buyers are still paying big money for lofts, both hard and soft, and with all the cookie-cutter units flooding the market, I see lofts holding their value over the long run.
David Fleming is a Realtor with Bosley Real Estate in Toronto, and author of the best known real estate website in the city: www.torontorealtyblog.com. A constant thorn in the side of condominium developers, David”s sarcastic, opinionated, outlandish thoughts can be read daily, although for some people, that’s far too often.
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Contact the Jeffrey Team for more information – 416-388-1960
Laurin & Natalie Jeffrey are Toronto Realtors with Century 21 Regal Realty.
They did not write these articles, they just reproduce them here for people
who are interested in Toronto real estate. They do not work for any builders.
—————————————————————————————————–
Incoming search terms
Related posts:
- Loft conversions boost neighbourhoods The first legal loft conversion in Toronto (at the old...
- An authentic Toronto loft conversion at a factory built in 1913 By Sydnia Yu – Globe and Mail At a time when fewer...
- Toronto Loft Living Lofts have a certain allure. With high ceilings, open floor...
- Hard loft + soft loft = medium loft? We get a lot of people contacting us about lofts these...
- East Toronto loft conversion project The Tannery Lofts are located in the old four-storey structure,...
