10 Tichester Rd: A 58-Suite Forest Hill Condo Where Hydro Is in the Fee

10 Tichester Road is a building I describe to downsizers as a house-sized condo with a doorman. It is ten storeys and 58 suites, built in 1992, with an indoor pool and a fee that covers almost everything, including hydro. Nothing was for sale when I wrote this, which is typical of small buildings with long-term owners. I’m Jatin Dua, RE/MAX Quantum Realty.

A small, early-1990s building with large suites

Fifty-eight suites over ten storeys works out to about six suites a floor. That is a low density for a concierge building, and it tells you this was designed for larger units and owner-occupiers, not investors.

Listing records include a two-bedroom, two-bathroom suite in the range of roughly 1,400 to 1,600 square feet, with owned parking and forced-air heating. That is close to the size of a modest house, which is why the building appeals to people moving out of one.

I could not find a published developer or architect for 10 Tichester, and condos.ca does not list one, so I will not guess. What matters more today is how the building has been maintained over three decades. Ask for floor plans of the suite you are considering, since older buildings often have had renovations that changed the original layouts.

An all-inclusive fee, and how to read it

Condos.ca lists the fee as covering common elements, heat, hydro, water, air conditioning, building insurance and parking. Hydro in the fee is uncommon, especially in newer buildings, where suites are almost always metered separately.

That makes the monthly fee here look high next to a newer building, but the comparison is misleading. Add a newer building’s hydro bill, its heating and cooling costs, water and a separately priced parking space, and the gap narrows sharply. Do that math on a like-for-like basis before deciding which is more expensive.

The other side of an all-inclusive fee is that owners share the building’s energy bill. If utility rates rise, the fee rises for everyone, regardless of how careful you are. Look at the last few years of budgets to see how much of the fee goes to utilities and how it has moved.

For a retiree on a fixed income, this structure has a real advantage. There is one predictable payment instead of separate hydro, gas and water bills that swing with the seasons, which makes budgeting simpler than in most newer buildings.

What a 1992 building needs at this stage

At more than 30 years old, the building is past its first major renewal cycle and into its second. Windows, balcony doors, the roof, the garage membrane, the heating and cooling equipment and the indoor pool systems are the expensive items in a building of this age.

With only 58 suites, each owner carries a larger share of those projects than in a big tower. The question is not whether the work will be needed, but whether the reserve fund has been built to pay for it, or whether owners should expect fee increases or a special levy.

Ask what has been replaced and when, and what the reserve fund study schedules for the next ten years. A building that has already redone its windows and mechanical systems is worth more than one that has not, even at the same asking price.

The indoor pool deserves its own line in that conversation. Pools are among the most expensive amenities to run and to renew, and in a 58-suite building the cost of a new liner, filtration system or pool-room ventilation is shared by very few owners. Ask when the pool was last renovated and what the study sets aside for it.

Tichester Road, off St. Clair West

Tichester Road is a short, quiet residential street just north of St. Clair Avenue West near Bathurst, on the edge of Forest Hill. You get the calm of a side street with the shops, cafés and services of St. Clair West close by.

Cedarvale Ravine and Wells Hill Park are among the green spaces near the building, which is part of the appeal for people who walk a dog or want trails without driving.

The St. Clair West area has seen new mid-rise construction in recent years, and more is likely along the main streets. Tichester itself is residential, so the main changes you will notice are likely to be on St. Clair and Bathurst rather than outside your window.

What 10 Tichester costs

There were no active listings at the time of writing, and condos.ca does not publish a building average per square foot for 10 Tichester. That alone tells you something: with 58 suites and long-term owners, resale here is infrequent.

When a suite does come up, value it against similar large-suite, full-service buildings around St. Clair West and Forest Hill, not against new towers with small suites. A per-square-foot comparison with a 500-square-foot new condo will make a 1,500-square-foot suite here look cheap, and it is not a fair comparison.

On the fee side, compare the total monthly cost of ownership. Include hydro, heat, air conditioning, water and parking in the other building’s number, since all of those are inside the fee here.

Older suites are also priced on condition. A suite with an updated kitchen, bathrooms and flooring can sell for meaningfully more than an original one of the same size, so factor renovation costs into any offer on a suite that has not been touched in years.

For recent resale figures, see the data panel on this page or ask me for a building sold report, and I can also tell you when a suite comes to market.

Building specifications

Amenities at 10 Tichester Condos

Concierge, security, an indoor pool, a rooftop deck and visitor parking are a generous package for a 58-suite building. Day to day it means a staffed front door and a year-round pool, which is exactly what many downsizers want, but those services are also a large part of the fee.

Jatin’s honest take on 10 Tichester Condos

10 Tichester Condos — frequently asked questions

Looking at Yonge & Eglinton, Davisville and North Toronto more broadly? Start with my Toronto community guide — the neighbourhoods, what each pocket is like, and how they compare.