Parisiene, 915 & 921 Midland Ave: A 1980 Mid-Rise With Hydro in the Fee

Parisiene is one of the few low-rise condominiums in this part of Scarborough, and it is a practical answer for a first-time buyer who wants a one- or two-bedroom without a tower elevator bank. The fee pays your hydro, heat, air conditioning, cable and parking, which makes monthly budgeting unusually simple. The trade-offs are age and a short amenity list. I’m Jatin Dua, RE/MAX Quantum Realty.

A seven-storey condo in a tower neighbourhood

Most condominiums from this era around Eglinton and Midland are high-rises. Parisiene is seven storeys, about 23 metres, spread across two addresses, 915 and 921 Midland Avenue, under one corporation. With 195 suites at that height, it is long and low rather than tall.

That shape has practical benefits. Fewer floors means shorter elevator waits and a stairwell you can actually use, and a mid-rise often feels more like a large apartment block than a tower. The downside is that views are limited, so orientation and what each suite looks onto matter more than the floor number.

I could not find the original developer in any source I checked, and no architect is recorded either. After more than four decades, that matters less than how the corporation has been run, which the status certificate and reserve fund study will show you.

A long, low building also has a different cost profile from a tower. There is more roof and more exterior wall per suite, so roofing, masonry and window projects are spread over fewer owners per square metre of envelope. Look closely at when the roof and windows were last done.

One- and two-bedroom suites at a sensible size

Condos.ca records suites of about 600 to 942 square feet, which covers the building’s one-bedroom and two-bedroom plans. That is a different range from the big family suites in nearby 1970s towers, and it fits a different buyer: singles, couples and small households.

Even so, a 1980 two-bedroom at 800-plus square feet is generous next to a new two-bedroom of 650. Expect defined rooms, real closets and kitchens that may or may not have been opened up. Condition is the swing factor; ask what has been renovated and when.

Because the building is split across two addresses, ask which entrance, elevator and garage access a given suite uses. It affects how far you carry groceries and where your parking space and locker sit.

Ground-floor and low-floor suites in a mid-rise deserve extra attention. Ask about privacy, what the windows face and whether the suite is near the garage ramp, garbage room or pool deck. On the other hand, a low floor can mean you rarely need the elevator at all.

Almost every bill in one fee

The fee covers common elements, heat, hydro, air conditioning, cable TV, building insurance, parking and water. Current listings carry fees of roughly $572 to $755 a month, which condos.ca puts at about $0.89 a square foot.

That per-foot number looks high next to a newer building, but a newer building’s fee rarely includes hydro, cooling or parking. Add those back to a new suite and the comparison tightens considerably. For a buyer on a fixed budget, having one predictable payment is worth a lot.

The flip side is exposure to utility prices. When electricity, gas or the cable contract goes up, the building’s costs rise and the fee follows. Ask how the fee has moved over the last five years, how much of the budget goes to utilities and whether the board has looked at energy retrofits or sub-metering.

Eglinton and Midland: a transit crossroads in waiting

The building sits on Midland Avenue just off Eglinton Avenue East, a stretch of plazas, older towers and low-rise housing. Kennedy station, west along Eglinton, is where Line 2, the GO line and the Eglinton Crosstown meet.

Kennedy is also the starting point for the City’s planned Eglinton East LRT toward the University of Toronto Scarborough and Malvern. That project is still in planning, so do not pay a premium for it today. But few older Scarborough condos are this well placed for the area’s transit network as it develops.

The automatic panel on this page covers current transit, schools and Walk Score. My practical point: parking is in the fee, so you can drive now and lean more on transit later.

Like much of Scarborough near major transit, this area is likely to see more development proposals over time. Check the City’s development applications map for anything planned on the nearby plazas, because a new tower next door would change views, traffic and construction noise for a few years.

Price per square foot and current asking range

Condos.ca puts the building average at about $449 per square foot, higher than the big 1970s towers nearby, which sit in the $300s. That makes sense: smaller suites almost always cost more per foot, and an all-inclusive fee is easier to carry on a 700 square foot suite than on a 1,250 square foot one.

Three suites were for sale when I checked, asking from $309,000 to about $389,000, with one more listed for lease. That puts Parisiene among the more affordable ways to own a condo in Toronto. Check closed sales through my building sold report before you settle on an offer.

If you are a first-time buyer, run the numbers on total monthly cost against renting a similar suite nearby. With hydro and parking included, the gap is often smaller than people expect. Remember that lenders count the fee in your debt ratios, so get pre-approved with the real figure.

Building specifications

Amenities at Parisiene

The amenity list is short: an outdoor pool, a security system and an underground garage. There is no gym or party room listed, which keeps operating costs down, but if those matter to you, look elsewhere.

Jatin’s honest take on Parisiene

Parisiene — 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.