'Best Value' Report: Toronto’s Top 10 Condos That Give You the Most for Your Dollar

Strata.ca data pinpoints properties with most rewarding combination of cost and quality

Written By Robert Van Rhijn — As the founder of Strata.ca, Robert is one of Ontario’s leading experts on the GTA condo market. He is also the Broker of Record at Strata.

With the average price of a Toronto condo for sale sitting at $760,000, it’s understandable why any homebuyer would want to make the most out of every dollar spent. Buying into a condominium means assessing not just the individual unit, but also looking at the inherent value of the building as a whole. After all, its reputation can also impact the resale price when it’s time to recoup your return on investment.

One of the most effective ways to gauge the quality of a building is to see how it ranks in terms of ‘value’. In other words, which condominiums offer homebuyers the most rewarding combination of cost and quality?

Strata.ca houses over a decade of aggregated data on every condo in the GTA. And that data allows our team to isolate which properties offer the best value. The highest-ranking condos share two distinct attributes in relation to the neighbourhood average:

Most affordable cost per square foot (PSF)
Most affordable maintenance fees

Maintenance fees a big driver of value

Currently, the average cost PSF for a Toronto condo is $887. But simply looking at buildings with the cheapest units for sale is not enough to assess if that property offers the best value.

Since maintenance fees are a big part of monthly carrying costs, any value calculation must be weighed against this expense. And that weight isn’t always tied to a dollar amount.

That’s why Strata.ca realtor Daniel Forte does not necessarily advise buyers to only consider buildings with the lowest fees. He warns there’s more to it, especially when assessing properties from a value perspective. After all, if the condo is not collecting enough money or using a low-fee model, it may not have the resources for a major repair.

“In this case, the condo board may ask each owner for a lump sum payment known as a ‘special assessment’ to complete the work,” says Forte, who notes that this will directly impact a building’s value calculation.

“Multiple special assessments will raise alarm to a prospective buyer down the line, as will low fees that are consistently increased above the normal market rate.”

“The bottom line with maintenance fees is that you usually get what you pay for,” says another Strata.ca agent, Taryn Mooradian.

“But it really depends on the buyers’ needs and priorities...since having designer landscaping, for example, may not matter to some as it would to others.”

Mooradian points out though that properties with the best value ranking tend to be condo townhomes because “there’s no elevator, swimming pool or concierge service to maintain.”

“Regardless, a pleasant community experience is still worth investing in since this also adds ‘value’ by improving quality of life,” she says.

Many agents tend to agree.

“It’s equally important to find a condo that suits your lifestyle,” says Forte.

“All those intangibles, like location, balcony exposure and the pride of owning in a desirable building...these are also things that many of us tend to value.”

Here are the top 10 condos that rank the highest, based on the cost to buy-in and maintenance fees. The figures in parentheses reflect the neighbourhood average.

1. 1-82 Hargrave Lane & 2102-2166 Bayview Ave | Lawrence Park, Midtown