Viva North Tower, 3840 Bathurst St: Parking and Heat in the Fee

Viva North Tower is one half of a matched pair on Bathurst Street, and the cheaper half at that. It is an eight-storey, 105-suite building from 2006 by Remington Group, with heat, cooling and parking all in the fee and a price per square foot below most of midtown-north Toronto. The fee looks high on paper, and that is the first thing I walk buyers through. I’m Jatin Dua, RE/MAX Quantum Realty.

Two towers, two corporations

Viva was built as a two-building development. The North Tower at 3840 Bathurst has 105 suites and its twin, the South Tower at 3830 Bathurst, has 102. From the street they read as one project, with the same developer, the same 2006 completion and the same eight-storey height.

What buyers often miss is that they are listed as separate buildings with their own records. The South Tower is a different listing on the condo databases and averages a different price per square foot, so do not assume its budget, reserve fund or rules are the same as the North Tower’s. If there is a shared-facilities agreement between the two, the status certificate will say so, and it is worth reading.

The practical upside of a twin is choice. When a North Tower suite does not suit you, there is often a near-identical plan next door, and comparing the two buildings’ numbers side by side tells you a lot about how each one is run.

A mid-rise with real suite sizes

Suites run from about 530 to 1,630 square feet. When I checked, the suites for sale ranged from one-bedroom and one-bedroom-plus-den plans in the 600 to 699 square foot band to a two-bedroom-plus-den in the 900s, which tells you the building is weighted toward one- and two-bedroom layouts with room to grow.

At the top of the range, a 1,600-square-foot suite in an eight-storey building is house-sized living. Those larger plans are the ones I would show downsizers from the bungalows and two-storeys around Bathurst Manor and Clanton Park who want to stay in the area.

Listings describe ensuite laundry and forced-air heating and cooling, and a concrete building. At 20 years old, finishes vary widely from suite to suite, so compare condition as carefully as size.

Bathurst and Wilson, day to day

The building sits on Bathurst Street near Wilson Avenue, in a residential area of houses, low-rise apartments and a scattering of mid-rise condominiums. Bathurst is a busy north-south arterial, so suites facing the street trade some quiet for convenience; suites facing away are usually calmer.

This is a neighbourhood of everyday errands rather than destinations. Bathurst has a long run of shops and services within reach, and Highway 401 is close for drivers. The data panel beside this review shows the nearest transit, schools, parks and food, so I will not repeat them here.

There is a concierge on the amenity list, which matters on a street like this. Having someone at the front desk for parcels, trades and visitors is one of the reasons buyers choose a mid-rise with staff over a smaller walk-up building nearby.

Pets, rules and the 20-year mark

Condos.ca lists a pet restriction for the building, and one listing describes pets as allowed with restrictions. That usually means limits on number, size or type, but I would not rely on a listing summary. Read the declaration and rules in the status certificate before you make an offer if you have a dog.

The same goes for leasing and renovations. A building of this size often has specific rules on flooring, move-in bookings and short lease terms, and the only reliable source is the corporation’s own documents.

A 2006 building is past its honeymoon and into its first serious maintenance cycle. This is the stage when a corporation either has the reserve fund it needs or starts raising fees quickly to catch up, and the fee history tells you which.

I ask three questions of any building this age. When was the last reserve fund study, and does the planned contribution match it? Has the garage been repaired or resurfaced? And what have the board minutes said about elevators, windows and the roof over the past two years? The answers will tell you more than any listing photo.

Pricing: low per square foot, high fee on paper

Viva North Tower averages about $571 per square foot. That is below its own twin, the South Tower, at about $610, and well below Sheppard West mid-rises such as Plaza Royale at about $660 and The Avanti at about $748. It sits close to Park Place at 4200 Bathurst, at about $531. For a 2006 concrete building with staff, that is a low price to enter midtown-north Toronto.

The fee is the other side of the story. Across the suites listed when I checked, fees averaged about $1.17 per square foot a month, which is high for a mid-rise. But it covers heat, air conditioning and parking as well as water and insurance. Add a parking charge and a winter heating bill back onto a building with a quoted $0.75 fee, and the gap narrows a lot.

Three suites were listed for sale when I checked, asking between $439,900 and $524,800. That is a tight range, and it means you can buy a one-bedroom-plus-den or a two-bedroom here for what a small one-bedroom costs in many newer North York buildings. Ask the manager whether a fee increase is planned before you compare buildings on fees alone.

Building specifications

Amenities at Viva Condo North Tower

The amenity package is modest: a concierge, rooms for gatherings and meetings, an exercise room and visitor parking. It suits owners who want a staffed lobby and somewhere to host family, not a pool and spa, and a lean package keeps more of the fee going to the building itself.

Jatin’s honest take on Viva Condo North Tower

Viva Condo North Tower — frequently asked questions

Looking at York Mills, Don Mills, Lawrence Park, Bathurst Manor and midtown-north Toronto more broadly? Start with my Toronto community guide — the neighbourhoods, what each pocket is like, and how they compare.