
Home of the Week, 155 St Clair Ave W 1701, TorontoMisho Shaltout/The Print Market
Here are The Globe and Mail’s top housing and real estate stories this week and one home worth a look.
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The art of relisting a home
Many homeowners are starting 2025 with a new resolve: to sell the condo unit, house or country estate that lingered on the market through the slow patches of 2024, writes Carolyn Ireland. Buyers in many segments of the market dawdled through the summer and fall as they held out for additional interest rate cuts from the Bank of Canada or worried about the economy. Returning sellers are taking steps to appeal to a potential new pool of buyers before competing listings arrive later in the spring. The Canadian Real Estate Association is forecasting the national average home price to rise by 4.7 per cent on an annual basis to $722,221 in 2025. A combination of pent-up demand, lower borrowing costs and fresh listings will likely lead to stronger sales in 2025 across Canada, CREA predicts.
Toronto preconstruction condo prices fall as glut of unsold units grows
Sales for preconstruction condos in Toronto hit a nearly three-decade low in 2024, as a slew of unsold units hit a record high. Investors are beginning to sour on buying new units — condo values are not appreciating and rental rates are not high enough to cover investors’ mortgage payments, condo fees and property taxes, writes Rachelle Younglai. There were only 4,590 preconstruction condo sales in the Toronto and Hamilton area last year, a new report finds. That was down 64 per cent from 2023 and represented the third straight year of declining sales. The last time volumes were this low was in 1996. Experts say this year will be another tough period for the market, and predicts it will lead in a decrease in new homes.
Rising inflation, health care costs and stagnant retirement incomes have pushed many older Canadians to deplete their savings and carry mortgages into retirement.DARRYL DYCK/The Canadian Press
A growing number of retirees have mortgages. And they’re turning to reverse mortgages
Reverse mortgages are still a niche product, but the business has grown rapidly in the past five years, as seniors with mortgages who want to remain in their homes struggle amid higher interest rates and soaring living costs, writes retirement and financial planning reporter Meera Raman. Reverse mortgages let homeowners, usually 55 and older, borrow roughly 55 per cent of their home equity, depending on the lender. The funds are tax-free and don’t affect eligibility for Old Age Security or Guaranteed Income Supplement benefits. They have long been seen in a negative light, in part because of the large amount of interest that accrues quietly in the background. While they are appealing to people who want to stay in their own homes, experts caution that as the debt mounts, home equity shrinks — reducing what retirees can leave to their heirs or use for future expenses, such as long-term care.
Opinion: Critics say Vancouver’s Broadway plan to install high-rises puts existing homeowners and renters in a bind
Last fall, a company called Havn Development obtained a rezoning permit in Vancouver’s west end on behalf of three property owners with a proposal to build a 170-unit rental tower. The city has plans to create a second downtown for the low- to mid-density neighbourhoods within the 500-block Broadway Plan — that includes the approval of high-rise towers in the middle of quiet side streets. Unlike lower forms of density, the prospect of high-rise towers sends a ripple of fear that is uprooting neighbourhoods, writes Kerry Gold. Thousands of renters in the Broadway Plan are being displaced by proposed redevelopment of their older buildings, while homeowners are planning to leave for their own reasons. Critics say the project is an example of how the new blockbusting works. It starts when a homeowner decides to cash out to an investor or developer, often at a premium, and then neighbours must decide whether to endure years of construction and live adjacent to a tower – or also sell and move on.
Home of the Week: Broadway producer closes the curtain on Forest Hill condo
Home of the Week, 155 St Clair Ave W 1701, TorontoMisho Shaltout/The Print Market
155 St Clair Ave. W., Unit 1701 – Full gallery here
Formerly the home of a Canadian Broadway producer, the apartment on the corner of St. Clair and Avenue in Toronto takes up the eastern half of the 17th-storey floorplate, with rooms facing north and south at the far ends of the long unit. The space is not wide-open like some condos: it’s built more like Forest Hill’s Edwardian and Victorian ramblers that have multiple rooms, hallways and pocket doors to close off open areas. Officially a two-bedroom unit, this more than 2,800 square foot apartment has the space to be reconfigured for larger families. The primary bedroom suite has two large walk-in closets, a four-piece bathroom and south-facing windows. The kitchen features a U-shaped layout of millwork, counter and cabinet space with all the usual high-end gadgets centred by a large block of central island. Between the window and the island is a seating area for coffee and sunrises.
What do you think is the asking price for the property?
a. $6,749,000
b. $7,250,000
c. $8,999,999
d. $10,075,000
a. The asking price is $6,749,000.