Empire Quay House, 162 Queens Quay E: New Mid-Rise in East Bayfront

Empire Quay House is one of the newest buildings on Queens Quay East, a 21-storey mid-rise in the middle of a waterfront district that is still mostly cranes. It offers some of the lowest fees per square foot I see on the waterfront right now, and an entry price below the towers to the west. The catch is that you are buying early into a neighbourhood that will not be finished for years. I’m Jatin Dua, RE/MAX Quantum Realty.

A stepped building rather than a slim tower

Quay House is not a point tower. UrbanToronto describes a podium shaped like a C from the third to the eleventh floors, turning into an L-shaped tower from the twelfth floor up, with step-backs at the sixth and twelfth floors along Queens Quay. The result is a wide, terraced building that steps down toward the street.

The cladding alternates white and silver-grey metal panels, split along diagonal lines, over a dark-framed window wall. Balconies on the south-facing podium project at an angle, which breaks up what would otherwise be a flat street wall. At grade, the lobby and retail units are framed in glazing, wood panels and metal detailing.

A stepped form like this creates terraces at the setback floors and an outdoor amenity space on the twelfth floor. If you are looking at a suite on the sixth or twelfth floor, ask whether it has a larger terrace and who is responsible for maintaining it.

A wide range of suite sizes

Condos.ca lists suites from about 339 to 1,127 sq ft. That spans compact studios built for investors and larger two-bedroom-plus-den and three-bedroom plans for owner-occupiers. The current listings run from one-bedroom plans under 500 sq ft to a three-bedroom of 900 to 999 sq ft.

In a building this new, many buyers will be first-time owners or investors closing on purchases made years ago. Expect a fair number of suites to come up for lease or resale in the first couple of years as original buyers reassess. That gives you choice, but also competition if you buy to rent.

A three-bedroom under 1,000 sq ft is efficient, not spacious. Check that each bedroom has a proper window and that the living area can hold a dining table before you count it as a family home.

Living in a waterfront that is still being built

East Bayfront is one of the fastest-changing parts of the city. George Brown College’s timber-framed Limberlost Place stands to the southeast, Pinnacle Lakeside’s first phase was excavating nearby in early 2025, and more sites along Queens Quay East are in the pipeline. The water’s edge promenade, Sugar Beach and Sherbourne Common are close by.

The temporary state of the street is worth knowing about. UrbanToronto reported that the Queens Quay sidewalk outside the building sits at a temporary lower grade, set in anticipation of the street’s reconstruction and the future Waterfront East LRT, which leaves steps up to the entrances. It flagged this as an accessibility issue until Waterfront Toronto’s work is done.

The east side of the podium was also built with blank walls so a future neighbour can be built right against it. Suites on that side of the lower floors should be checked carefully for what they will look at once the next building goes up.

The longer-term picture is better. Waterfront Toronto’s plan for Queens Quay East includes the rebuilt street and the Waterfront East LRT, and when those arrive this stretch should feel much more like the finished section of Queens Quay west of Yonge. The panel on this page shows today’s transit options.

What Empire Quay House costs

Condos.ca puts the building average at about $875 per square foot. That is well below the Tower at Pier 27 to the west, at about $1,046, and close to Monde at Bonnycastle Street, at about $879, which is the more natural comparison as a nearby East Bayfront building.

When I checked, five suites were for sale, asking from about $490,000 to about $740,000 across one-bedroom, one-bedroom-plus-den, two-bedroom, two-bedroom-plus-den and three-bedroom plans. Nine suites were listed for rent. Across those listings, the smaller suites asked noticeably more per square foot than the larger plans, so the two-bedroom-plus-den and three-bedroom plans are where the per-foot value sits.

Because the building registered only in October 2025, the resale record is thin and the building average is built on a small number of trades. Treat it as a guide, not a benchmark, and lean on Monde and the other East Bayfront resales when you judge an offer.

Fees on the active listings averaged about $0.68 per square foot, which is low for the waterfront. Low fees in a newly registered building usually reflect a first-year budget rather than the long-run cost, so read the budget and reserve fund study and expect fees to rise. I could not confirm which utilities the fee covers; ask whether heat, cooling and water are separately metered.

Building specifications

Amenities at Empire Quay House

The amenity list leans toward working from home and wellness: a business centre, a library, a yoga studio and a gym, plus a party room and an outdoor deck. For a building with many compact suites, a usable co-working or library space can matter more than a pool. A shorter amenity list without a pool also helps keep long-run operating costs down, which is part of why the fees start low.

Jatin’s honest take on Empire Quay House

Empire Quay House — frequently asked questions

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