Westhaven Townhouses, Islington and Norseman: 112 Condo Towns, 2018

Westhaven is a townhouse community, not a condo building, and it should be judged that way. You get your own front door, three floors and no elevator lineups, inside a condominium corporation that handles the shared grounds. For a lot of young families in central Etobicoke, that is the sweet spot between a two-bedroom condo and a semi. I’m Jatin Dua, RE/MAX Quantum Realty.

Twenty-four blocks of three-storey towns

UrbanToronto lists Westhaven on Islington as 24 low-rise buildings of three storeys, about 12 metres tall, completed in 2018. Condos.ca counts 112 homes in the condominium corporation. The homes line Islington Avenue and Norseman Street and an internal street, Edward Horton Crescent.

The development team was Graywood Developments with Mantella Corporation and Tiffany Park Homes, and the architects were Page + Steele / IBI Group, a firm better known for towers. The homes were marketed with open-concept interiors and a contemporary loft style rather than a traditional townhouse look.

Because the homes face three different streets, the experience varies a lot within the community. A unit on Islington Avenue lives with a busy arterial road out front. A unit inside on Edward Horton Crescent is on a quiet internal street. Decide which you want before you start viewing.

A condo corporation, not a freehold

Westhaven is registered as a condominium, TSCC-2660, so every owner pays a monthly fee and the corporation looks after the shared parts of the property. Townhouse condos split responsibilities differently from towers: the declaration sets out who repairs roofs, windows, doors, decks and driveways, and that varies from one corporation to the next.

That is the single most important document to read here. Before you buy, find out exactly what you would be responsible for and what the corporation covers, and how the reserve fund plans for roofs and exterior work across 24 buildings.

Condos.ca lists air conditioning, building insurance and water as included in the fee. Heat and hydro are not listed, so budget for them yourself. Ask what the air conditioning line means in practice, because in a townhouse community it can mean anything from shared equipment maintenance to a rental or service contract.

What to look for in a three-storey town

Condos.ca does not publish a size range for Westhaven, so measure the specific unit rather than relying on a listing’s estimate. In three-storey townhomes, how the space is split across floors matters as much as the total. A plan with the kitchen and living room on one floor and all the bedrooms on the floor above lives very differently from one with a bedroom on the ground level.

Think about the stairs honestly. Three floors are great for separating a home office or a guest room from the main living area, but daily laundry, groceries and small children all go up and down them. Check where the laundry sits and how many bathrooms there are on each level.

Finally, look at the outdoor space and parking for the exact unit. In townhouse communities, terraces, balconies and garages vary from block to block, and they are a big part of what you are paying for.

Living at Islington and Norseman

The community sits on Islington Avenue at Norseman Street, between Bloor Street and The Queensway. UrbanToronto’s listing points to Islington subway station, Bloor West Village, Sherway Gardens, the Gardiner and the Humber River parklands as nearby draws, and the transit panel on this page shows the walk to the subway.

The location is practical rather than scenic. You are on a main north-south road with straightforward access to Bloor Street and The Queensway, and the price reflects that compared with the Kingsway to the east. For many buyers that is a fair exchange: the Humber parklands and Bloor West Village are still within reach, without the Kingsway premium.

The wider Islington-City Centre West neighbourhood is one of the busiest areas for new development in the west end. To the south, off The Queensway, UrbanToronto reports Remington’s IQ community, the 35-storey Thirty Six Zorra and several more tower proposals. Expect more density over the next decade, which will bring more shops and services but also more traffic on Islington.

Pricing: compare against semis, not condos

Condos.ca does not publish a building average per square foot or a suite size range for Westhaven, and there were no active listings when I checked. That makes it hard to quote a fair number without looking at recent sales case by case.

The right comparison is not a one-bedroom condo in a tower. It is a newer semi or a freehold town in central Etobicoke. Westhaven usually wins on age and lower maintenance and loses on lot size and the monthly fee, so compare the total monthly cost, including fee, utilities and taxes, rather than the price alone. Also remember that a townhouse condo fee often covers exterior items, such as roofs and grounds, that a freehold owner would pay for directly, so a fair comparison adds those costs back to the freehold side.

If you are thinking about buying here, book a call and I will pull the recent sales for the specific layout and street, because a unit on Edward Horton Crescent and one facing Islington should not be priced the same way.

Building specifications

Jatin’s honest take on Westhaven Townhouses

Westhaven Townhouses — frequently asked questions

Looking at Humber Bay Shores, Mimico, the Queensway and central Etobicoke more broadly? Start with my Toronto community guide — the neighbourhoods, what each pocket is like, and how they compare.