The building is set to be designed by Rudy Wallman on a triangularly shaped lot that was formally a 40 spot parking lot and a police impound lot (if you parked illegally in Toronto, this is where you would find your car).

The building is going to be surrounded by the tallest buildings in the City, on what will probably the tallest building intersection in the city. Walking distance from the site is the following buildings:

• Maple Leaf Square North Tower 186m (53 Storeys)
• Maple Leaf Square South Tower 174m (49 Storeys)
• Ice 202m (57 Storeys)
• Ice2 234m (67 Storeys)
• 1 York Tower 1 and Tower 2 239.5m (70 Storeys) – Proposed by Menkes

This will forever change the skyline in Toronto

10 York St Mockup with 1 York St by CanadianNational UT

The renderings that have come out look stunning. I know some UrbanToronto members were wondering why the building was not going to be triangular (like a Flatiron). This was answered succintly by Interchange42 with the following post:

Now looking at the site as, it has a Walkscore of 92, which I expect to go higher as the area is built out. Tridel is even setting to work to increase the walkability by making an attractive podium that will offer weather protection going to Maple Leaf Square along York St from Lake Shore Blvd W.

For this building. Suite location will be key for those who value views:

• Traffic noise and dust will be an issue to the units facing north on low floors, it will be interesting how Tridel will use the inset balconies to deal with this
• Area is part of the highest density corners in North America = some North/South and East views will be blocked for low floor units
• Being close to the Gardiner guarantees a view corridor for units facing West

I’m eagerly awaiting doing my analysis on this building once I get more data. That being said, I really like the location fundamentals.

Now Yonge and Queen has been an area that has been the focus of some speculation, especially since 197-205 Yonge St have been vacant for years. In a January 2011 article in the Globe and Mail, titled “Toronto’s most vulnerable vacancies,” the reporters say the following:

1. The buildings are made of grey limestone
2. The architects also have designed Convocation Hall, the Royal Ontario Museum and the MaRS Discovery District building
3. The building was built in 1905
4. Was designated as a heritage building in 1990

This is why I took a second look when I saw the following Tweet from the Mod Developments Twitter account (@moddevelopments):

"Heritage Toronto Photo Blog" Courtesy of Gary Switzer, CEO of MOD Developments & Maya Bilbao http://t.co/ffUd9o9m

December 1, 2011 4:39 am via HootSuiteReplyRetweetFavorite

@moddevelopments

MOD Developments Inc

In the picture in question is an archive photo of Yonge and Queen from the early part of 19th century owned by the CEO of Mod Developments Gary Switzer.

Now why would Gary have the picture and why is this important?

The reason is simple: Mod has struck a deal with the folks in Montreal that owns 197 Yonge St (apparently these are the same folks who own Parasuco as well) and they are set to develop it.

Buying the site makes perfect sense, Gary is a veteran in our industry, and is newly formed Mod Developments, seems to have created a nice niche taking heritage buildings and working them in the facade of the podium of a tower (like he did on 5 St. Joseph).

I’m totally psyched about this project. It has a great location (walkscore of 97) and is not even 20 ft away from the subway station. This condo will be especially attractive to the investor community in Toronto and will no doubt sell out quick (think RCMI or Karma condos).

Checking the listing brokerage for the site, Avison and Young, 197-201 Yonge St has been for sale for some time (at least since late 2004). So it seems that with Karma selling extremely well hitting $700+ per square foot well and the new density developers have been asking for along Yonge St, the team at Mod Developmetns felt it was the right time to pull the trigger to make a deal happen.

Other projects seem to pushing the envelope with heights including:

501 Yonge St asking for 192 m and 58 Storeys

460 Yonge St asking for 198.5 m and 60 Storeys

I’m definitely interested to see the renderings of the existing building and how the incorporate the columns. Since the building is designated as a heritage building, its a non starter that it would be demolished and Mod has done well with the heritage buildings just up the road.

Expect pricing to follow along with the Karma’s mark, and it could be more as the site will be more challenging to develop on (increased costs due to the challenges of getting construction crews to build on the smaller footprint, preserving the heritage building etc). To balance this, Mod must be going at least 60 Storeys.

Just like the famous baby boomer quote: 50 is the new 30. I’ll watch this with great interest.

We’ve all heard stories of waste, from cancelling agreements made by previous governments to the gravy train fat cat spending that got Rob Ford elected.

Well to make a step to change our cities image as poor managers of assets, the City of Toronto formed Build Toronto in 2009 (Mayor Miller’s regime ironically). Since then Build Toronto has been meticulously taking stock of land owned by the city.

This is a good thing for residents of Toronto. The revenue generated from the re-development of city owned land (from the sale of the land, to increased property tax revenue, to development fees paid to the city) will all be used to fund subway expansion and waterfront revitalization.

So are there any opportunities for real estate investors to make money?

Short answer, yes. Here are the possibilities:

• Selling your properties to the City so they can assemble the right site for a developer
• Increasing the value of properties surrounding development sites as new Transit and retail/commercial/Industrial is built.
• Buying land with pre-approvals in place directly from Build Toronto (as in 120-130 Front St below)

Neighborhoods to keep an eye on:

1. Downsview (Allen/Sheppard)
2. Etobicoke City Centre
3. Runnymede and St Clair

image source

We know that for the most part Toronto has fared well after the Panic of ’08. Real estate is growing nicely (too nice?), GDP is growing, and according to tweets from Jamie Johnston, Broker of Record for Re/Max condos…he can’t find anyone willing to work:

We know that for the most part Toronto has fared well after the Panic of ’08. Real estate is growing nicely (too nice?), GDP is growing, and according to tweets from Jamie Johnston, Broker of Record for Re/Max condos…he can’t find anyone willing to work:

We know that for the most part Toronto has fared well after the Panic of ’08. Real estate is growing nicely (too nice?), GDP is growing, and according to tweets from Jamie Johnston, Broker of Record for Re/Max condos…he can’t find anyone willing to work:

We know that for the most part Toronto has fared well after the Panic of ’08. Real estate is growing nicely (too nice?), GDP is growing, and according to tweets from Jamie Johnston, Broker of Record for Re/Max condos…he can’t find anyone willing to work:

Signs we are not in a recession: cannot hire part time staff - nobody wants/ needs to work - try booking a trip down south - all sold out!

February 14, 2011 7:08 pm via webReplyRetweetFavorite

@Remaxcondosplus

RE/MAX Condos Plus

This is fine and dandy, but what are the risk factors for the city? Let’s take a look (in no particular order):

• Growing income disparity and shrinking middle class

From Dr. Martin Hulchanski’s 3 cities report we find a disturbing trend of folks living in certain neighborhoods are making less income than they were 20 years ago (see here). This trend can lead to the ghettoizing of Toronto. As Hulchanski puts it, Toronto will go from “City of Neighborhoods to City of Disparities. This can make the City 3 neighborhoods less desirable.

• High Debt to Income ratios

Particular with people making less than $50,000 a year, debt can cripple potential buyers of real estate. TD economics notes that Toronto area consumer insolvencies are triple the national average. As rates rise and debt grows this could limit how much mortgage, if any, people can afford.

• Rising cost of living

City of Toronto user fees, certain foods, public transit, fuel are all rising faster than incomes. Rising costs will put stress on what people can put towards their principle and interest.

• Transportation

Mayor Ford’s wish to cancel Transit City may not be such a good move. Access to Transit is one of the top factors people look at when buying a home. Since Transit City would serve more residents at a cheaper price, it would be a better bang for buck for increasing property values than a Sheppard subway extension.

• Affordability

Developers are pushing the limits on price increase, and on the resale end, it’s proving very difficult for people to find a decent property under $300,000. High prices may start to push people out to other areas (Guelph, Hamilton etc.).

• Interest rates

It’s a matter of when, not if, interest rates will go up. Will a sustained oil shock push rates up sooner than expected? If rates rise, people can afford less and may be forced to sell their home or be priced out of the market completely…

Keep an eye on risk and understand them before you make your buying decisions.

image source: thinkpanama