McMurrich Residences, 77 McMurrich St: Red-Brick Calm by Ramsden Park

McMurrich Residences is what I suggest to buyers who want to be near Yorkville but not in it. It is a seven-storey red-brick building on a quiet side street off Davenport, with a concierge, a fee that covers heat, cooling and parking, and suites that run from one-bedrooms to multi-level penthouses. It is a 2003 building, so the questions are about age, not design. I’m Jatin Dua, RE/MAX Quantum Realty.

A low-rise building on a residential side street

McMurrich Street is a short, quiet street running north from Davenport Road, and that is the first thing this building has going for it. You are a block from Yonge Street and a few minutes from Yorkville’s shops and restaurants, but your front door faces a residential street rather than a commercial strip.

The building itself is a seven-storey mid-rise in red brick with white stone details, designed to sit comfortably among the older houses around it. With 100 suites over seven floors, it feels much more like a residence than a tower, and the lobby and elevators are rarely busy.

Down the street at 15 McMurrich is a very different building: a 1981 high-rise by Cadillac Fairview. Nearby on Davenport, the 31-storey Yorkville Condominiums by Lifetime shows where the area has gone since. McMurrich Residences sits between those two eras, and for many buyers that is exactly the appeal.

That scale has practical benefits. Move-ins are easier to book, the elevators are shared by fewer people, and the concierge tends to know residents by name. The trade-off is that a seven-storey building has fewer high-floor views than a tower, so most suites here are about the interior and the street rather than the skyline.

Townhouse suites, penthouses and everything between

Recorded suite sizes run from about 580 to 2,238 square feet. The mix includes standard one- and two-bedroom suites, some multi-floor townhouse-style units, and multi-level penthouses on the upper floors with substantial terrace space.

Finishes from the original build included hardwood floors, granite counters and crown moulding, which places it firmly in the traditional style of the early 2000s rather than today’s minimal look. Many suites have since been renovated, so expect a wide range of condition from one listing to the next.

The townhouse-style suites and penthouses are the rarest and most sought after. If you want ground-level access or a home that feels like a house, ask specifically for those; they do not come up often, and buyers who want them tend to wait.

Fees that cover the big costs

The fee is recorded as covering common elements, heat, air conditioning, building insurance, parking and water. In practice, hydro is your main bill. That is a more inclusive package than most newer buildings near Yorkville, where heating, cooling and parking are often separate.

The two suites listed for sale when I checked carried fees of roughly $957 to $1,423 a month. On the smaller of the two, that works out to a little over $1.20 a square foot, which is high on its face but includes items many buyers would otherwise pay for separately. Compare the total monthly cost, not just the fee.

The amenity package is service-oriented: a 24-hour concierge, guest suites, a party room, a meeting room, a fitness room and visitor parking. There is no pool on record, which keeps one big future expense off the books.

Ramsden Park at the door

The best thing about daily life here is Ramsden Park, a short walk away. Few buildings this close to Yorkville have a park of that size so near, and for dog owners and anyone who runs or walks every morning, it changes how the neighbourhood feels.

The streets around the building are a mix of older houses, small apartment buildings and newer condominiums, and the area north of Davenport has been changing steadily. Before you buy, check the city’s development applications for the blocks around you, because new projects affect construction noise and traffic on these side streets even when they do not block your view.

You are also within walking distance of Rosedale station, the Royal Ontario Museum and the Yonge and Bloor shops. The data panel on this page covers transit, schools and nearby food and parks in more detail.

Below Yorkville prices, with a Yorkville address

The building’s average sits at about $967 per square foot. That is well below what the newer Yorkville towers and boutique buildings on Hazelton and Cumberland typically ask, which reflects both the building’s age and its quieter location just north of Davenport.

The two active listings when I checked were asking between about $769,000 and $1.3 million, from a one-bedroom-plus-den to a two-bedroom-plus-den. That range gives you a sense of where most of the building trades, with the penthouses and townhouse units sitting above it. Larger suites and those with terraces are the ones where condition and outdoor space move the price most, so judge them on their own merits rather than on the building average.

Remember that parking is included in the fee here. Against a newer building where parking is a separate purchase and heating is on your own meter, the price-per-foot gap is real, but the monthly-cost gap is smaller than it looks. For recorded sales at this address, ask me for the building sold report.

Building specifications

Amenities at McMurrich Residences

The package is about service and convenience rather than recreation: a staffed lobby, guest suites for visitors and rooms for entertaining. For downsizers and professionals, that tends to be the combination that matters day to day.

Jatin’s honest take on McMurrich Residences

McMurrich Residences — 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.