Home Condominium, 383 Ellis Park Rd: 46 Suites on the Edge of High Park

Home Condominium is the building I bring up when a buyer says they want to live in High Park rather than near it. It is only 46 suites, ten storeys of brick and glass at the corner of Bloor Street West and Ellis Park Road, and the suites look south into the park’s tree canopy from private terraces. It is small, rarely for sale and priced like it, and that rarity is the thing to understand before you chase a listing. I’m Jatin Dua, RE/MAX Quantum Realty.

A Context building, designed for a wooded site

Context Development is the firm behind Tip Top Lofts and Radio City, and it has a long working relationship with architectsAlliance. The Globe and Mail credits this building to Peter Clewes, principal of architectsAlliance, which puts it in good company among Toronto’s mid-2000s condos.

The building is brick and glass with layered balconies, and from the Bloor corner it reads as a prow pointing into the park. A Globe and Mail design writer who covered a renovated suite here called the exterior a success for its woodsy setting, while noting that the original interiors were less impressive. That is a fair summary, and a useful one for buyers: the shell and location are the asset, and interiors vary with what each owner has done.

Condos.ca notes concrete soundproofing built into the walls, which matters more in a building where many suites share a corner or a stair.

Terraces over the tree canopy

The defining feature is outdoor space. Condos.ca describes every suite as having a private south-facing terrace, ranging from about 200 to 1,200 sq ft, overlooking High Park. The Globe and Mail’s coverage describes suites with forest on two sides and glass walls facing the trees. In summer you look into green; in winter you see through the branches toward the park.

That view is protected in a way few Toronto views are. The building backs onto parkland, not a development site, so the view south is about as secure as a Toronto view gets. That permanence is a big part of why prices here run well ahead of the neighbourhood.

Layouts: larger, varied and sometimes two levels

With 46 suites across ten floors, most floors have only a handful of homes, and the suites skew larger than a typical condo. Sizes run from about 662 sq ft to over 2,500 sq ft, and about a third of the building is two-bedroom-plus-den. Finishes listed at launch included hardwood, stone counters and gas fireplaces.

Some suites are two-level. The Globe and Mail described a corner suite with the front door and bedroom on the upper level and a staircase down to the living and dining rooms. Ceiling height is where sources differ: condos.ca lists nine-foot ceilings, while the Globe and Mail’s renovation feature describes the suite it covered as having standard eight-foot ceilings that limited what the designer could do. Measure the suite you are considering.

Condos.ca’s overview also mentions private elevator access. I have not been able to confirm which suites that applies to or what form it takes, so ask the listing agent directly rather than assume it.

Bloor at the front door, the park at the back

The daily reality here is unusually good. High Park’s trails and sports facilities are at the back of the building, and Bloor West Village’s shops and grocers are a short walk west along Bloor. The panel on this page shows the transit and Walk Score detail; strata.ca rates the walkability highly.

The trade-off is Bloor Street itself. The building sits at a busy corner, so the north side deals with traffic, and you will want to see how a given suite is oriented. Because the terraces face south into the park, most suites turn their back to the street.

A small building also means a small community. With fewer than 50 households, you will know your neighbours, board decisions are made by a handful of owners, and one difficult neighbour or one absent board can matter more than it would in a tower. Read the last year of board minutes to get a feel for how the building is run.

Pricing: a boutique premium, on very few trades

Condos.ca puts the building average at about $979 per square foot. Strata.ca’s 12-month figure is far higher, around $1,434 per square foot, but it rests on only three sales, and the large two-plus-den suites with big terraces pull it upward. The truth is somewhere between, and it depends heavily on terrace size, floor and renovation.

There were no active listings when I checked, and with 46 suites, that is normal. Strata.ca reported the few recent sales moving in a matter of days and closing close to asking, which tells you demand is real when something comes up. If you want to buy here, set up an alert and be ready to move.

Fees on strata.ca work out to about $1.09 per square foot, well above the city average. A small building has fewer owners to share the cost of a concierge and an elevator, and the fee covers heat, air conditioning, water, parking, common elements and insurance per condos.ca. Strata.ca lists all utilities as included, which may or may not include hydro, so confirm on the status certificate. See my building sold report for recorded trades.

Building specifications

Amenities at Home Condominium

The shared amenities are modest: a concierge, a gym and a party room. In a building this size you are not paying for a pool or a sky lounge, and the private terrace plus High Park out back do the rest.

Jatin’s honest take on Home Condominium

Home Condominium — frequently asked questions

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