The Verve, 120 Homewood Ave: Tridel Tower and Loft Block at Wellesley

The Verve is two buildings sold under one name: a 39-storey glass tower on Wellesley Street East and a low-rise loft block stretching north behind it on Homewood. Tridel built it in 2008 on part of the old Wellesley hospital lands, and it still prices well below the newer towers a few blocks west at Yonge. If you want a pool, a big-developer building and parking in your fee without paying Yonge Street prices, it belongs on your list. I’m Jatin Dua, RE/MAX Quantum Realty.

A tower and a loft block, not one building

Most people picture the glass tower when they hear the name, but The Verve also has a separate loft building attached to it that runs north behind the tower. Early project discussion and a later blogTO feature both describe that loft building as six storeys; Dash Property Management’s building page says seven. Either way, it is a very different way to live from the 30th floor of the tower.

The loft block suits buyers who want a low-rise feel, fewer neighbours per elevator and street-level proximity, while still using the tower’s amenities. Tower suites trade on views and light. When you compare prices, keep the two apart, because a loft-block suite and a tower suite of the same size are not the same product.

The building is finished in glass and concrete with a tall lobby, and suites have a mix of French balconies, full balconies and terraces. Dash describes it as one of the larger LEED-certified residential buildings in Canada, and blogTO also called it LEED certified. Ask the corporation what that certification covers today, since equipment has been replaced since 2008.

Built on the Wellesley hospital lands

The Verve sits on part of the land freed up when Wellesley Central Hospital closed in 1998. A redevelopment corporation sold the site off in parcels; the larger ones went to Tridel and Times Group, and the smallest, with the old steam plant, went to the Aykler family, who turned it into Steam Plant Lofts around the corner.

That history explains the neighbourhood you see today. The Verve, Steam Plant Lofts, Earl Lofts and the low-rise blocks around Homewood and Earl were all built in the same few years, so this pocket feels newer and more residential than the stretch of Wellesley closer to St. James Town.

Walk west and you reach Jarvis, then the Church-Wellesley Village and Yonge. Walk east and you are into St. James Town and then Cabbagetown. The automatic panel on this page covers transit, schools and walkability.

Layouts and the records that disagree

Public records for The Verve do not line up neatly. condos.ca shows 40 floors, 444 suites and sizes from about 522 to 1,686 square feet. Dash Property Management lists 344 suites from 642 to 1,404 square feet, and the original project thread gave the tower as 39 storeys.

Some of that is how floors are counted, and some is probably the difference between the tower and the loft block. None of it is a red flag, but it is a reason to confirm your suite’s area against the registered plan, not just the listing.

Property management is also reported two ways: condos.ca lists Del Property Management, while Dash publishes the building’s resident page. Find out which firm manages it now before you buy.

Living in a 400-plus-suite tower

Scale changes daily life. In a building with several hundred suites you get a staffed concierge desk, parcel handling and a deep bench of amenities, and you also get elevator waits at rush hour, busy move-in days and a party room that has to be booked ahead. If you are coming from a small loft building, visit at 8 a.m. on a weekday before you commit.

Floor and exposure matter more here than in most buildings, because the tower rises well above its low-rise surroundings. Upper south- and west-facing suites look toward the downtown skyline; lower floors look onto Homewood, Wellesley and the neighbouring buildings. Ask which direction the suite faces and what is planned on the lots it looks across.

Large corporations also have one structural advantage: big repairs are spread across many owners, so a single project moves the fee less than it would in a 30-suite loft. That only helps if the reserve fund has kept pace, which is why the study and the last few budgets are worth reading line by line.

What The Verve costs, and what the fee covers

condos.ca puts the building average at about $883 per square foot. That is meaningfully below the newer towers along Yonge and Bloor a few blocks west, and it is the main reason buyers look east of Jarvis. You give up being on top of the subway line and gain a lower entry price.

Fees across the active listings worked out to about $0.86 per square foot. They include common elements, building insurance, parking and water. Heat is not on the inclusion list, and Dash notes that electricity is sub-metered and billed separately, so budget for your own hydro and heating rather than comparing headline fees with an older building that bundles them.

At the time of writing four suites were listed for sale, all two-bedrooms, with asking prices from about $650,000 to $1,325,000; the top of that range is a much larger suite. Three were listed for rent. Two-bedrooms around 800 to 900 square feet are the most common trade here. For aggregate recent sales, see my building sold report.

Building specifications

Amenities at The Verve

The amenity that sets The Verve apart is the rooftop pool and hot tub, which Dash lists alongside a terrace with barbecues; blogTO also mentions an outdoor pool. With a concierge, gym and media room on top of that, this is a full-service tower, and the fee is what pays for it.

Jatin’s honest take on The Verve

The Verve — frequently asked questions

Looking at Church–Wellesley, Corktown, Moss Park and Cabbagetown more broadly? Start with my Toronto community guide — the neighbourhoods, what each pocket is like, and how they compare.