http://www.nationalpost.com/homes/Ci...560/story.html
City of mass construction: Toronto’s unstoppable condos show no signs of slowing down
Brad Lamb believes Toronto’s downtown condominium market is out of this world.
“There’s no other place on the planet where all this [activity] is happening,” says the president of Brad J. Lamb Realty, who specializes in downtown condo sales. “We have a large immigration of people coming to Toronto every year. We have a diverse economy that can support a reasonably affluent lifestyle. And we have a very stable Canadian economy. Everyone is recognizing how great Canada is, and Toronto is the centre of Canada.”
“Over the course of time, suites won’t get any smaller — they’ll be configured a little differently,” explains Sam Crignano, president of Cityzen Development Group, which is building up the area around St. Lawrence Market with London on the Esplanade and the upcoming Pier 27 and Backstage. “You’re going to have rooms that are multi-use, like a den/dining room that converts into a bedroom with a Murphy bed. Europeans have been doing this for a long time and the same holds true in a lot of Asia. The flexibility of a space is going to be key, going forward.”
Also getting attention in 2011 are empty nesters and second-time condo buyers. Riz Dhanji, vice-president of sales and marketing at Canderel Stoneridge, which is building 75-floor Aura at College Park and DNA3 in King West, says many empty nesters are downsizing from large family homes and choosing a downtown condo as their weekend escape. And as the price of single-family homes escalates, first-time condo dwellers with kids in tow are choosing to upgrade to larger units rather than buy a house. Mr. Dhanji expects the trend to continue through 2011.
But perhaps the biggest demographic that will continue to drive sales this year is the investor market, both local and international. Mr. Lamb says there are few developers building rental towers any longer, in part due to the city’s rent control laws, so investors hold the key to rental accommodation. He says it’s not uncommon for 40% of a building to be owned by investors, with most rentals situated below the fifteenth floor because they are less expensive than those with a brighter view. Mr. Myers estimates 50% to 60% of downtown condo units are owned by investors who rent them out.
“If no one is building new apartment buildings, [people] can’t live in tent cities,” says Mr. Lamb. “They’ve got to live somewhere. The only place that’s providing new affordable housing is the condo market.”
As for prices, Mr. Cohen say they are likely to hold steady this year at anywhere from $500 to $600 per square foot, though upscale neighbourhoods such as Yorkville will still command sums of $800-plus. Mr. Myers puts the average price at $370 per square foot, adding that there will be fewer new projects completed this year in the GTA, “so we’ll see what that does to the price.”
Looking a bit farther out, Mr. Carras expects the next couple of years to produce alternatives to the popular towers, particularly six-storey wood-framed buildings and four-storey walk-ups on main streets such as Bloor Street West. Mr. Crignano thinks people will begin to put neighbourhood first, searching for their preferred schools, parks and shops and then finding a suitable building nearby — much like house buyers already do. And with Waterfront Toronto building up the West Don Lands and East Bayfront as part of a 25-year mandate to transform 2,000 acres of brownfield lands into sustainable mixed-use communities and dynamic public spaces, Mr. Cohen believes the areas “will have a magic of their own” and attract attention.
Yet what will certainly put Toronto in the global spotlight is the bevy of luxurious hotel residences set to open this year and next. All are five-star hotels, known the world over, that cater to a sophisticated buyer who travels the world in style.
“It will make us a more cosmopolitan city when we have these large brands like Ritz-Carlton, Shangri-La, Four Seasons and Trump,” Mr. Dhanji says. “It’s going to have a great impact and make us more of an international city. … It’s going to shape the downtown core even more. The next few years are going to be great on the skyline of Toronto, once all of these projects are completed.”
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