Everson Townhomes, 3 Everson Dr: Low-Rise With Hydro in the Fee

Everson Townhomes is the cheapest way I know into a low-rise condo near Yonge and Sheppard. It is a 207-unit complex from 2002, two storeys tall, with units under 1,200 square feet and a fee that covers hydro and heat as well as the usual items. Those fees look high, and the reason is worth understanding before you dismiss the building. I’m Jatin Dua, RE/MAX Quantum Realty.

Low-rise living without a townhouse price

Everson Townhomes has 207 units, and condos.ca lists the complex at two floors. Unit sizes from about 579 to 1,179 square feet, and plans from one-bedrooms to two-bedroom-plus-dens, point to stacked and one-level townhouse units rather than full three-storey homes.

Urban Group built the complex in 2002. Today it is a rare kind of housing near Yonge and Sheppard: units with a low-rise setting and street-level access, priced closer to a one-bedroom in a tower than to a townhouse.

Next door at 11 Everson Drive is Carriage Homes of Avondale, a separate complex of larger three-storey townhomes. The two share a street but not a corporation, a fee structure or a price range, so check which one a listing is in.

Upper or lower, and the rooftop deck question

In a stacked townhouse complex, the most important question is whether a unit is upper or lower. Upper units usually get more light and sometimes private outdoor space, while lower units are easier to reach and may have a patio. Ask which you are looking at, and how many stairs are involved from parking to your front door.

Condos.ca tags the complex with a rooftop deck and allows BBQs. Find out whether a deck is private to a particular unit or shared, and who maintains it. Decks and their membranes are expensive to replace, and the declaration will say whether that cost belongs to you or to the corporation.

The units at the smaller end, around 579 square feet, suit a single buyer or an investor. The larger two-bedroom-plus-den plans, near 1,000 to 1,200 square feet, work for couples or small families who would otherwise be in a tower.

Why the fee looks high

Condos.ca lists common elements, heat, hydro, air conditioning, building insurance, parking and water as included. That is every main utility. Very few townhouse condominiums include hydro, and it is the main reason the fees here look high next to other low-rise complexes.

Across the current listings, the fee works out to about $1.10 per square foot, with monthly fees from roughly $570 to $1,095. That compares with townhouse condos nearby where you pay your own gas and hydro, so add those bills back onto any other building before you decide this one is expensive.

Fees also vary more than size alone would explain. Two units of similar size can carry quite different fees, because each unit’s share of common expenses is set in the declaration, not recalculated each year. Ask for the exact fee on the unit you want rather than estimating from the building average.

The trade-off with bulk utilities is that everyone pays the same share whether they run the air conditioning all summer or not. If the corporation ever moves to individual metering, that is a significant change, so ask whether it has been discussed.

Life on Everson Drive

Everson Drive sits in the Avondale pocket east of Yonge and south of Sheppard. You are a short walk from the Yonge and Sheppard intersection, with its subway, shops and restaurants, and close to the 401, but on a street of low-rise homes rather than on the arterial.

For investors, the four units listed for lease when I checked show that there is a steady rental market here. An all-inclusive fee lets an owner offer rent with utilities included, which many tenants prefer, and the low-rise setting appeals to renters who do not want a tower. Run the numbers with the full fee, though, because it eats into the yield more than it would in a building where tenants pay their own hydro.

The building has a party room and a meeting room, and condos.ca lists it as pet-friendly, which suits buyers with a dog who do not want to deal with elevators.

The panel beside this review shows the nearest station, schools and Walk Score. The point I would add is that around Yonge and Sheppard, low-rise options at this price are scarce, and that scarcity supports values even as new towers go up nearby.

Price per square foot and what is asking now

Condos.ca puts the average at about $596 per square foot. That is well below the condo towers at Yonge and Sheppard, which is typical for an older low-rise complex where you trade a concierge and a gym for street-level access.

Seven units were listed for sale when I checked, from one-bedrooms to two-bedroom-plus-dens, asking between $376,900 and $599,000. Monthly fees across those listings ranged from about $570 to $1,095. Four units were also listed for lease.

With that many listings, buyers have choice and some negotiating room. I would compare recent sales of the same plan and level, and remember that the fee covers hydro and heat when comparing against other buildings.

Building specifications

Amenities at Everson Townhomes

The amenities are simple: a party room, a meeting room, BBQs and a rooftop deck. For buyers here, the real amenity is the fee: one payment that covers parking and every main utility, which makes budgeting easy for a first home and leaves nothing to set up with the utility companies when you move in.

Jatin’s honest take on Everson Townhomes

Everson Townhomes — frequently asked questions

Looking at Willowdale, Yonge & Sheppard, Bayview Village and North York Centre more broadly? Start with my Toronto community guide — the neighbourhoods, what each pocket is like, and how they compare.