50 Coleman Avenue Townhouses: 22 Family Homes Near Danforth and Dawes

50 Coleman Avenue is one of the more affordable ways I know to get a three-bedroom family home near the east end of the Danforth. It is a 1976 complex of 22 condominium townhouses with a parking garage, on a quiet side street near Danforth and Dawes. At 50 years old, though, its value depends almost entirely on what the corporation has already fixed and what it has saved for. I’m Jatin Dua, RE/MAX Quantum Realty.

A 1970s townhouse condo, the original kind

In the 1970s, Toronto builders used the new condominium law to put family townhouses on infill sites across the old suburbs and the edges of the city. 50 Coleman is a classic example: 22 homes, registered in November 1976 under the early YCC prefix, and built for families rather than investors.

That heritage shows in the layouts. A three-bedroom home was among the recent listings, and three bedrooms is a common format in townhouse complexes of this age, often over several levels. Floor areas are not published on condos.ca, so check the room sizes and number of levels for the specific home, and ask whether there is a finished lower level.

Condos.ca lists a parking garage, which is unusual for a townhouse complex this size and valuable on a street with limited parking, especially in winter. Confirm whether the home comes with a space and where it is.

The garage is the big-ticket item

A parking garage in a 1976 complex is the first thing I would look at in the reserve fund study. Garage slabs and waterproofing membranes are among the most expensive repairs a condominium corporation faces, and in a complex of 22 homes the cost per owner can be significant. Ask whether the garage has been rehabilitated, when, and what the most recent engineering report recommended.

After the garage, look at roofs, windows and doors, brick and siding, balconies or decks, and the underground water and sewer lines. Many of these items will have been replaced at least once since 1976. The questions are which ones, and when the next round is due.

Also check the declaration to see what each owner is responsible for. In older townhouse condos, the boundaries between owner and corporation responsibilities vary a lot, especially for windows, doors and furnaces, and they change what your fee actually covers. Get the answer in writing before you firm up.

Management and the size of the corporation

Condos.ca lists Mareka Property Management. Professional management is a good sign in a complex of this size: it means there is a firm keeping records, running contractors and producing the status certificate, rather than a volunteer board doing it all.

Twenty-two homes is still a small corporation. That brings a neighbourly feel and real influence for each owner, but large repairs are shared among fewer people than in a tower. Read the last two years of board minutes to see what is being discussed, and ask whether the corporation has used special assessments or loans in the past, so you know how it pays for big projects.

Insurance is the other cost to understand. Premiums for condominium corporations have risen across Ontario, and older complexes with garages often see larger increases. Ask for the corporation’s insurance deductible, since in many corporations an owner can be charged up to that amount for damage that starts in their home, and make sure your own policy covers it.

Danforth and Dawes, day to day

Coleman Avenue is a residential side street close to the eastern end of the Danforth, where the shops, grocers and restaurants are more local and less busy than the stretch near Pape or Broadview. This part of the Danforth has been changing for years, with new mid-rise buildings and renovated houses replacing older stock, and that steady investment helps values in the side streets. The automatic panel on this page covers transit, schools and parks.

Coleman Lofts, a converted former bakery at 99 Coleman, is on the same street and is the closest comparison. It offers loft-style suites in a smaller, 1991 corporation; 50 Coleman offers family townhouses with more bedrooms. They attract different buyers, but both rely on the same neighbourhood.

What 50 Coleman costs to own

Condos.ca shows no average price per square foot, and with only 22 homes and a few sales a year at most, there is not enough data to quote one. There was one home for sale at the time of writing, which is too few to quote a range.

The right comparison is a freehold semi or townhouse of similar size nearby. A condo townhouse like this usually trades at a discount to freehold because of the monthly fee and the shared ownership. The size of that discount should depend on the reserve fund: a well-funded corporation with the garage done justifies a smaller discount than one facing major work.

Fee inclusions are not published on condos.ca, so ask what the fee covers, including water, parking, exterior maintenance and insurance. Ask the seller for a year of utility bills as well. Townhouses from the 1970s were built before modern insulation standards, and unless windows and attic insulation have been upgraded, heating a multi-level home can cost noticeably more than heating a newer apartment of the same size. For recent results on Coleman and nearby streets, use my building sold report.

Building specifications

Amenities at 50 Coleman Avenue Townhouses

The only amenity listed is the parking garage, and for a family townhouse that is the one that matters. There is no gym or party room to pay for, which helps keep fees down; the cost that matters instead is the upkeep of the garage, the roofs and the grounds.

Jatin’s honest take on 50 Coleman Avenue Townhouses

50 Coleman Avenue Townhouses — frequently asked questions

Looking at Leslieville, Riverdale, the Beaches, Danforth and Leaside more broadly? Start with my Toronto community guide — the neighbourhoods, what each pocket is like, and how they compare.