69 Upper Canada Townhouses: A 1977 Condo Among St. Andrew Houses

69 Upper Canada Townhouses is one of the few ways into St. Andrew-Windfields, one of North York’s detached-house neighbourhoods, without buying a detached house. It is a 64-home condominium from 1977 spread across three streets off Yonge, and it sits across the road from a separate townhouse complex that buyers often confuse with it. I’m Jatin Dua, RE/MAX Quantum Realty.

Three streets, one corporation, and a neighbour across the road

This complex is spread over three addresses: 69 to 75 Upper Canada Drive, 34 to 38 Yorkminster Road and 7 Aldershot Crescent. Condos.ca groups them as one corporation, YCC-320, with 64 homes.

Across Upper Canada Drive, condos.ca lists a different complex, 70 Upper Canada Drive Townhouses, at 70 to 78 Upper Canada Drive and 2 to 44 Oaken Gate Way. Odd numbers on one side, even on the other, two separate corporations. When you see an Upper Canada Drive townhouse listed, check the corporation number before you compare it with anything.

The two complexes have different boards, budgets, reserve funds and rules. A sale on the other side of the street can be a useful reference point, but it is not a direct comparable until you have adjusted for fees, size and the condition of each corporation.

Townhouses in a detached-house neighbourhood

Yorkminster Road and Aldershot Crescent are mostly detached houses, many of them large, and that is the context for this complex. You get the same streets, the same mature trees and the same proximity to Yonge, in a townhouse with exterior maintenance handled by the corporation.

Condos.ca records the complex as low-rise townhouses and lists a parking garage, visitor parking and permission for barbecues. It does not publish sizes or layouts. The one listing at the time of writing was a three-bedroom-plus-den home, which suggests family-sized plans, but ask for the floor plan and measured size of any home you see.

Find out what “parking garage” means here. If each home has its own attached garage, the repairs are modest. If the complex shares an underground garage, its roof slab and waterproofing membrane are among the largest costs a corporation ever faces, and you want to know when that work was last done.

Ask too about outdoor space. Townhouse complexes of this era often give each home a small rear yard or patio as an exclusive-use common element: you use it, but the corporation owns it and sets the rules. That affects what you can build, plant or enclose, and who pays when a fence or patio needs replacing. The declaration and rules will spell it out, and it is worth reading before you plan a deck or a garden.

What a 1977 complex needs from you

YCC-320 was registered in April 1977, under condominium legislation that was later replaced by the Condominium Act, 1998. Its declaration and by-laws may have been amended since. Ask for the current versions and read how they divide responsibility for windows, doors, roofs, decks and mechanical systems between the corporation and each owner.

Nearly 50 years in, roofs, windows, exterior walls, walkways and drainage have either been replaced or are coming due. The reserve fund study will tell you which, and the board minutes will show how the corporation is pacing the work. Check the status certificate for any special assessment, levied or planned.

Inside the home, have an inspector look at wiring, plumbing and the basement. Some Ontario homes built in the 1960s and 1970s used aluminum branch wiring, which insurers ask about, and finished basements can hide older pipes or past moisture. Ask the seller what has been updated and when, and ask for permits or receipts for any work on the electrical panel, furnace or air conditioning.

Living a few minutes off Yonge

The complex sits east of Yonge Street, between York Mills and Sheppard. That puts the shops and restaurants of the Yonge corridor and the subway within reach, while the homes themselves are on quiet residential streets. Exact walking times, transit and school details are in the panel on this page.

Highway 401 is close, which is convenient for driving but also means some background noise depending on where a home sits. Ask which way a home faces and how close it is to Yonge or the highway before you book a viewing, and visit at rush hour if you are sensitive to traffic.

The bigger point is scarcity. Condominium townhouses in St. Andrew-Windfields are uncommon, and buyers who want this neighbourhood without a detached price have few choices. That supports demand when homes do come up, and it is why I would act decisively on a good one after the documents check out.

Pricing a complex that rarely trades

There was one home for sale and one for rent here on condos.ca at the time of writing. I will not quote a single listing’s price or fee, and condos.ca did not publish a building price per square foot.

With 64 homes, sales are infrequent and averages swing. Use the recorded sales and leases on this page as the starting point, then compare with the townhouse complex across the street and with other condominium townhouses near Yonge between York Mills and Sheppard, adjusting for size, parking and what each fee covers.

The relevant question here is less the price per square foot than the gap to a detached house on the same streets. If you want that comparison set out properly, ask me for the building sold report.

Building specifications

Amenities at 69 Upper Canada Townhouses

There are no shared facilities beyond parking, which suits a complex like this. The fee goes to the exterior, the grounds and the garage rather than a gym or party room, and the Yonge corridor nearby covers the rest.

Jatin’s honest take on 69 Upper Canada Townhouses

69 Upper Canada Townhouses — frequently asked questions

Looking at Willowdale, Yonge & Sheppard, Bayview Village and North York Centre more broadly? Start with my Toronto community guide — the neighbourhoods, what each pocket is like, and how they compare.