Jane Parker Square II, 176-238 Wiltshire Ave: Low-Rise Condo Living

Jane Parker Square II is the kind of property most condo buyers never find, because it hardly ever comes up for sale. It is a 32-suite low-rise from 2003 at 176-238 Wiltshire Avenue, in the Carleton Village pocket just south of St. Clair West. If you want a ground-related home in the west end without paying for a house, it deserves a look, and it also has a few gaps in its records that you should close first. I’m Jatin Dua, RE/MAX Quantum Realty.

A small low-rise with its own street numbers

The address range tells you most of what you need to know. Instead of one front door and a lobby, Jane Parker Square II runs from 176 to 238 Wiltshire Avenue, so its 32 suites appear to have their own street numbers rather than suite numbers off a corridor. Condos.ca lists it as a low-rise, and its suites run from about 800 to 1,147 sq ft.

That makes it closer to a townhouse community than a condo building. There is no elevator, no concierge and no amenity floor. In exchange, you likely get your own entrance and a quieter, more house-like way of living, with a corporation that looks after the shared elements.

It is the second phase of a pair. Jane Parker Square I sits nearby at 6-104 Connolly Street. If you are searching here, look at both phases, because they share a neighbourhood and a name but are separate corporations with their own budgets, reserve funds and rules.

What we know, and what we do not

The records for this property are thin. Condos.ca does not name a developer, and I could not find a published builder, architect or floor plan set. I also could not confirm where the Jane Parker name comes from. Rather than guess, I would rely on the documents you get during the purchase.

Here is what is listed. The corporation is TSCC-1548, registered in October 2003. Condos.ca lists FirstService Residential as the manager, a large firm that runs many Toronto corporations, so ask who the assigned property manager is and how often they visit a small site like this one. Pets are listed as allowed, BBQs are permitted, and there is visitor parking.

With so little public information, the status certificate does more work than usual. It will tell you the fee, the reserve fund balance, any planned projects and the rules on pets, leasing and renovations. Ask for the declaration and the most recent reserve fund study at the same time.

The fee, and what a 2003 low-rise needs

Condos.ca lists common elements, building insurance, parking and water as covered. Heat and hydro are not, so you will pay for those yourself, the way you would in a house. Ask the seller for a year of utility bills, and find out whether the furnace and water heater in your suite are owned or rented.

Low-rise condos tend to have simpler mechanical systems than towers, with no elevators or large central plants to replace. Their big costs are different: roofs, windows and doors, exterior brick or siding, decks, driveways, and any shared underground parking. At more than 20 years old, Jane Parker Square II is in the period when several of those come due.

With 32 owners, those costs are shared more thinly than in a large tower but more widely than in a tiny corporation. The question is whether the reserve fund has been built up to match the study. If it has, the fee should stay predictable. If it has not, expect increases or a special assessment.

Carleton Village, between the rail lines

Carleton Village is a small, mixed neighbourhood centred on Davenport Road, south of St. Clair West and surrounded on three sides by rail lines. The core is mostly semi-detached houses, with light industry along the tracks and a strip of shops and services along St. Clair, organised as the St. Clair Gardens business area. Wadsworth Park sits in the middle of the neighbourhood.

The area has deep roots. It began as the village of Carlton in the 1840s, near today’s Old Weston Road and St. Clair, and was later annexed to West Toronto and then to the City of Toronto. Connolly Street, where the first phase sits, was originally Carlton Avenue.

The rail lines are both the drawback and the change to watch. Metrolinx has been working to separate the Davenport Diamond, where two rail lines cross, by carrying GO trains on a flyover, with new green space planned for residents. Before you buy, check how close your suite is to the tracks and visit when trains are running. Rail noise is something some people stop noticing within weeks and others never get used to, and only you know which kind of person you are.

What Jane Parker Square II costs

There were no suites for sale or for lease when I checked, and condos.ca does not show a building average price per square foot. With 32 suites, sales are infrequent, so you will need to build your own comparables.

The right comparisons are recent sales in Jane Parker Square I, other low-rise and stacked-townhouse condos in the west end, and freehold semis in Carleton Village. A suite of 800 to 1,147 sq ft with its own entrance will usually cost less than a semi but more per square foot than a large older apartment. My building sold report can pull the recent trades for you.

Because listings are rare, set up an alert and be ready to move when one appears. Have your financing approved and your lawyer ready to review the status certificate quickly.

Building specifications

Amenities at Jane Parker Square II

There is no shared gym, pool or party room here. What you get instead is your own front door, BBQs permitted and visitor parking, which is a better fit for people who want a house-like routine than for those who want a lobby.

Jatin’s honest take on Jane Parker Square II

Jane Parker Square II — frequently asked questions

Looking at Downsview, Weston, York University Heights, Rexdale and northwest Toronto more broadly? Start with my Toronto community guide — the neighbourhoods, what each pocket is like, and how they compare.