11 Tranby Townhouses: Nine Courtyard Homes in the East Annex

11 Tranby Townhouses is one of the smallest and most hidden condominiums in midtown: nine townhouses registered in 1985, set around a courtyard off Tranby Avenue, a few steps from Avenue Road and Davenport. It sits inside a heritage district, next to one of the best-regarded infill projects of its era, and it almost never comes up for sale. I’m Jatin Dua, RE/MAX Quantum Realty.

A courtyard behind a Victorian street

Tranby Avenue is a short street of 19th-century row houses running west from Avenue Road, just south of Davenport. The address 11 Tranby leads into an interior courtyard, and the units here are lettered from 11 to 11F around it rather than numbered along the street.

The Architectural Conservancy Ontario describes the neighbouring Tranby Terrace, a row of houses at 3 to 9 Tranby by Klein and Sears Architects completed in 1981, as an infill project that links to 102 to 106 Avenue Road and shares the interior courtyard at 11 Tranby. Its brick, peaked gables and tall bay windows echo the older row houses across the street without copying them, and the flagstone paving carries from the street into the courtyard.

The 11 Tranby condominium was registered four years later, in 1985. I could not find a published architect for it, so if design history matters to you, ask the corporation for the original drawings. Either way, the courtyard setting is the defining feature: you are a block from Avenue Road, but your front door opens onto a shared, paved garden rather than traffic.

Living inside a heritage district

The site is part of the East Annex Heritage Conservation District, approved in 1995, and the courtyard, the flagstone paving, the front gardens and the street trees are among the features the district identifies. That protects the setting you are buying into. It also means exterior changes, from windows to doors to masonry, may need heritage approval from the city as well as approval from your board.

For most owners that is a fair trade. The street will look much the same in 20 years, and nobody will put a tower on your courtyard. But if you are planning a major exterior renovation, talk to the city’s heritage staff and the board before you buy, not after.

What nine owners share

I could not find published unit sizes or floor plans, and with only nine homes they may differ from one another. Around a courtyard, position matters more than in a tower: a unit at the back may be the quietest and most private, while one closer to the street entrance sees more coming and going. Ask for the floor plan, the registered area and the exposure of the unit, and visit at different times of day.

With nine units, every decision is made by a small group, and every big repair is split nine ways. ICC Property Management is listed as the manager, which takes much of the administrative load off the owners, but the board is still drawn from a handful of households.

The complex is about 40 years old, the stage when roofs, windows, masonry repointing, the courtyard paving and any underground services need attention. Ask for the reserve fund study and see when each of those was last done and what is planned. In a heritage courtyard, paving and drainage are both a feature and a liability.

Parking is not listed on condos.ca, and the heritage description mentions street parking as part of the site’s character. Assume there may be no private space with the unit until you confirm otherwise, and check whether you are eligible for a city street permit.

Daily life off Avenue Road

This is about as central as a townhouse gets. Yorkville is a short walk east, Bloor Street and the University of Toronto are to the south, and the shops of Davenport and Dupont are close by. The panel on this page covers transit, schools and parks.

Avenue Road is loud and busy, but Tranby itself is a quiet side street, and a courtyard unit is quieter again. Expect students, walkers and tourists on the surrounding streets; this is the city, not a suburb.

Pricing: no averages, only judgment

There is no building average price per square foot, and nothing was listed for sale or rent when I checked. With nine units, a sale may happen once every few years, so there is no reliable track record inside the complex.

To value a unit here, I would look at nearby small condominiums and freehold row houses. Bedford Mansion on Bedford Road averages about $1,162 per square foot and the Creed Building on Davenport about $843, which brackets what condo space in boutique and converted buildings trades for in this pocket. Freehold row houses on Tranby and nearby streets will cost more in total, but they come with land and fewer shared obligations.

When a unit does come up, expect interest from buyers who have been watching the street for years, because there is so little like it nearby. That can push a well-presented home above any number you get from the averages. Decide your walk-away price before you see it, and support it with your own comparables rather than the seller’s.

Ask for the fee and what it includes, and look at the reserve fund contribution as a share of the budget. A low fee in a 40-year-old complex can mean a special assessment is waiting.

Building specifications

Amenities at 11 Tranby Townhouses

The only shared amenity is the courtyard, and it is a good one: a paved, heritage-protected garden space that most townhouses in the area do not have. There is no gym or concierge to fund, which keeps the budget focused on the buildings themselves.

Jatin’s honest take on 11 Tranby Townhouses

11 Tranby Townhouses — frequently asked questions

Looking at Yorkville, the Annex and Midtown more broadly? Start with my Toronto community guide — the neighbourhoods, what each pocket is like, and how they compare.