Northtown Casitas II, 28 Sommerset Way: Tridel Stacked Towns Near Finch

Northtown Casitas II at 28 Sommerset Way is what I show buyers who are tired of elevators but are not ready for a freehold house near Yonge and Finch. It is a low-rise Tridel complex of 179 stacked townhouse suites, finished in 1997, sitting among the towers of the Northtown cluster. The trade-off is simple: you get house-like space and a front door for a lot less per square foot than the towers around you, and you give up the amenity floor. I’m Jatin Dua, RE/MAX Quantum Realty.

Stacked townhouses in a neighbourhood of towers

The Northtown area east of Yonge, between Finch and Sheppard, is mostly high-rise: the Triomphe towers on Northtown Way, Grandview at Northtown and others. Northtown Casitas II is the exception. It is a low-rise complex of stacked townhouse suites, built by Tridel and registered in early 1997, with underground parking below.

Its sister complex, Northtown Casitas I at 825 Grandview Way, and Sommerset at Northtown at 18 Sommerset Way are close by. Each has its own corporation, so do not assume their fees, rules or reserve funds match this one.

The appeal is the format. Recent listings describe two-storey suites with their own entrances, balconies and, in the larger plans, garage access from the kitchen. That is closer to a townhouse than a condo apartment, but the exterior, roof and grounds are still handled by the corporation.

What the suites are actually like

Condos.ca lists sizes from about 367 to 2,068 square feet, which is an unusually wide spread for one complex. The current sale listings are both three-bedroom-plus layouts, and one recent listing described a two-storey suite of about 1,900 square feet with a living and dining room of roughly 6.5 by 4.4 metres, a skylight over the stairs and an open kitchen.

That size is the reason most buyers come here. A two-storey suite of that scale in a tower near Yonge and Finch would cost far more and would usually carry a larger fee, so families who need three bedrooms and a home office look at these first.

The smaller suites are a different product. At the bottom of the range you are looking at compact one-level plans, and in a stacked complex the lower and upper suites can differ a lot in light, stairs and noise from neighbours above. Walk through more than one before you decide which level suits you.

Listings describe forced-air heating and central air. In a building of this age, ask how old the furnace or fan coil and the air conditioning are in the suite you are buying, because those are often the owner’s cost, not the corporation’s.

Parking, security and the low-rise trade-off

Parking is underground and is included in the fee, according to condos.ca. Parking allotments vary by suite here, and at least one larger suite has been marketed with more than one space. Confirm on the status certificate exactly which spaces are deeded or assigned to the suite you are buying, and whether there is a locker.

Condos.ca also lists a security guard, a security system, visitor parking and Beanfield fibre, and notes that barbecues are permitted. For a low-rise complex, having a guard and a secured garage is worth noting.

What you do not get is a pool, a gym or a party room. For many buyers that is the point: with no amenity floor to run, there is less to maintain. But you also lose the things that make a tower feel complete, so if a gym downstairs matters, look at the Triomphe towers a few minutes away instead.

Daily life between Finch and Sheppard

Sommerset Way is a quiet inner street, but you are a short walk from the Yonge strip, with its restaurants, groceries and shops, and from the civic buildings around Mel Lastman Square. The data panel on this page has the transit, school and walkability details.

The area keeps changing. New towers continue to rise along Yonge between Sheppard and Finch, which brings more shops and services and, for a while, more construction. A low-rise complex tucked behind the main street is somewhat sheltered from that, which is part of its appeal.

Because this is a mature site with established trees and gardens, ask the manager about any landscaping, paving or garage work planned over the next few years. In townhouse complexes those projects affect your daily routine more than they would in a tower.

What Northtown Casitas II costs

Condos.ca puts the building average at about $586 per square foot. That is well below the towers along this part of Yonge, which is what you expect for a 1997 low-rise, and it is the main reason the larger suites here are such good value for space.

Supply is thin. At the time I checked there were only two suites for sale and one for rent across 179 suites, which tells you owners tend to stay. When a large suite does come up, I would compare it with freehold townhouses in the area, not with tower suites, because that is the real alternative for the buyer it attracts.

When I checked, two three-bedroom-plus suites were listed for sale, asking from $699,000 to $1,028,000, with fees of about $800 a month each. The spread reflects the very different sizes within the complex, so compare suites by square footage and level, not by bedroom count.

Fee inclusions need checking. Condos.ca lists common elements, building insurance, parking and water, while one recent listing described hydro, heat and cable as included as well. That difference matters a lot in a two-storey suite, so get the status certificate and recent utility bills before you compare this fee with anything else. For closed results, use the sold data on this page or ask me for a building sold report.

Building specifications

Amenities at Northtown Casitas II

There is no amenity floor here: no pool, gym or party room. What you get is a secured underground garage, a guard, visitor parking and permission to barbecue, which keeps the shared costs focused on the buildings and grounds rather than on facilities.

Jatin’s honest take on Northtown Casitas II

Northtown Casitas II — frequently asked questions

Looking at Yonge & Eglinton, Davisville and North Toronto more broadly? Start with my Toronto community guide — the neighbourhoods, what each pocket is like, and how they compare.