The Medland Lofts, 235 Medland St: A Tiny Art Deco Loft off Dundas West

The Medland Lofts is one of the smallest condo corporations in the Junction: about nine or ten suites in an Art Deco-style brick building at the corner of Medland and Dundas West, with a newer addition behind it. It sits right at the edge of the Junction’s main street, which is the whole point. With so few suites, you are buying into a very small partnership, and that deserves care. I’m Jatin Dua, RE/MAX Quantum Realty.

An Art Deco brick building with a modern addition

The building combines two parts: an older brick structure in an Art Deco style, and a newer addition built in precast concrete. That pairing is common in smaller Toronto loft conversions, where the developer keeps the character building on the street and adds new space behind or above it to make the project work.

For a buyer, the two parts can mean two different kinds of suite. A unit in the original brick building will have the older walls and window openings, while a unit in the addition will be closer to new construction. Ask which part your suite is in, because it affects the light, the sound between suites and the kind of repairs you will share in.

Triumphal Developments, which did this project in 2005, later converted the 1892 Victoria-Royce church at Annette and Medland into Victoria Lofts. Same developer, same street, very different building.

Nine or ten suites, all mid-sized

The suite count is not perfectly clear. Condos.ca lists 9 units in its building data but says ten in its own description. The registered declaration in the status certificate will settle it.

The size range is narrow, about 929 to 1,165 sq ft, so these are all comfortable one- and two-bedroom-sized suites rather than a mix of studios and penthouses. That consistency makes it easier to compare one sale with another inside the building, which helps when so few suites ever come up.

Condos.ca lists a parking garage. Parking is not on the fee inclusion list, so confirm whether the suite you are looking at has a space and how it is held.

A building this small also changes how resale works. When only one or two suites come up in a year, buyers who want this exact corner have little choice, and sellers have few direct comparables. Expect pricing to lean on similar lofts nearby as much as on past sales here.

Check the amenity list with care

Condos.ca tags the building with a gym, a sauna, a rooftop deck, a security guard and a parking garage, along with BBQs permitted and pets allowed. For a two-storey building of about nine suites, a staffed security guard, a gym and a sauna would be very unusual.

I would not rely on that list. Some of it may be accurate, such as a rooftop deck, and some may be a data error or describe something shared with a neighbouring property. Ask the listing agent and the property manager exactly what exists, who pays for it and whether it is part of the corporation’s common elements.

Condos.ca lists Maple Ridge Community Management as the manager. In a building this size, ask how much the management contract costs relative to the total budget, because fixed costs weigh heavily when they are split nine or ten ways.

Governance is the other half of the picture. With nine or ten owners, the board may be most of the owners, and decisions about repairs, insurance and contractors fall on a few volunteers. Ask for recent board minutes and the annual general meeting package to see how the building is run.

Right at the Junction’s main street

The location is the strongest argument for this building. At the corner of Medland and Dundas West, you are at the edge of the Junction’s main commercial strip, with its cafes, restaurants, bars and independent shops along Dundas Street West.

Medland Street itself is a quiet residential street of older houses running south toward Annette Street, where the Victoria Presbyterian Church has stood at the corner since 1892. The Junction’s history as its own town, with its own streets and landmarks, is still easy to see here.

Living at the corner of a main street brings some noise and activity, especially in the evening. Ask which way your suite faces. The data panel on this page covers transit, schools and parks.

What The Medland Lofts trades for

Condos.ca puts the building average at about $824 per square foot. That is well below the church conversion at Victoria Lofts nearby at about $1,048, and below Wallace Station Lofts at about $907, but above Foundry Lofts at about $734.

With only nine or ten suites, sales are rare, and some years may have none. The average rests on a handful of transactions, so I would price any suite here against both the building’s own history and comparable lofts and condo apartments along Dundas West.

The fee is light on inclusions, with no heat, hydro or parking listed. When you compare monthly costs with Victoria Lofts, where parking is in the fee, add those items back in before you decide which building is cheaper to own.

There were no suites listed for sale or for rent at the time of writing. If you want to know what has sold recently, the building sold report is the place to start.

Building specifications

Amenities at The Medland Lofts

Treat the amenity list with care. Condos.ca also lists a gym, a sauna and a security guard, which would be unusual for a building this small, so confirm what actually exists before you factor it into the price.

Jatin’s honest take on The Medland Lofts

The Medland Lofts — frequently asked questions

Looking at the Junction, Corso Italia, Hillcrest Village and west-central Toronto more broadly? Start with my Toronto community guide — the neighbourhoods, what each pocket is like, and how they compare.