Absolute Lofts, 77 Lombard St: 83 Soft Lofts With Hydro in the Fee

Absolute Lofts is a small building with an unusually complete fee. Intracorp finished it in 2000, when this stretch of Lombard Street was still rough around the edges, and it was built as a bet on the neighbourhood that has largely paid off. With only 83 suites, a mix of soft lofts and two-storey townhouses, and hydro included in the monthly fee, it is one of the more distinctive options between the market and the financial district. I’m Jatin Dua, RE/MAX Quantum Realty.

Soft lofts and two-storey townhouses

Absolute is a soft-loft building, meaning new construction designed with loft cues rather than a converted warehouse. Expect exposed ductwork, large windows and open plans, without the century-old brick and timber of a true conversion.

The suite mix is what sets it apart. Alongside the loft suites there are two-storey townhouse-style units, some with their own exterior doors. One building profile says all the loft suites have outdoor space, with balconies on most floors and private rooftop terraces for the penthouses.

Suites start at about 639 square feet and reach about 1,641, so there are no micro-units here. That matters for resale: buyers looking at Absolute are usually owner-occupiers wanting space, not investors chasing the smallest entry price.

Living in a two-storey suite is different from living in a flat. Stairs take floor area, bedrooms on an upper level open to the space below give you light and volume but less acoustic privacy, and moving furniture up a loft stair is a real constraint. Townhouse-style units with their own street door also sit closer to sidewalk activity. Walk the suite as if you already live there before you decide.

The ceiling question: sources disagree

Ceiling heights are the first thing loft buyers ask about, and the sources do not agree. One profile reports ceilings of about 17 feet in the loft and townhouse suites; another describes 10-foot ceilings. Both may be right for different suite types, since double-height living rooms in two-storey units are common in buildings like this.

The storey count is also reported differently: condos.ca and one profile say 8 storeys, while another says 12. Rely on the condominium plan and your own tape measure rather than any marketing figure, especially if the volume of the suite is what you are paying for.

High ceilings also change running costs and comfort. Tall windows and double-height rooms can be harder to heat evenly in winter and to keep cool on west-facing summer afternoons, and the window coverings cost more. Since heat, cooling and hydro are bundled here, your bill will not show it, but the corporation’s will.

A fee that includes hydro

Very few Toronto condos include hydro in the monthly fee. Absolute does, along with common elements, heat, air conditioning, building insurance, water and parking. In practice, almost your entire housing cost apart from internet and property tax is in one monthly payment.

That makes the headline fee look high. Active listings average about $1.12 per square foot, with monthly fees from the low $700s to about $1,200. Before you compare that with a newer building at $0.80, add back that building’s hydro, heating, cooling and parking. The gap usually shrinks a great deal.

Bundled hydro has one drawback: heavy users are subsidised by light ones, and the corporation carries the risk of rising electricity rates. Ask the status certificate and budget how utilities are trending and whether the board has considered sub-metering.

Lombard Street, then and now

When Absolute was built, this block was in transition. Building profiles describe the area as rough at the time, and the developer was clearly buying into where the neighbourhood was going. Today Lombard Street is a quiet side street with a mix of older mid-rises, the 45-storey Spire at the Church Street end and small new boutique buildings.

St. James Park and the cathedral grounds are a short walk south, the St. Lawrence Market is a few minutes beyond, and the financial district is within walking distance to the west. Being a block off the main streets keeps traffic noise lower than on King or Adelaide. The automatic panel on this page covers transit, schools and walkability.

Pricing on Lombard Street

Absolute Lofts averages about $808 per square foot on condos.ca. That sits between the older Lombard Street buildings, such as Saint James Square at 95 Lombard at about $619 and The Indigo at 50 Lombard at about $622, and the much newer Spire at about $995 and the boutique Residences on Lombard at about $997.

You are paying a premium over the 1990s neighbours for the loft format and the larger, better-planned suites, and a discount to the newer towers because the building is 25 years old. Remember that the fee here covers more than almost any comparable building.

Because there are only 83 suites, sales are thin in any given year, and one unusual sale can move the building average noticeably. I price suites here using the building’s own history together with soft-loft buildings of similar age elsewhere in St. Lawrence and King East, adjusting for the fee inclusions.

At the time of writing, four suites were listed for sale, asking from about $520,000 to about $790,000. None were listed for rent. For aggregate sold figures, see my building sold report.

Building specifications

Amenities at Absolute Lofts

For an 83-suite building the amenity list is generous: a concierge, gym, party and meeting rooms, guest suites and a shared rooftop terrace with barbecues. There is no pool, which suits a small corporation, because big-ticket amenities are expensive to run when only 83 owners share the cost.

Jatin’s honest take on Absolute Lofts

Absolute Lofts — frequently asked questions

Looking at St. Lawrence, the Financial District and Downtown Yonge more broadly? Start with my Toronto community guide — the neighbourhoods, what each pocket is like, and how they compare.