87 Rameau Drive Townhouses, North York: A 1974 Family Complex, Rated

87 Rameau Drive is the kind of complex I show families who have done the math on a detached house in North York and decided they need another route in. It is a 1970s condo townhouse community, with family-sized layouts and a monthly fee rather than a mortgage on a lot. The price of entry is age, and you have to be honest with yourself about what a 50-year-old complex needs. I’m Jatin Dua, RE/MAX Quantum Realty.

One of several 1970s complexes on Rameau Drive

Rameau Drive is lined with townhouse complexes from the same era, and the first thing to understand is that they are separate corporations with separate budgets. The Evergreens at 55 to 65 Rameau and Liszt Gate, the 75 to 85 Rameau townhomes, 77 Rameau and 81 Rameau all sit along the same street. They look alike from the sidewalk, but each has its own board, reserve fund and fee level.

That matters when you compare listings. A townhouse at 81 Rameau and one at 91 Rameau may share a postal code and a floor plan family, but the fee, what it covers and the state of the reserve fund can be very different. Always confirm which corporation a unit belongs to before you lean on a nearby sale as a comparable.

The streets here are named after composers, Rameau and Liszt among them, which is a small detail but a useful one when you are giving directions. This was planned as a family suburb in the early 1970s, and it still reads that way: low buildings, mature trees and very little through traffic on the inner roads.

What you get inside: space first

The reason people buy here is room. The listing currently on the market is a four-bedroom home, and that is a size you rarely find in a condo apartment at any price in this part of the city. condos.ca lists the complex as two storeys; many townhouses of this era also have a basement, so ask whether the unit you are viewing has a finished lower level and how it was permitted.

Expect 1970s bones. Ceilings are standard height, kitchens are usually closed rather than open-plan unless an owner has renovated, and the quality of updates varies from unit to unit. In complexes like this, two homes with the same layout can feel like different buildings depending on what the owner has done with windows, flooring and the kitchen.

Before you value a renovation, find out where the corporation’s responsibility ends and yours begins. In many older townhouse condos the windows, doors, roofs and exterior walls belong to the corporation, which means an owner’s new windows may or may not have been approved, and future replacement may come from the reserve fund rather than your pocket. The declaration spells this out.

The parking garage is the big question

condos.ca lists a parking garage as the complex’s amenity. In some townhouse complexes on this street, each home has its own built-in single garage with a driveway in front. In others, parking is in a shared underground garage. Confirm which applies at 87 to 91 Rameau before you book a showing, because the two carry very different long-term costs.

If there is a shared underground structure, it is almost 50 years old, and garage slabs and waterproofing of that age are typically in the middle of major repair cycles. If parking is in private garages, the bigger items are more likely to be roofs, windows, siding and the private roads and walkways. Either way, the reserve fund study will tell you what has been done and what is coming.

Daily life in Hillcrest Village

Rameau Drive sits just off Don Mills Road in the stretch between Finch and Steeles. It is a quiet residential pocket, and for most errands you will be driving or taking the bus to the plazas and malls along Don Mills, Finch and Steeles. Highway 404 and the 401 are both a short drive, which is a real advantage for commuters who work in the north or east.

The transit, school, park and walkability data for this address is in the panel on this page. I will only say that school catchments are a big part of why families shortlist this area, so check the zoned schools for the exact unit rather than relying on a listing description.

Pricing: compare against the right homes

There is only one home listed for sale here right now, so I am not quoting an asking price or fee for it. A single listing is not a market reading, and publishing it would identify one owner’s sale. Before you make an offer, ask me for the sold report for this exact corporation.

The way to think about value here is relative. A condo townhouse on Rameau competes with three other kinds of home: freehold townhouses and semis in North York, which cost more and carry no fee; condo apartments nearby, which are usually smaller for the money; and the neighbouring Rameau complexes, which are the most direct comparison but carry their own fee structures.

Fees in older townhouse complexes are usually higher per square foot than in new stacked towns, because the buildings and grounds need more work. A lower fee is not automatically better; in a 1974 complex, an unusually low fee can mean the reserve fund has been underfunded and a special assessment or a steep increase is coming. Judge the fee against the reserve fund study, not against the building next door.

Building specifications

Amenities at 87 Rameau Drive Townhouses

There are no listed shared amenities beyond parking, which is typical for a 1970s townhouse complex. You are paying for your own space, your own front door and the grounds, not for a gym or a party room.

Jatin’s honest take on 87 Rameau Drive Townhouses

87 Rameau Drive Townhouses — frequently asked questions

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