The Fudger Mansion, 40 Maple Ave: Six Condos in an 1897 Rosedale House

The Fudger Mansion is not a building you compare with other condos. It is an 1897 Rosedale house of about 10,000 square feet, restored and divided into six residences, each built around one of the original principal rooms. If you want a heritage house without owning the whole roof, there are very few alternatives in Toronto, and the trade-offs are specific. I’m Jatin Dua, RE/MAX Quantum Realty.

A Simpsons fortune, an 1897 house

The house was built in 1897 for Harris Henry Fudger, who ran the Robert Simpson Company department store and was a significant donor to Toronto hospitals and the art gallery. The Globe and Mail credits the design to Burke and Horwood, the firm behind the Simpsons store at Queen and Yonge. The Architectural Conservancy of Ontario lists both Gordon & Helliwell and Burke & Horwood, so the attribution is shared depending on the source.

It is a large Queen Anne Revival house, roughly 10,000 square feet, with sweeping rooflines, curved parapets, projecting wings and oriel windows.

The city designated the house in 2001, and it sits within the South Rosedale Heritage Conservation District. That designation is the reason it survives intact, and it is also the main thing an owner needs to understand.

Six residences, each built around an original room

The conversion turned the house into four residences in the mansion itself, with two more in a rear addition approved in 2002. The Globe and Mail credited developer Gaetano D’Addario with restoring the interior, and the corporation record lists Navy & Jim Investments as the developer.

What makes the residences unusual is that each one was planned around a principal room of the original house. One takes the skylit former picture gallery, another the grand staircase, another the original dining room. Some wood panelling was reinstalled, and the fireplaces were converted to gas.

The modern layer is substantial. The Globe reported private elevators, underground parking for 12 cars, central air and central vacuum, and kitchens with marble-topped islands. In other words, these are closer to townhouses inside a mansion than to apartments, which is why the building profile’s single-floor description undersells them.

What heritage designation means for an owner

In a heritage conservation district, changes to the exterior generally need a heritage permit from the city, and work must respect the original materials and details. For a condominium, that means the corporation, not you, will be making those decisions, and repairs to slate, masonry, wood windows and decorative trim can cost more than modern equivalents.

With only six owners sharing those costs, each owner’s share of a roof or masonry project is large. That is not a reason to avoid the building, but it is the single biggest difference between owning here and owning in a tower. The reserve fund study and the board’s plans for the envelope tell you most of what you need to know.

Ask for the heritage designation by-law and any heritage easement or agreement registered on the property. Those documents list the features the city considers important, and they are the starting point for any future exterior repair.

Six owners, one corporation

Living in a six-suite condominium is closer to a partnership than to tower living. Every decision, from the landscaping contract to a roof repair, is made by a very small board, often made up of most of the owners. Good neighbours make it easy, and a disagreement is felt by everyone.

The corporation still has the same legal obligations as a large one: a reserve fund study, a status certificate, insurance and an annual budget. In a small corporation, each of those costs is shared six ways instead of hundreds, so the budget per suite can be higher than you expect, even without an amenity floor or concierge.

Before you buy, ask to see several years of budgets and minutes, ask how often the owners meet and whether the manager attends, and find out how the corporation decides on spending above the routine. Those answers tell you more about life here than any floor plan.

Living on Maple Avenue

Maple Avenue is a short, tree-lined street in South Rosedale, surrounded by large detached houses, with a 1940s apartment building next door on what were once the mansion’s grounds. It is quiet, residential and old Toronto in every sense.

Daily life here is about walking the ravine streets and driving out for most errands, with the shops on Yonge Street to the west. It suits someone who values the setting over convenience.

No easy comparables, by design

With six residences, sales are rare, and nothing was listed for sale at the time of writing. There is no meaningful building average per square foot to quote, and I would be careful with anyone who gives you one. Each residence is different in size, layout and the original room it contains, so the comparable set is effectively Rosedale houses and the handful of other heritage conversions in the area.

When one does come up, I price it against detached South Rosedale houses of similar finished area, then adjust for the shared ownership, the parking and elevator, and the heritage obligations. My building sold report will show closed sales when there are enough to report.

Building specifications

Amenities at The Fudger Mansion

There is no amenity floor here, and that is the point. What you get is inside each residence: a private elevator, underground parking and modern mechanical systems inside a protected 1897 house.

Jatin’s honest take on The Fudger Mansion

The Fudger Mansion — 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.