Beachview Lofts, 517 Kingston Rd: Eight Multi-Level Soft Lofts

Beachview Lofts at 517 Kingston Road is about as small as a condominium gets: eight suites in total. The upper suites are multi-level soft lofts that can feel more like a narrow townhouse than a condo, and the best of them have private roof terraces looking toward the lake. It is a characterful building, and with only eight owners it asks more of you than a tower does. I’m Jatin Dua, RE/MAX Quantum Realty.

Eight suites, two very different types

The building is split into two kinds of suite. According to the condos.ca overview, four are single-level lofts on the main floor and the other four are multi-level lofts above them. That split is the first thing to understand, because the two live very differently.

The ground-floor lofts give you one-level living, which suits anyone who does not want stairs. The upper lofts are the ones people remember. At least one upper suite has been marketed as a three-level loft, with tall open living space, a gas fireplace, open metal stairs, bedrooms on an upper floor and a private roof terrace at the top.

Those details are worth checking in person. Open metal stairs and compact upper bedrooms are part of the industrial style, and some buyers love them while others find them tiring or a poor fit for small children or older relatives. Walk every level before you decide. And when you compare prices, compare ground-floor lofts with ground-floor lofts and upper with upper, because mixing the two distorts any per-square-foot comparison.

Roof terraces and the lake

The roof terraces are the reason the upper lofts carry a premium. A private terrace with a view south toward the lake is rare in a building of this price, and it is the kind of outdoor space that is usually only available with a house.

The building also lists BBQs as permitted, which is not something you can assume in a condo. Confirm what the rules allow on your specific terrace, and ask about the roof membrane underneath it. On a terrace that is also the building’s roof, who maintains what, and who pays when it leaks, should be clear in the declaration.

The data on the building is a little inconsistent. Condos.ca lists one floor in its data while describing multi-level lofts above a main floor, and it gives both 1995 and 1996 as the build year. The corporation was registered on 31 May 1995. None of this changes what you see on a visit, but check the status certificate for the details.

The reality of an eight-owner building

With eight suites, every repair is split eight ways. A roof replacement or a garage repair costs a small building almost as much as a large one, and there are very few owners to share it. The reserve fund study is the most important document you will read here.

Stronghold Management Group is listed as the manager. In a building this small, the board is usually only a few owners, so read the minutes, ask how often they meet and find out whether any major work is planned.

The building lists a parking garage, visitor parking and a security system, and parking is included in the fee. Condos.ca lists the building as pet-friendly. Check the declaration and rules for the details, and confirm which parking space or spaces go with the suite.

Heat and hydro are not part of the fee, which usually means each suite runs its own heating and cooling. In a 30-year-old building, ask how old the furnace or heat pump, the air conditioner and the water heater are, and whether any are rented. A multi-level loft with tall ceilings and a lot of glass can cost more to heat than its square footage suggests, so ask the seller for a year of utility bills.

Kingston Road is changing

Kingston Road forms the line between the Beach and the Upper Beaches, and for years it was a quieter, older commercial strip. That is changing. The City’s official plan directs more density to avenues like this, and a 2020 CBC report quoted a resident putting the number of suites already proposed along Kingston Road at about 6,000.

Several boutique buildings have already gone up along Kingston Road, including North Beach Lofts at 601 Kingston Road, The Glen Condos at 580 Kingston Road and The Winthorpe Modern at 715 Kingston Road. For an owner here, that means more shops and services over time, and also more construction and more choice for buyers.

The lake, the boardwalk and Queen Street East are to the south. The data panel on this page covers transit, schools, parks and nearby food.

Pricing and fees

Condos.ca puts the building average at about $853 per square foot. That sits in the middle of the Beach-area boutique buildings I have reviewed: above North Beach Lofts at about $838, close to Upper Beaches Lofts on Main Street at about $852, and below The Glen Condos at about $913 and The Winthorpe Modern, another eight-suite building, at about $962.

At that average, a suite in the 1,078 to 1,266 square foot range works out to roughly $920,000 to $1.08 million. Expect upper lofts with roof terraces to sit at the top of the range and ground-floor lofts lower. With eight suites, sales are rare, so treat any average carefully.

Only one suite was listed for sale when I checked, so there is no range to quote. The fee covers common elements, building insurance, parking and water. Heat and hydro are not listed, so add your own utility costs when you compare. For aggregate sold data, ask me for a building sold report.

Building specifications

Amenities at Beachview Lofts

There is no gym or party room. The amenities that matter here are private: your parking space, BBQ use and, in the upper suites, your own roof terrace.

Jatin’s honest take on Beachview Lofts

Beachview Lofts — frequently asked questions

Looking at Leslieville, Riverdale, the Beaches, Danforth and Leaside more broadly? Start with my Toronto community guide — the neighbourhoods, what each pocket is like, and how they compare.