Minto Plaza, 38 Elm St: Big One-Bedrooms with Parking and Hydro In

Minto Plaza is where I look when a buyer wants a one-bedroom that actually feels like an apartment, not a hotel room, a few minutes from Yonge and Dundas. Minto built it in 1990 with 433 suites, an indoor pool and a fee that covers hydro, heat, air conditioning and parking. The one-bedrooms here are often larger than new two-bedrooms, and the fee reflects everything it carries. I’m Jatin Dua, RE/MAX Quantum Realty.

A Minto tower from 1990

Minto lists 38 Elm among its past projects: a 433-suite building completed in 1990 at Bay and Elm, made up of one- and two-bedroom suites. Condos.ca leaves the developer field blank, so the builder’s own record is the better source here. Minto is still building in Toronto today, which is not something every developer from that era can say.

At 33 storeys, Minto Plaza was a tall building for its time on this stretch, and it is a large corporation by the standards of the period. A big owner base spreads the cost of the pool, the concierge and major repairs across more suites, which is one advantage over the smaller buildings around it.

Minto describes the original design as built around spacious layouts, large windows and good storage. Those were selling points in 1990, and they read even better now that downtown floor plans have shrunk.

One-bedrooms that do not feel like one-bedrooms

Condos.ca puts suites at about 608 to 1,010 square feet. Most of the one-bedrooms I saw listed were in the 700 to 799 square foot band. In many new towers nearby, that is the size of a two-bedroom with a narrow second room.

In practice that means a living room you can arrange furniture in, a bedroom that holds more than a bed, and closets that actually store things. If you are moving from a house or an older apartment, it is a much easier transition than a 500 square foot new-build one-bedroom.

The two-bedroom plans top out at about 1,010 square feet. That is not a family-sized suite by suburban standards, but it is a comfortable two-bedroom for a couple who work from home or want a proper guest room. Because the building offers only one- and two-bedroom plans, there is no three-bedroom or penthouse tier here, so buyers who need more space should look elsewhere.

As in any 36-year-old building, condition varies a lot. Some suites have been fully renovated, others still have original kitchens and bathrooms. Price the renovation into your offer if the suite needs one, and confirm which upgrades the corporation needs to approve.

Hydro, heat and parking are in the fee

Condos.ca lists common elements, heat, hydro, air conditioning, building insurance, parking and water as included. That is nearly everything. In most downtown buildings built since the 2000s, hydro and heating are on your own meter and parking is a separate monthly charge, if you can get a space at all.

Across the suites listed for sale when I checked, fees worked out to about $1.21 per square foot a month. That is high on paper, and you should not wave it away. But when you compare with a newer building, add a realistic hydro and heating bill and a parking charge back onto that building’s fee before you decide which is cheaper.

Bulk metering does mean energy costs are pooled across all 433 suites. Look at how the utility line in the budget has moved over recent years, and ask whether the board has looked at sub-metering.

Daily life between Bay Street and Yonge-Dundas

Minto’s own description of the location still holds: the hospitals along University Avenue, the Eaton Centre, the PATH, the Financial District and Yonge-Dundas Square are all within a walk. Elm Street itself is a short side street lined with restaurants, which keeps the immediate block a little calmer than Bay or Yonge. The automatic panel on this page lists the nearest transit, parks and food.

This is one of the busiest parts of the city. Crowds around Yonge and Dundas, events in the square and construction on surrounding sites are part of living here. Higher floors and suites away from the busiest faces are worth considering if noise matters to you.

What Minto Plaza costs

Condos.ca puts the building average at about $638 per square foot. For a building this close to Bay and Dundas, that is a low figure, and it reflects the building’s age, its high all-inclusive fee and the larger-than-average suite sizes, which always push price per square foot down.

Four suites were for sale when I checked, with asking prices from about $499,000 to $672,000 across one-bedroom and two-bedroom plans. That is a healthy amount of choice, and it means comparables exist, which makes pricing an offer easier.

For context, condos.ca puts Liberties III, a block north on Gerrard Street West and also from 1990, at about $827 per square foot. Both buildings bundle hydro and heat into the fee, so the gap is mostly about suite mix, the size of the corporation and how each building has been kept up. That is why the reserve fund study matters as much as the asking price.

The question to answer is total monthly cost. Fee, mortgage and property tax here, with utilities and parking included, against fee, mortgage, tax, hydro, heat and parking at a newer building. For a specific suite, I can pull sold data through my building sold report.

Building specifications

Amenities at Minto Plaza

Minto lists a fitness centre, an indoor pool, party rooms, terraces, a barbecue patio, a piano lounge and a concierge. That is a full package for a 1990 building, and with 433 suites sharing the cost, it is easier to sustain than the same amenities in a smaller corporation.

Jatin’s honest take on Minto Plaza

Minto Plaza — 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.