Triomphe East Tower, 15 Northtown Way: Tridel Tower With Hydro in the Fee

Triomphe East Tower at 15 Northtown Way is the building I bring up when a buyer near Yonge and Finch wants to know exactly what they will spend each month. Condos.ca lists hydro, heat and air conditioning in the fee, which is rare, and the amenity list includes a pool, a tennis court and a bowling alley. It is a Tridel tower from 2003 with 359 suites, and most of what is listed today is one-bedroom-plus-dens and two-bedrooms under $600,000. I’m Jatin Dua, RE/MAX Quantum Realty.

The eastern half of the original Triomphe

Northtown Way is a short street east of Yonge, between Finch and Sheppard, built up by Tridel in the early 2000s. Triomphe East Tower at 15 Northtown Way and Triomphe at 5 Northtown Way, which REW calls the West Tower, were the earlier pair. Grande Triomphe at 10 Northtown Way and Grand Triomphe 2 at 500 Doris Avenue came after.

REW links 15 Northtown Way to 5 Northtown Way, which is typical of a two-tower project that shares some facilities. Ask the manager which amenities are shared with the West Tower and how those costs are split, because that affects your fee and your reserve fund.

Sources differ on some basics. Condos.ca lists 26 storeys, while REW counts 27 floor levels, which may reflect how the ground floor or mechanical level is counted. Condos.ca names Icon Property Management, while REW names Del Property Management. Confirm the current manager on the status certificate, and use the corporation number, TSCC-1531, so there is no mix-up with the neighbouring towers.

Hydro in the fee, and what that means

The headline here is what the fee covers. Condos.ca lists air conditioning, common elements, heat, hydro, building insurance and water, and a recent rental listing described all utilities as included. In most towers built since, hydro is on your own meter, and in many, heat and cooling are too.

That makes the fee look high on paper. Across the current sale listings, fees average about $1.03 per square foot, which is higher than many newer towers quote. But those lower fees usually leave hydro, and often heat and cooling, to you. Once you add back a year of hydro, heating and cooling to the cheaper building, the gap narrows sharply.

There is a catch. When hydro is shared, every owner pays for heavy users, and buildings with bulk hydro sometimes move to individual sub-metering, which changes the math. Ask whether the board has discussed sub-metering and check recent budgets for how utility costs are trending.

Condos.ca does not list parking in the fee, although a recent rental listing came with a parking space and a locker. Confirm whether parking and a locker are deeded with the suite you are buying and whether either carries a separate charge.

Amenities from a different era

REW lists a pool, hot tub, sauna, gym, tennis court, bowling alley, library, lounge and party room, common kitchen, rooftop garden, concierge and 24-hour security. A recent listing also mentioned a games room. Condos.ca lists the concierge, sauna, tennis court, security and an underground garage.

A bowling alley and a tennis court are not things you will find in a tower built today, and for families and active owners they are a real reason to choose this building over a newer one. They also cost money to run and to replace, and every owner pays for them.

Because the amenities may be shared with the West Tower, confirm opening hours, any booking rules and how crowded the pool and gym get. With two towers drawing on them, peak times can be busy.

Suites and daily life near Yonge and Finch

Condos.ca lists suites from about 545 to 1,944 square feet. The current sale listings are a one-bedroom-plus-den in the 600s, a two-bedroom in the 700s and a two-bedroom-plus-den. REW shows layouts in the one- and two-bedroom range on most floors, so the larger suites are the exception.

Listings point to the subway, a Metro grocery store, restaurants, cinemas and Mel Lastman Square within walking distance. This is the well-served part of the Yonge strip, where most errands are a walk. The data panel on this page has the transit, school and walkability details.

New towers keep going up along Yonge between Sheppard and Finch. That means more shops and services, more construction and, for resale, more competition from newer suites. Condition and the fee inclusions are what will set a suite here apart.

What Triomphe East Tower costs

Condos.ca puts the building average at about $765 per square foot. That is below the newest towers in this part of North York and close to its sister towers on Northtown Way, which is what you would expect for a 2003 building.

When I checked, three suites were listed for sale, asking from $488,000 to $599,000, with fees from about $694 to $1,214 a month. That range covers a one-bedroom-plus-den, a two-bedroom and a larger two-bedroom-plus-den, so compare suites by size, not just bedroom count.

There were also three suites for rent, an even split that suggests a mix of owners and investors. For an investor, utilities in the fee are an easy selling point to tenants, and they make the rent you can ask easier to compare with competing listings. For an owner-occupier, they make the monthly budget simple, which is worth something when hydro and gas rates move. For closed results, use the sold data on this page or ask me for a building sold report.

Building specifications

Amenities at Triomphe East Tower

This is one of the broadest amenity lists on the Yonge strip, built at a time when developers competed on recreation. If you would use the pool, courts and bowling, they replace several memberships; if not, you are sharing their cost anyway.

Jatin’s honest take on Triomphe East Tower

Triomphe East Tower — frequently asked questions

Looking at Yonge & Eglinton, Davisville and North Toronto more broadly? Start with my Toronto community guide — the neighbourhoods, what each pocket is like, and how they compare.