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200 Storeys Coming To Harbour Street

UPDATE: I corrected the map above after I received some great info from a Jimmy Jax (see the comments section), and I added a rendering of the RBC office tower.

No, Toronto is not getting a 200 storey condo building, but a couple of developers are planning some massive projects in the heart of the York Centre neighbourhood.

Menkes is planning not one but two 70-storey towers on their site at 90 Harbour street, directly south of Maple Leaf Square on the other side of the Gardiner. Tridel is also planning a 75-storey tower just west of there on a triangular shaped lot directly south of where the ICE towers will be located. Three 70+ storey towers = more than 200 storeys of condos and over 2000 units coming soon to this location. Wow. To put that in perspective, the two towers of Maple Leaf Square have around 872 units combined.

I put together the graphic above to try to illustrate what’s happening in the area. Infinity 3 and ICE 1&2 are under construction. Tridel and Menkes are in the proposal stage, and RBC is going to be the lead tenant in a new office tower to be built on Queen’s Quay just east of York. I am not sure what the future of the site with the question mark on it is (if anyone knows please let me know). The one above the ICE site will be a commercial building. The one east of the Menkes site is currently the famous Harbour Sixty steak house.

Below is a cool rendering which gives you an idea of how the proposed Tridel building will interact with the ICE towers. For more information on any of these condo projects, please contact me.

Now a rendering of the RBC office tower:

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Maple Leaf Square: Highest Proportion of Out to Lunch Sellers in Toronto?

Some buildings downtown you will almost never see a listing in them. Why? Because units come on the market and sell so quickly that at any given time there is nothing available. On the other hand, there are some buildings where ‘insane seller syndrome’ runs rampant. These are the buildings where there are always dozens of units available, and many of these listings sit on the market for months and months at a time with no buyers. The key reason: they are over priced.

One building in particular always seems to have an abundance of ‘out to lunch’ sellers trying to pawn their listings off on an unsuspecting buyer at outrageously inflated prices. That building is Maple Leaf Square (55 and 65 Bremner).

Exhibit A: a small 2 bedroom unit is on the market at $469K with no parking, or $499K if parking is included. The listing has been on the market for almost 3 months. Several of the same floor plan have sold in the past year. Average selling price including parking was $465K (6 sold units). This seller is approximately $35K over market value or 7.5% over market value.

Exhibit B: a small 1+Den with no parking is on the market at $429K. The listing has been on the market for a total of about 300 days at various different price points. Average selling price of the exact same unit over the last year is $353K (4 sold units). This seller is approximately $76K or 21% over market value. One listing of the same floor plan was priced as high as $455K this year!

These are just a couple of examples. Having been working with a buyer-client who is trying to get a unit in this building it’s very frustrating and a serious time waster for all trying to negotiate with someone who is completely out of touch with reality. In the summer I submitted an offer for this buyer-client on a unit that was listed at $399K. The offer was for $355K. The seller acted like he was insulted and his agent was just as incredulous. Several months later and 100+ days on the market that unit never sold. Meanwhile 2 other units of the same floor plan and very similar floor level sold for $349K and $357K respectively.

What is it about Maple Leaf Square that seems to foster this insanity among sellers? I don’t know but I suspect there are a lot of investors who paid all cash for their units who really don’t care if they sell them at all, however, if someone wants to offer them an outrageous price above what all other units are selling for they will gladly take it!

Questions or comments? Please contact me.

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Greed: Part 2

I had quite a few reactions (mostly via email) to my last post “Greed“. It seems it really struck a cord with both my fellow Realtors and consumers alike. As a follow up to that post, I wanted to talk about another segment of the market that in my opinion has gone off the deep end and gotten greedy: Assignment Sellers.

For those of you who have been living under a rock for the past couple years and still do not know what an assignment is, please read through my series of blog posts on the subject before continuing.

Time and time again I see assignment sellers (and their agents) making the same mistake: over pricing their assignments.Finding a buyer for an assignment is tricky under the best of circumstances. Finding a buyer for an assignment when that assignment is over priced to begin with is nearly impossible.

For example, Maple Leaf Square assignments are popping up everywhere.  Some sellers are asking $700 per square foot for their units. This is insane. There is almost nothing selling on the resale market at that price anywhere downtown. Why would anyone pay this for a run of the mill condo?

The high end of the resale market (for non-luxury buildings) are buildings like Glas (25 Oxley), College Park (761&763 Bay), Murano (37 Grosvenor and 38 Grenville), and The Met (21 and 25 Carlton). Units in these buildings are averaging about $575 PSF for units with parking spots. The odd unit is selling for slightly above $600 PSF. This is the creme of the crop. Trying to sell an assignment in an unproven building for $700 PSF is just silly.

So what is a realistic way to price an assignment? There is no set rule at this point, however, I would suggest you first determine the value of the property if it were a resale property TODAY, then subtract 10% from that. This is assuming of course, you are a motivated, rational seller who does not want to close on the property. This is also assuming occupancy will take place in the next 6 months or less for your unit.

Don’t get greedy. Price your assignment below equivalent resale market value to give yourself the best chance to find a buyer.

This one is sure to excite some people-let me know your thoughts or comments!

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ICE 2 Launching This Month

The second tower of ICE Condominiums by Lanterra Developments and Cadillac Fairview is about to be launched. Sales at tower 1 started back in July 2008, and that tower is well over 80% sold out.

The development is part of the York Centre community which is located at York and Bremner. Lanterra and Cadillac Fairview are the developers behind the highly successful Residences of Maple Leaf Square which will be right across the street from ICE. Other Lanterra projects include: WaterParkCity, 22 Wellesley, One Bedford, Murano and Burano, and 18 Yonge street.

Wondering what all the buzz is about for this project? To begin, it is going to be big. Really BIG! The second tower is to be a 65-storey super-tower which would put it in the ultra-exclusive height category that currently only Aura, Trump Tower, Shangri-La, and the Ritz Carlton occupy after the recent death of 1 Bloor.

Also, it is to have a direct underground connection to the PATH system via Maple Leaf Square, the ACC and Union Station. Perks will include being able to leave your coat in your condo as you walk indoors to the 40,000 square foot Longo’s grocery store in the base of Maple Leaf Square, or catch a game or concert at the ACC.

Peter Clewes of architectsAlliance (One of Canada’s resident Starchitects) designed the building and judging by the renderings it will certainly stand out and has real potential to be that landmark building that investors and condo buyers are always looking to be a part of.

It goes without saying that suites will feature stone counters, hardwood floors, stainless steel European appliances, cutting edge design and finishes, and 9′ ceilings. These are not entry level, low-end condos. Prices are going to most likely be in the $600-$650 per square foot range at the launch phase.

Prices and floor plans for the upcoming VIP broker’s sales event should be released soon. If you are interested in buying a suite at ICE 2 prior to the public launch, please contact me.

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ICE Condos by Lanterra Developments

**OCTOBER 2009 UPDATE: ICE TOWER 2 TO BE LAUNCHED THIS MONTH. CLICK HERE FOR DETAILS.**

ICE condos VIP sales event is coming soon. Register with Andrew now for VIP access to this incredible project! Get in BEFORE the public.

FLOOR PLANS AND PRICING ARE AVAILABLE NOW.

Lanterra is the developer behind the Maple Leaf Square development, right across the street from where ICE will be and a favourite condo for fans of Toronto’s favourite sports team. Lanterra is actually building a total neighbourhood in this previously derelict tract of land that is now in the centre of all the downtown action. Steps from the ACC, Union Station and the TTC, the lakeshore, Roger’s Centre, Entertainment and financial districts.

ICE will be part of a larger community called YORK CENTRE and Lanterra is partnering with the well-known commercial/retail developer Cadillac Fairview. York Centre will consist of a 31 storey 800,000 sq. ft of office tower along with the two ICE residential towers and a 1 acre landscaped public space surrounded with retail outlets.

Units will range in size from 400 sq ft. bachelors to 1100 sq. ft 3 bedrooms. Prices will start from the low $200s.

Three reasons why this project is particulary interesting to investors and first time buyers:

1) Size of the project. Two towers, 55 and 65 storeys high will make ICE one of the largest condos in the downtown core.

2) No assignment fee. This means that if you purchase a unit at ICE and you decide to sell your unit prior to final registration of the building, you can do so for free. No assignment fee to pay to the builder. Normally assignments on pre-construction condos in Toronto are possible but they usually cost the seller around $2500-$5000 depending on the builder and depending on the project. This will be especially important to investors.

3) Building features. Stunningly unique architecture, Leed certification, the largest green roof ever built in Toronto, direct PATH and subway access.

This project is going to be HUGE and is already drawing plenty of attention both here in Toronto and around the world. Please contact me now for floor plans and pricing on this project or if you would like to purchase a suite before the public launch at VIP prices.

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