Written By: Nick Horton
Outside their comfort zone: The Massey Harris Lofts stand alone on King West
At one time, the Massey Harris building would not have seemed out of place. Today, it is a nostalgic reminder of what ‘new’ King West and Liberty Village could and should have been. While ‘new’ King West is almost out of land, the gentrification of Liberty Village is far from over; any character is slowly being eroded by the cookie-cutter condo projects and uninspired faux lofts, the expanding retail strip anchored by a major grocery store, and the centerpiece heritage building used to sell condos.
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May 8, 2010
Categories: Reviews . Tags: buying a home, buying a loft, condo, downtown toronto, homes, king west, liberty village, loft, queen west, real estate advice, realtors., selling a home, selling a loft, toronto lofts, toronto real estate, toronto realtors . Author: kingnick311 . Comments: Leave a Comment
Written By Nick Horton
Dundas is not a beautiful Street. Neither East nor West can be considered aesthetically pleasing; it is merely a throughway in the Toronto core and more of a dividing line between neighbourhoods than it is part of any single neighbourhood. It is homely and abused. It is Hans Christian Anderson’s ugly ducking.
But like the little bird trapped in the ice, Dundas Street has a secret, many in fact. One of those secrets is the Century Lofts located at 365 Dundas Street East. Originally built as the Imperial Optical Lens factory in 1940, the loft fronts on the South side spanning the block between Seaton Street and Ontario Street. In 2000, the factory was converted into a beautiful New York style loft, in what may have been one of Toronto’s most successful conversions.
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May 8, 2010
Categories: Reviews . Tags: buying a home, buying a loft, cabbagetown, condo, condo reviews, downtown toronto, Dundas East, homes, loft, One Cole, real estate advice, realtors., regent park, selling a home, selling a loft, the century lofts, toronto lofts, toronto real estate, toronto realtors . Author: kingnick311 . Comments: Leave a Comment
Written By Nick Horton
The signature piece of any true loft conversion is an original elevator.
Before the exposed brick, original plank hardwood, post-beam construction and high ceilings, friends are sure to comment on a unique elevator first. Unfortunately, the original lift servicing the Imperial Lofts makes for interesting conversation, but little else.
Instead of pressing a button and having the elevator doors slide open vertically, one has to first pull open a freight door and slide a classic elevator gate a side. While unique, this can be a difficult task and also leaves the smell of grease on your hands.
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April 20, 2010
Categories: Reviews . Tags: buying a home, buying a loft, condo, condo reviews, cool lofts, downtown toronto, homes, loft, moss park, real estate advice, realtors., regent park, selling a home, selling a loft, the imperial lofts, toronto lofts, toronto real estate, toronto realtors . Author: kingnick311 . Comments: Leave a Comment
Although much of the advice in this article boils down to having a Realtor who knows and follows the Code of Ethics and Rules and Regulations of practicing real estate in Ontario, it does give you insight into possible situations and if your Realtor is approaching them the right way.
Enjoy!
By Ellen Roseman
If you’re in the market to buy a home, you may find yourself in a bidding war. Last month, one in every six houses sold in greater Toronto was getting multiple offers. The local real estate market has come back from a slump earlier this year. Sales were up 2 per cent and average prices up 0.5 per cent year-to-date compared with the first eight months of 2008, the Toronto Real Estate Board says. In fact, the resale housing market posted record sales in June, July and August.
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September 10, 2009
Categories: Buying . . Author: kingnick311 . Comments: Leave a Comment
By Nick Horton
Also view on www.yelp.com
The Lorretto School House is a well executed loft coversion project that mixes well with it’s residential Annex neighbourhood counterpart.
With any new build or conversion project in a residential neighbourhood the architect, or in this case Toronto design firm 3rd Uncle, must be very aware of its’ street presence. As a real estate professional, defining future value is critical and one criteria I use to define value is curb intelligence. A property must not only be appealing singularly, but also in a broader sense. Simply put, is it intelligently designed to match the street scape of the surrounding neighbourhood today and in the future? By keeping much of the original school house facade, the Loretto is curb intelligent.
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September 2, 2009
Categories: Reviews . Tags: buying a home, buying a loft, condo, downtown toronto, homes, loft, loft reviews, loretto school house, mirvish village, nick horton, real estate advice, realtors., selling a home, selling a loft, the annex, toronto condos, toronto lofts, toronto real estate, toronto realtors . Author: kingnick311 . Comments: 1 Comment
By Nick Horton
Also view on www.yelp.com
Sixty Lofts doesn’t exactly hide in the shadows of King West. Quite the opposite.
The eleven story multi-coloured glass mid-rise sits on the wrong side of Bathurst amongst its considerably shorter neighbours. Bringing light to its strength as well as weakness: Location.
King West is thriving. Access to the Gardiner Expressway is never easy but available and Bay St. means a quick streetcar ride. Additionally, Peter Freed has put his dynamic stamp on much of the area and arguably has made King West (even more) ascetically and financially attractive.
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August 14, 2009
Categories: Reviews . Tags: best lofts, buying a home, buying a loft, cabbagetown, condo, condo reviews, downtown toronto, homes, king west, loft, real estate advice, realtors., regent park, selling a home, selling a loft, Sixty lofts, toronto condos, toronto lofts, toronto real estate, toronto realtors . Author: kingnick311 . Comments: Leave a Comment
By Nick Horton
Also view on www.yelp.com
The Liberty Lofts make a discerning choice for the first-time home buyer.
The St. Lawrence Market in close proximity, young urbanites with an appetite to entertain will enjoy the the authentic loft lifestyle. A true hard-loft conversion (previously a Gillette razor factory), the original four-story building and the recessed addition for the fifth floor penthouses blend nicely with Adelaide’s industrial streetscape.
Walking inside the authenticity continues. A narrow courtyard seemingly dividing the structure in two, houses the sluggish elevator and more efficient and often used stairwells. A slim atrium effect is achieved by skylights spanning it’s length, providing sunlight for some shrubbery.
Pros: Changing neighbourhood with great growth potential, authentic exposed brick and beam frame, character.
Cons: Low grade finishes, similar units throughout, parking only for PH’s, sluggish elevator.
What’s interesting: The Original 1900′s Gillette Razor Factory, nice private terrace with some main floor units.
Info: 13 feet ceilings, multilevel PH with terrace, 80 Units, currently two 1br units available (2nd & 3rd floor)
www.nickhorton.com
August 9, 2009
Categories: Reviews . Tags: buying a home, buying a loft, condo, condo reviews, cool lofts, downtown toronto, homes, loft, moss park, real estate advice, realtors., regent park, selling a home, selling a loft, the imperial lofts, the liberty lofts, toronto lofts, toronto real estate, toronto realtors . Author: kingnick311 . Comments: Leave a Comment
The Toronto stock market reached a symbolic landmark Tuesday, with its main index closing above 11,000 points for the first time since Oct. 1 when investors began to realize that Canada was being dragged into a major recession.
The S&P/TSX composite index added 230.95 points or 2.14 per cent to close at 11,018.10, ending the first day of trading in August on an upbeat note after gaining more than four per cent throughout July.
The index, which tracks a selection of Canada’s most important publicly traded companies, remains more than 4,000 points below an all-time high of 15,154 set in June 2008.
Tuesday’s rise about the 11,000 market came after good news in the manufacturing, housing and banking sectors sent New York markets sharply higher Monday while Toronto was closed for the long weekend.
August 5, 2009
Categories: News . . Author: kingnick311 . Comments: Leave a Comment
Condominium sales in the Toronto market may have hit bottom in the first quarter of the year, before rebounding in the second quarter according to figures released today.
After three consecutive quarters of negative growth, sales of condos hit 2,963 units in the second quarter, up 223 per cent from the dismal 917 sales in the first quarter of the year according to market research firm Urbanation Inc.
However, the market still has a ways to go before a full recovery. Sales are still down by 40 per cent from the second quarter of 2008. That quarter saw 4,962 sales, just before the market started to correct rapidly as the recession hit.
August 5, 2009
Categories: Buying, News, Selling . . Author: kingnick311 . Comments: Leave a Comment
Homes in the Beach neighbourhood of Toronto showed the highest price appreciation this year, according to a study released today.
Existing detached homes in the downtown family friendly neighbourhood saw a 3.79 per cent increase to $715,422, in the first six months of this year compared to last, according to ReMax Ontario Atlantic Canada.
The report looked at the top performing neighborhoods according to price appreciation.
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July 28, 2009
Categories: News . . Author: kingnick311 . Comments: Leave a Comment
