Harmony North, 2 Hedge End Rd: Three-Storey Towns Around a Park

Harmony North is one of the lower-cost ways to get a three-storey townhouse in Toronto. Condos.ca puts its average at about $473 per square foot, which is low for a Toronto townhouse condominium. You are near the edge of the city at Sheppard and Meadowvale, and that location is both the bargain and the trade-off. I’m Jatin Dua, RE/MAX Quantum Realty.

The second half of Harmony Village

A 1999 City of Toronto report to Scarborough Community Council describes this complex clearly. The applicant was Harmony Developments II Inc., and the project was a 143-unit complex of three-storey townhouses arranged around a centrally located local park, then under construction at 9420 to 9466 Sheppard Avenue East and 2 Hedge End Road.

The report calls it the completion of the lands at the north-west corner of Sheppard Avenue East and Meadowvale Road. The first phase of Harmony Village, south of Hedge End Road, was already finished, registered and fully occupied. So when you see Harmony on listings nearby, check which corporation you are buying into.

A 1998 City report on a small parcel to the west, on Sheppard west of Hedge End, describes a proposal for 27 more townhouses that would extend the Harmony project’s private roads, landscaping and architectural design. Ask how any neighbouring complex shares roads or services with this one.

Parking, roads and the park

The 1999 report sets out the parking: 280 spaces in all, 250 for residents and 30 for visitors, plus two visitor spaces reserved for the neighbouring condominium south of Hedge End Road. That ratio is generous for a townhouse condominium, but confirm how many spaces come with the home you are viewing.

The central park is the feature that makes the layout work. Homes face inward onto green space rather than onto Sheppard Avenue, which keeps traffic noise down for the interior rows. Homes along Sheppard or Meadowvale will hear more, so ask where the home sits in the site plan.

The 1998 report also notes an Ontario Hydro transfer station and hydro corridor nearby, and that noise measures were built into the Harmony project. Visit the home you are considering and judge it for yourself.

Sizes: the numbers do not agree

Condos.ca gives a single size figure of about 1,357 square feet for this complex, while one of the current listings is described in the 800 to 899 square foot range. Both can be true, because three-storey townhouses often vary by row and end unit, and measured areas sometimes exclude the lower level.

Ask for the floor plan and the measured size of the home you are considering, and confirm whether the size you are quoted includes the ground-floor level. That matters when you compare price per square foot against other complexes.

As with any 1999 home, check the age of the windows, furnace, air conditioner, water heater and electrical panel, and read the declaration to see which of those are yours and which belong to the corporation.

Life at the eastern edge of the city

Sheppard and Meadowvale is close to the eastern edge of Toronto. Rouge National Urban Park and the Toronto Zoo are to the north and east, and Highway 401 is reachable for commuters. Shopping and services are mostly a drive away.

This is a car-first location. Families who drive daily and value green space tend to be happy here; buyers who want to walk to shops and the subway usually are not. The automatic panel on this page shows the nearest transit and parks.

Because the complex was planned as a single project with private roads and a shared park, it feels more like a small subdivision than a condominium. That inward-looking layout is good for children and for a sense of community, and it also means the corporation, not the City, looks after much of what you walk on.

How I would approach a purchase here

Start with the corporation number on the listing. Harmony Village south of Hedge End and Harmony North are separate condominiums, and you want the status certificate, budget and reserve fund study for the right one.

Then look at the fee history. A fee under $250 a month for a three-storey townhouse is unusual, and you want to see whether it has risen steadily or been held flat. Long freezes followed by a jump, or a special assessment, are what catch buyers out in older townhouse complexes.

Ask who is responsible for the private roads, the central park, snow clearing and landscaping, and how those are funded. Read the rules on leasing and renovations if you plan to rent the home or change flooring or exterior features. None of this is unusual for a complex of this age; it simply needs to be checked before you firm up.

Pricing at Harmony North

Condos.ca shows an average of about $473 per square foot here, which is very low for Toronto townhouse condominiums. Some of that reflects the location and the 1999 age, and some may reflect how size is measured, so treat it with care.

At the time of writing, two homes were for sale, asking between $599,000 and $629,000, with one for rent. Their listed maintenance fees were both under $250 a month, which is low even for a townhouse complex.

The price spread between those two listings is narrow, which tells you buyers here pay mainly for condition and position in the complex rather than for floor plan. A renovated end unit facing the park will usually command more than an interior unit backing onto a main road.

A fee that low raises the reserve fund question immediately. The corporation still has to fund roofs, windows, private roads, the park and walkways for 143 homes. Read the reserve fund study and the status certificate closely, and ask me for the complex’s recent sales through the building sold report.

Building specifications

Amenities at Harmony North

There is no clubhouse or pool. What you get is a shared park at the centre of the complex, visitor parking and permission to barbecue, which for families with young children is often worth more than a gym.

Jatin’s honest take on Harmony North

Harmony North — frequently asked questions

Looking at Scarborough Bluffs, West Hill, Guildwood, Woburn, Malvern and Rouge more broadly? Start with my Toronto community guide — the neighbourhoods, what each pocket is like, and how they compare.