Prices of Toronto Condos Going Through the Roof- Part II

Thank you Donald Trump for introducing a product that will set the Standard in Luxury Condos in Toronto! I entered the condo industry in 1981 when I was retained to sell the fledgling Queen’s Quay Residences on Toronto’s Harbourfront.

At that time, my presentation always came down to “The Reichmann’s are setting the Standard in Luxury Condominiums here in Toronto” . . . . . and set the Standard they did. There has been a lot of condos built since the launch of this stately residential community that still today represents one of the best residential addresses in the city but decidedly few have managed to “set a Standard“ at all.

With it’s fully matured landscaped gardens with trees and a thirty five foot waterfall (it shuts off at night to not disturb the residents) and a beautiful expansion bridge terracing the garden, the Queen’s Quay Residences remain one of the nation’s most prestigious condo industry icons (as do the Reichmanns themselves).

The Donald knows quality, affluent buyers and luxury construction as these are the pillars on which his latest condo hotel and residential development “Trump International Hotel & Tower Toronto” is being built.

The site is located right at Bay Street at Adelaide in the very heart of the Financial District with all of the trendy night spots, fine dining, stock exchange, entertainment district, theatre district, and Yorkville all within easy walking distance. It also will round out the completion of the PATH, Toronto’s unique underground shopping concourse that literally links the entire downtown core from Dundas Street to the Harbour (with just one disruption right now which is this site).

Trump International Hotel & Tower Toronto is actually two independent condominium corporations, one housing the city’s only Five Star Hotel with over 200 employees to meet the strict qualifications of Five Stardum I’m told, and the other on the upper floors consisting of private residences.

Most of you know that I don’t usually use flowery words (adjectives) like spacious, luxurious, and the disappointing plethora of descriptive words conventionally used by condo marketers in conventional advertising. Simplycondos.com does not allow “advertising” and my job is not to sell them anymore, but rather to give my clients a factual awareness and a professional perspective to hopefully assist them to navigate their way through the selling propaganda of developers and other sellers of real estate and make their own informed decisions.

In this instance, I have got to say that I was impressed with everything that my research brought forward. As an investment I have always liked hotel condos but the city has had it’s problems developing a successful model to cost justify the premium on square footage demanded for them.

1 King West has been marketed for over 5 years now, having changed ownership bringing in a local Theatre Impresario when the initial development, 5 King West got into trouble after having been marketed for over 2 years as “80% sold out”.

Pantages Tower has recently Registered and the boutique hotel there is now operational but the actual condo units in Pantages do not participate in a rental pool or hotel program so it is difficult to compare it with investment opportunities that do allow purchasers to participate in an income stream (hopefully). Pantages just Registered and resale units are available as low as $300/sq.ft.

The SoHo International opened last year in Toronto to a great fanfare and as a hotel they have done a magnificent job. To participate in a rental program buyers have told me that they are so far down the priority scale that they simply do not see any return and many have turned to annual rentals on their own. Resale units are available in the $300 - $350 per square foot range.

Sapphire Tower is an upstart project in the city being market by the same developer that marketed 5 King West, (sans Impresario) using the same late night infomercial sales approach, boasting “over six years experience in hotel condos” (it takes just 2 years to build a building). Like 5 King West this project has already changed names, initially marketed as Downtown Plaza Hotel (I actually had a purchaser try to buy a suite - this is where I got the promotion package stating 6 years experience in hotel condos) which was a remake of another failed marketing program: “The Toronto First Tower” (all co-ventures of the same developer behind Sapphire Tower).

With purchasers having purchased six years ago in 1 King Street (5 King at the time) not yet even capped off, many initial purchasers have expressed serious frustration at being locked into Agreements of Purchase and Sale years ago with deposits advanced, for a building that they expected to see income from in 24 months later only to have to wait over 70 months and still no building or return on investment. This materially affects your “cost of money”, a line item in your overall investment and resultingly affects your overall investment certainly “ROI” (Return On Investment).

So, condo hotels have had a huge shadow that looks surprisingly like a question mark dangling over their head in this city, as have true Luxury Residential Condo Developments. There literally is a huge market out there for these upscale and pricey choices! As with all things in life there also is a huge range of quality. There also is a huge range of niches that developers target and unfortunately in Toronto the top end has been neglected for years.

Now, in a time that the press is writing about a “Bubble about to Burst” I am amazed to see top end developments popping up like crazy in the City. Developments like Trump International Hotel & Tower Toronto, The Hazelton in Yorkville (another luxury hotel condo), The St. Thomas just below Bloor Street, The Regency in Yorkville, The Russell Hill all introducing true luxury condos in the Eight Hundred ($800) Dollars Per Square Foot price range and quickly all running up well over a Thousand ($1000) Dollars Per Square Foot!

Even 1 King West is demanding over $700 per square foot (with the majority of suites already sold out at much less per square foot buying in at this point is not really advisable). The Clairmont just launched is the exclusive Yonge/St. Clair area at $700 per square foot for its penthouses that offer only a 9 foot ceiling and everything below boasting only eight foot ceiling heights at over $400 per square foot. The Park Avenue just completed and boasts an upscale ambiance with it’s ten foot ceiling heights, and granite, marble, limestone and exotic iroco wood floors. Park Avenue has a couple residences ready to come on the market as a resale running in the $600 per square foot range (the “dog suite” in the building just fetched $400 per square foot and it looks solely onto another building).

I found Trump International Hotel & Tower Toronto actually very competitively priced! If you are considering an investment like a condo hotel, I would strongly recommend narrowing your search down to the offering by Mr. Trump as his building really does offer a Five Star Investment.

With eleven foot to thirteen foot ceiling heights, and absolutely every first class detail and coming in at around $600 per square foot the residences truly “set the Standard of the day in Toronto luxury condos”. As with all developments there are some great suites, some good suites, some modest suites and some dog suites.

I have studied the site for years and studied all competition (if there is such a thing at all - Toronto has no other 5 Star Hotels) and depending on your particular situation and circumstances, Trump International Hotel & Tower Toronto may be the right investment for you. At eighty four cents a square foot (1 King is talking $1.00 per square foot) and residences starting at just over 2,200 square feet the math alone shows your that you are buying at a minimum of $1.5 Million and then paying $1,850 per month in maintenance fees. If your property taxes come in at 1.25% of the purchase price (usual forecast in the industry since I got here - a quarter century) your annual tax should come in at around $18,750.00 or $1,562/month so, providing you do not have a mortgage to pay (many purchasers at this level do not need mortgage money) you still pay for the starter unit $1.5 Million plus $3,400+/month. Not for everyone but certainly not a shock to those in this fortunate financial bracket.

For those discerning purchasers who can afford these magnificent condos and in search of only the BEST that Toronto has to offer, I would take you first to Trump International Hotel & Tower Toronto. Please do not Register on their web site or visit the sales site without first talking with me. If you go there without me they will NOT pay my Buyer Agency Fees and you certainly don’t want to when they are already FREE to you. My services are ONLY FREE TO YOU IF YOU DO NOT REGISTER WITH THEM FIRST! So Register with me today and we’ll get the program under way.

They say that “the lawyer who represents himself when charged with a crime has a fool for a client“! Don’t fall into this trap when it comes to protecting your interests in the purchase of a condo or loft or townhouse. A logical systematic approach is what will serve you best. I guarantee that my FREE services to you will pay you dividends from the moment you start looking until your move in and they hand you the deed and, believe me, there are pitfalls all along the way.

Register today and put yourself on track to a successful condo purchase.

I’m Charles Laurie Hanes, and I take very seriously my fiduciary obligations to get you the best condo/loft/townhouse at the best price and on the best terms and conditions. I look forward to working with you.