Euclid Lofts, 257 Euclid Ave: Five Self-Managed Lofts by Trinity Bellwoods

Euclid Lofts is barely a condo building at all. It is five large suites in a modern building on a street of Victorian houses, a short walk from Trinity Bellwoods Park, and the owners run it themselves. For the right buyer, it is a house-sized home without a house’s maintenance. For the wrong one, it is a lot of responsibility shared among very few people. I’m Jatin Dua, RE/MAX Quantum Realty.

A modern building on a street of houses

Euclid Avenue north of Dundas is mostly Victorian and Edwardian houses, and this building does not try to blend in. Condos.ca describes it as a bold, contemporary design among the surrounding homes. It was built by Hippo Properties and completed in 2004.

With five suites, it is one of the smallest condominium corporations you will find in the city. That brings a quiet, almost private feel. There is no lobby full of strangers and no amenity floor, just a handful of neighbours sharing a building.

Condos.ca lists the building as one storey, which I would not rely on. With suites as large as 2,853 square feet, layouts are likely to be spread over more than one level, so ask for floor plans of the suite you are considering and confirm the levels and stairs.

Suites the size of a house

Condos.ca puts suite sizes at roughly 1,449 to 2,853 square feet. Even the smallest suite here is bigger than most two-bedroom condos downtown, and the largest is the size of a good semi-detached house.

That size is the main reason people buy here. Families who want to stay in the Trinity Bellwoods and Little Italy area but cannot find, or do not want to maintain, a house nearby can get comparable space without a roof, a furnace or a lawn of their own to manage.

Because there are only five suites, each one is likely to be different. Compare a suite on its own terms: number of bedrooms, levels, outdoor space, parking and how much it has been updated since 2004.

At more than 20 years old, the building is past the point where the original roof, sealants, windows and garage door start to need work. In a tower, those costs are spread across hundreds of owners. Here, each owner pays roughly a fifth of every bill, so a single roof replacement is a real number on your own budget.

Self-management: the part to understand first

Condos.ca lists the building as self-managed. That means there is no property management company; the owners, through the board, handle the budget, insurance, contractors, snow clearing and paperwork themselves. In a five-suite building, every owner is likely to end up on the board or close to it.

Self-managed small corporations can work very well when the owners are organised and get along. They can also drift, with records kept informally and reserve fund planning left late. The legal requirements under Ontario’s Condominium Act still apply, including a reserve fund study and a status certificate, so ask for both.

When you buy, you are also buying into four other owners. Ask how often the board meets, who does the books, whether there is an annual audit, and whether the corporation has had any major repairs or disagreements over costs. If the answers are vague, that tells you something.

Some lenders also look more closely at very small, self-managed corporations. Talk to your mortgage broker early so you are not surprised during the financing condition.

Fees, parking and the neighbourhood

Condos.ca lists the fee as covering common elements, building insurance, water and parking, and lists a parking garage, a security system and pets among the building features. Heat and hydro are not listed, so expect to pay for your own utilities, which in a suite this size can be significant.

Parking in the fee is valuable here. Street parking in this part of the west end is tight and permit-based, and a parking space with a suite this size is close to essential for a family.

Outside the door, you are a short walk to Trinity Bellwoods Park, the former site of Trinity College, and to the restaurants and shops of Dundas West, Little Italy on College and Queen West. It is a residential street, so evenings are quiet compared with buildings on the main roads.

What Euclid Lofts costs

Condos.ca shows a building average of about $513 per square foot. Treat that figure with caution. With only five suites, it is built from very few sales, possibly over many years, and I would expect a well-kept suite to sell well above it today.

Nothing was for sale when I wrote this, which is the norm. A suite here may come to market only once every few years, so the best comparison is not the building’s own history but large lofts and freehold houses of similar size in Trinity Bellwoods and Little Italy.

Per-square-foot figures also flatter very large suites. A buyer pays less per foot for a 2,800-square-foot home than for a 1,400-square-foot one in the same building, so compare suites of similar size, not the building average.

When you weigh it against a house, include the full monthly picture: the condo fee, your own utilities and the cost of a share in a five-owner reserve fund, against a house’s property tax, insurance and maintenance.

If you want to be told when a suite here is listed, or want a building sold report for comparable lofts nearby, I can set that up.

Building specifications

Amenities at Euclid Lofts

There are no shared amenities beyond parking and a security system, and in a five-suite building that is the right call. You are paying for the building, not for a gym nobody would use.

Jatin’s honest take on Euclid Lofts

Euclid Lofts — frequently asked questions

Looking at Queen West, Trinity-Bellwoods, Kensington and Little Italy more broadly? Start with my Toronto community guide — the neighbourhoods, what each pocket is like, and how they compare.