Audley Court, 68 Kendal Ave: A 1912 Annex Walk-Up, Eight Condo Suites

Audley Court is for the buyer who wants the Annex of brick, columns and old trees, not the Annex of glass towers on Bloor. It is a 1912 walk-up apartment building on Kendal Avenue, near Jean Sibelius Square, converted to just eight condominium suites in 1986. It has no elevator, it is self-managed, and heat and hydro are in the fee, and each of those facts changes what you need to check. I’m Jatin Dua, RE/MAX Quantum Realty.

A 1912 walk-up by J. Hunt Stanford

Audley Court was completed in 1912 and designed by Joseph Hunt Stanford, according to a profile by the Annex brokerage Urbaneer. Stanford was an English-born architect who practised in Toronto from 1904 to 1922, mostly designing houses in the Annex, Parkdale and Rosedale, and he was among the first architects in the city to design three-storey walk-up apartment buildings. The City of Toronto Archives holds his elevation drawing of an apartment house on Kendal Avenue dated May 1912, though the drawing does not give a street number.

The timing is interesting. City of Toronto Archives material notes that in 1912 the City passed a bylaw restricting apartment buildings in residential neighbourhoods, amid public worry about tenements. Audley Court belongs to the small group of early apartment houses that were built in residential streets at the very start of that era, which is part of why buildings like it are rare in the Annex today.

The style is English classical: balanced, symmetrical massing and plenty of classical columns. It was a rental building for most of the century and was converted into condominium suites in 1986, the same year MTCC-704 was registered.

Half-floor suites, and no elevator

Urbaneer describes the layout as two suites per floor, each a half-floor, two-bedroom unit with windows on three sides, high ceilings, oak floors, coved and beamed ceilings, bay windows, large front balconies and a rear deck on each floor. A more recent listing described a two-bedroom-plus-den suite with separate living and dining rooms and a private covered terrace. That is the pre-war apartment format: real rooms with doors rather than one open space.

Sources disagree on size. Urbaneer puts suites at about 1,300 sq ft, while condos.ca records a range of about 757 to 1,210 sq ft. Condos.ca also lists four storeys, where Urbaneer and a recent listing describe three. A raised lower level would explain both differences, but confirm the floor, the registered size and the layout of the suite you are buying.

This is a walk-up. If you are buying on an upper floor, you will carry groceries, furniture and luggage up the stairs, which matters more at 70 than at 35. The same recent listing described radiant gas heating with wall units for cooling, which is typical of a building this age; check what cooling a suite has and whether the rules allow more.

Self-managed, with heat and hydro in the fee

Condos.ca lists the building as self-managed. Eight owners run the corporation themselves: they collect fees, hire contractors, keep the books and maintain the reserve fund. In a stable building with a careful treasurer that can keep costs down. It also means the records are only as good as the volunteers keeping them.

The fee includes heat, hydro, water, building insurance and common elements. Having hydro and heat in the fee is unusual and makes monthly costs predictable. The trade-off is that one shared utility bill is split among eight owners, so a cold winter or a rate increase lands on everyone, whatever their own usage.

A recent listing said dogs are not permitted except for medical or service reasons, and condos.ca lists a pet restriction. Confirm the rule in the declaration before you buy. The same listing mentioned one surface parking space with that suite, plus a porch, a common area and bike storage; do not assume every suite has parking.

Kendal Avenue and Sibelius Square

Kendal Avenue is one of the quieter Annex streets, running north toward Dupont. The building is a short walk from Jean Sibelius Square, a small neighbourhood park, and the street is lined with large brick houses of the same period.

You are a walk from Bloor Street’s shops and restaurants and from the University of Toronto, which is why Annex buyers include academics and professionals who want to walk to work. Casa Loma and the slope up toward South Hill are to the north. Older plumbing and wiring are common in buildings of this age unless they have been replaced, so ask what was updated at the 1986 conversion and since, and get an inspection that treats the suite like a house.

Transit, schools, parks and Walk Score for this address are shown in the data panel on this page.

Price per square foot, and the fee in context

Condos.ca reports a building average of about $886 per square foot. For a large, character suite in the Annex with heat and hydro included, that is reasonable. With eight suites and few sales, though, the average is a rough guide only.

When I checked, one suite was listed for sale and none for rent. Because I only quote asking prices as a range across two or more listings, I will not quote that one here. When you compare its fee with other buildings, remember that heat and hydro are included, so the fee will look high against a building where you pay those yourself.

To price a suite here, I start with the building’s own sales, then compare with other small converted apartment buildings and house conversions in the Annex and Seaton Village. Ask me for a building sold report.

Building specifications

Amenities at Audley Court

There are no facilities in the condo-tower sense. You get balconies, decks, a porch, bike storage and a park nearby, which is what most Annex buyers actually use.

Jatin’s honest take on Audley Court

Audley Court — frequently asked questions

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