38 Earl Street Townhouses: 13 Condo Towns on a Possible Development Site

38 Earl Street is a quiet 1988 complex of 13 townhouses tucked off Sherbourne, and on its own it would be a straightforward small-condo story. What makes it different is that a commercial brokerage has marketed the whole site as a high-density development opportunity. If you buy one of these homes, you need to know where that stands, because it could matter more than the kitchen. I’m Jatin Dua, RE/MAX Quantum Realty.

Thirteen homes on a site someone wants to build on

Avison Young, a commercial real estate brokerage, has published a marketing page for 38 Earl Street describing it as a high-density residential development site in downtown Toronto. The page says the site is currently 13 individually owned condo-titled townhouses, that it falls within the Sherbourne and Bloor-Yonge major transit station areas, and that there are 50-plus-storey precedents and higher proposals nearby.

I do not know whether that marketing led to an agreement, is still active, or has ended, and I am not suggesting any outcome. But you need to know about it before you buy. Selling an entire condominium property usually needs a strong majority of owners to agree under the Condominium Act, and owners who vote against a sale have specific rights. If a sale process is under way, it can affect your price, your timeline and your plans.

Ask the seller and the corporation directly whether there is any agreement, offer, listing or owners’ vote relating to the sale of the property, and have your lawyer look for it in the status certificate and the minutes. For some buyers, a possible collective sale is an opportunity. For someone who wants a home for the next 15 years, it is a risk.

The complex itself

condos.ca lists 13 units, built in 1988, with an underground parking garage and visitor parking. That is a notable feature for a small townhouse complex downtown, where most owners park on the street or in a laneway pad.

The amenity list also includes an outdoor patio and notes that barbecues are permitted, which is worth a lot to people coming from high-rise living where they are usually banned. Confirm whether outdoor space is private to each unit or shared, and what the rules say about its use.

I could not find a developer or architect on record. Floor plans, number of levels and unit sizes are not published in any source I could check, so inspect the specific home and ask for the unit’s survey or plan from the condominium description.

A professionally managed small corporation

Unlike many small townhouse condos in the old city, 38 Earl Street is not self-managed. condos.ca lists Pro-House Management Ltd. as property manager. That should mean organized records, a regular budget cycle and someone to call when something breaks.

It also means management fees are part of the budget, spread across only 13 owners. Look at the budget to see how much of your fee goes to management, insurance, the garage and the reserve fund.

At over 35 years old, an underground garage is often the largest single cost in a small complex. Waterproofing membranes, concrete repairs and drainage are expensive, and in a 13-unit corporation each owner’s share is large. Read the reserve fund study with that in mind.

Earl Street and the neighbourhood

Earl Street is a short residential street east of Sherbourne, between Bloor and Wellesley, close to the towers of St. James Town and a few minutes from the Bloor subway line. Neighbouring low-rise condos include The Manors of Earl Street and Earl Lofts.

For a townhouse buyer, the appeal is the contrast: a low-rise pocket with underground parking a few minutes from Bloor Street, surrounded by some of the densest housing in the country. That contrast is also exactly why developers look at sites like this one.

The area is changing fast. The same transit-station planning that makes this site attractive to developers means more towers are likely to go up nearby, with the construction that brings. The automatic panel on this page covers transit, schools and walkability.

Pricing when the land may matter more than the home

There were no units for sale or rent at the time of writing, and condos.ca does not publish a building average per square foot for this complex. With 13 units, sales are infrequent.

Normally I would price a unit here against other downtown condo townhouses and nearby freehold row houses. The development marketing adds a second lens. If a collective sale is a real prospect, buyers and sellers may be weighing the home’s value as a townhouse against what a share of the land might bring, and those two numbers can be far apart.

If there is no active sale process, price the home as what it is: a 1988 condo townhouse with a garage, in a managed corporation of 13 owners. The garage and the size of each owner’s share of future repairs are the two factors I would weigh most against comparable townhouses elsewhere downtown.

Do not pay a land-value premium on the assumption that a sale will happen, and do not ignore the possibility either. Get the facts from the status certificate and the board first. Fee inclusions are not published, so get those too. My building sold report shows any recorded sales.

Building specifications

Amenities at 38 Earl Street Townhouses

The amenities are practical rather than lifestyle: underground parking, visitor parking, outdoor patio space and permission to barbecue. For a downtown buyer coming from a tower, the garage and the barbecue are the two that change daily life. There is no gym, pool or concierge, so budget for those elsewhere if you need them.

Jatin’s honest take on 38 Earl Street Townhouses

38 Earl Street Townhouses — frequently asked questions

Looking at Church–Wellesley, Corktown, Moss Park and Cabbagetown more broadly? Start with my Toronto community guide — the neighbourhoods, what each pocket is like, and how they compare.