I never envisioned my face would be plastered on the front page of TheStar.com right next to a picture of Rob Ford laughing diabolically, but here we are. Check out this cute little article-with video- that Susan Pigg (The Star’s new real estate reporter) wrote about my investment unit at One Park West. What is interesting or ‘newsworthy’ of this condo is that it is possibly the smallest condo in the entire city at 301 square feet.

I guess you could say I put my money where my mouth is when it comes to the Regent Park revitalization project. I first started blogging several years ago about One Cole, then last year it was One Park West, now this week it’s Paintbox. It’s no secret I am a believer in the redevelopment that is happening in Regent Park, and I’m happy to say my own piece of the puzzle has turned out fantastic.

I know that many people within the real estate industry in Toronto are still highly skeptical that Regent Park will overcome it’s stigma and reputation as a ‘bad’ area, built progressively over the last 50+ years, but I’m not one of them. I believe when the redevelopment is complete in around 5-7 years this area will be a great middle-class, family-type neighbourhood in the heart of downtown. Something unique and an affordable area that people will not only want to live in, but also spend their free time in.

Questions or comments? Please contact me.

Paintbox Condos is the 3rd condominium to be built in Regent Park which is North America’s largest urban revitalization project. Platinum level VIP sales are on NOW. Contact me if you would like to secure a suite in this fantastic project.

I have written many blog posts about One Cole, One Park West, and now Paintbox condominiums over the past 3 years, and all of my clients who have bought into these first two projects are more than satisfied with their investments. I am a big believer in the future of this neighbourhood and I think the best is yet to come. Those who get in early here will be glad they did in 5-10 years when the entire neighbourhood is finished being rebuilt literally from the ground up.

I need to stress with my clients that the timeline to take advantage of the Platinum VIP sale prices is very short! Demand is expected to equal or surpass that of the first two buildings which were sold out very quickly. Now that the dust has settled and both One Cole and One Park West are both REGISTERED buildings, the public is starting to get a sense of the quality that Daniels is building here and the neighbourhood potential is getting better and better.

For floor plans and pricing for Paintbox, please contact me.

February 22 update: Sample Floor Plans Now Available. Contact me for more information.

Coming soon to Regent Park from Daniels: Paintbox Condos. Contact me today to register for this exciting new development.

After selling out One Cole in May 2009, then following that up with a near sell out of One Park West in September 2010, Daniels has already begun work on their next condo tower in the Regent Park neighbourhood. Paintbox will be larger and have more units than One Park West and will be the first development on the south side of Dundas Street. Presumably the name is derived from the fact that it will sit atop the brand new Regent Park Arts and Cultural Centre. The Centre is yet another example of the millions of dollars (much of it is government money) that is being poured into this neighbourhood over the next decade or so (the others being the aquatic centre and the park).

For those of you who are still doubting the potential of this neighbourhood from an investment perspective, seriously, you need to give your head a shake! Those who bought in the early days of One Cole have already seen as much as a 20% appreciation on their initial purchase price! 2 recent examples:

• 2 bed/2 bath unit that could have been bought for ~$348K (including parking) in May 2009 was sold in November 2010 for $420K.
• 1+den unit that could have been bought for ~$253K (including parking) in May 2009 sold for $305K in September 2010.

One Park West sold out of virtually every suite (except a couple larger units) before it even made it to the general public sales event! All indications are buyers in One Park West will also see excellent ROI.

I have helped several clients buy units in both One Cole and One Park West and they were all very happy with their purchases.  Once again my membership in the Daniels’ “Platinum Producers Club” will grant my clients priority access to this project ahead of all the others. Register with me now for priority access and as always my services are FREE to you as a buyer.

Special note to all my clients: if you choose to register with Daniels and/or join their Inner Circle program via their website, in person, or on the phone, be 100% sure to indicate that you are working with me as your buyer’s agent! Some of my would-be clients were left out in the cold (could not get a unit) when One Park West launched simply because they failed to inform Daniels that they were working with me as their buyer’s agent. For more details, contact me and stay tuned to TrueCondos.com for updates on Paintbox Condominiums over the next few months.

Coming this September from Daniels: One Park West. After the hugely successful launch of One Cole (the first phase of the Regent Park redevelopment) in May 2009, Daniels Corp. is getting set to launch the second phase of condominiums to be part of the billion dollar makeover of this downtown east side neighbourhood.

One Park West is under construction now. Sales are to start in September 2010. There will be stacked townhomes ready for occupancy almost immediately, and then the tower portion itself which will not be ready for occupancy until early/mid 2011. Prices will likely be something similar to what we saw at One Cole, except slightly higher. Most suites at One Cole were in the $390-$400 PSF range at the initial launch. The last few units sold recently in the $420 PSF range.

If you are interested in purchasing a unit at One Park West, I suggest you hire me as your Exclusive Buyer’s Agent. I have been granted membership into Daniels’ exclusive “Platinum Brokers Club” for this project which will allow my clients to gain priority access of exclusive suites without having to wait in lineups. Besides getting you exclusive access to One Park West, hiring me as your buyer’s agent gets you professional representation at no additional cost. Protect yourself, always hire a buyer’s agent when buying a new condominium from a builder.

If you have any questions about One Park West, or if you would like to hire me as your exclusive buyer’s agent for this project, please contact me.

The VIP broker’s sales event is set for May 30th, with the public opening June 13th. Contact me now for more information about how you can hire me me as your exclusive buyer’s agent for this event. Baker is limiting agents to just 2 buyer clients each for this event. Floor plans and pricing now available.

 One Cole is really unlike any other condo in the city for a number of reasons. First of all, it is already built, yet not a single unit has been sold. Unlike 99% of the condo projects in this city where the builder sells at least 60% of the units before a shovel ever hits the ground, One Cole is nearly finished construction with occupancy is set for the end of this year and sales have not even started. In this market, where many buyers are leery to buy anything for fear the condo may not be built, this is welcome relief.

But of course the real reason why One Cole is so different is it is part of the Regent Park Revitalization plan. Regent Park was Canada’s largest social housing project, built back in the 1940s. At the time it was heralded as a solution to the area’s many urban and social problems, but 60 years later it is widely regarded as a failure and probably exasperated the social problems it was trying to address.

If you leave Toronto now and come back in 10-15 years, you would not recognize Regent Park. It is undergoing what is being called the largest scale neighbourhood renewal project in North America. One Cole is part of phase 1 of this renewal.

My quick thoughts on this project:

• Great value. At $400 per square foot, premium features like 9′ ceilings, granite counter tops, ceramic back splash, stainless steel appliances, laminate flooring in all rooms are all standard.
• Great building. The building itself will have some excellent features that will enhance the quality of life of it’s residents including a 20,000 square foot roof top park, and a Sobey’s, Tim Horton’s and RBC bank all right in the building. The building will also be the first in Toronto to be Leed Gold certified.

My questions about this project which I’d like to hear your thoughts on are:

• Investors - are you considering buying a in this location? Why or why not?
• First time buyers – If you are looking for a condo downtown, and have never considered this area, would you consider buying at One Cole? Why or why not?

Coming Soon to Regent Park from Daniels: One Cole.

Register with me now for more information and your chance to purchase a suite before the public release.

In some ways, this project has been over 60 years in the making. It is a key component to the redevelopment of the Regent Park neighbourhood that was Canada’s first large-scale public housing project when it was built in the 1940s. It will play a big role in the rapidly improving East Side of downtown.

This is no ordinary project and accordingly, Daniels is doing things a little differently. They are actually building the project first, then selling units; as opposed to selling first then making the buyers wait years for it to be built. They broke ground at Dundas and Parliament over a year ago and sales are expected to start in early 2009 with the first occupancies sometime in the same year.

The project will contain three national-level retailers: Sobey’s, RBC, and Tim Horton’s.

From the developer’s press release:

• One Cole will have 293 residential suites in two distinctive buildings: the 9-storey West Building will have 92 suites and the East building will be 19-storeys with 201 suites.
• Suite sizes range from 497 sq.ft. to 1,238 sq.ft., and prices start from $189,000.
• Suite designs include: studio, one-bedroom, one-bedroom plus den, two-bedroom, two-bedroom plus den, and three-bedroom townhome designs.

May 2009 Update: Floor plans and pricing now available. Flexible deposit programs starting from only 5% down. Broker’s Sales Event MAY 30th. Contact me for the latest on One Cole.

Thinking of buying a new condo directly from a builder? Read this first