Sale of the Week: the Trinity Bellwoods home that proves $1 million doesn’t buy as much as it used to

43 thoughts on “Sale of the Week: the Trinity Bellwoods home that proves $1 million doesn’t buy as much as it used to”

1. Just insane.

2. Real gold plumbing fixtures? Real diamonds in the chandeliers? Real marble flooring? Price is unreal.

3. Do 3,400 sq’f homes sell for two million in this area? Once you add a second floor, about $600-700 grand, add in your real estate and financing costs, you’re going to need to get two million out of the place.

4. Whatever happened to buying somewhere because, ya know, you may want to live in it? Who says you “have to” get x number of dollars “out” of the place?

5. Toronto real estate is so over-inflated, it’s unattainable by single people. This sale/pricing is asinine!

6. Hate to break it to you, eventually you need to sell. The land may appreciate but the house will depreciate and if you’ve overpaid for the land then you’re going to lose your money.

   You also limit yourself on funding options in the event that you may need them, if you go to refinance this house in three years and the bank says that it’s only worth $800,000 you’re going to be in trouble.

   Price matters.

7. Because it’s an investment. The approach you’re taking to buying a house is the same approach that people take towards buying luxuries, such as art or jewellery. Unfortunately, most of us cannot approach a million-dollar purchase so indiscriminately. You certainly need to assess whether you want to live in a certain place… but to do so without recognizing that you may rely on maintaining a certain amount of equity in the house as a part of your financial position is foolish.

8. You guys can gawk at the asking price all you want. But consider why this house sold for so much. There are parts of the United States, and possibly even Canada, where a 1,700 square foot single-storey house would sell for less than $50,000. Don’t believe me? Go to Zillow and look up houses for sale between 1,600 and 1,800 square feet, up to $50,000 asking price. My search turned up over 8,500 results.

   The point is not “how much space” or “how many features” you get for your money. You look for those things when you’re buying a refrigerator. Not when you’re buying a LIFESTYLE.

   Using basic principles of economics, how many “readily available substitutes” are there to being barely one kilometre from Yonge/Dundas square, 20 metres to the nearest streetcar stop, and hardly a 15 minute walk to U of T?

   I’ll give you a hint… there aren’t many. If you want to spend $400,000 on a house, go to Markham, or Brampton. But only a select few people can have the privilege of living the “downtown” lifestyle – because they can AFFORD it.

   So, you can go ahead and make claims that the price is “asinine”, “unreal”, and “insane”. But the price is not arbitrary. It is the result of what is essentially an auction – and in an auction, the highest bidder wins, because money talks.

9. ” And here’s what’s happening in the backyard ” !!!! LOLOLOLOLOLOL !!!!!

10. Looks like the white in an OREO cookie……..sandwich :< )))))

11. “Eventually you need to sell” – only if you’re going to move elsewhere – you need somewhere to live, so if you sell one place and move to another, especially in this market, you’re wasting money.

    Your example of refinancing suggests that at the current price one is overpaying for this property (and that’s likely true) but if that is the case, why are you buying this property in the first place – people don’t (or shouldn’t) move “just ’cause” – that’s a waste of money.

12. Bzzzzt. No.. it’s not an “investment” – that’s the problem with the way the current market is – you’ve bought into the “flip this house” BS that is so prevalent these days.

13. This is beyond idiocy, but hey Toronto is the multicultural center of the universe.

    In US you can buy literally a palace (compared to this doghouse) and have 2/3 of million left.

    http://www.trulia.com/property/11960585-MT-AIRY-EAST-116-E-Durham-St-Philadelphia-PA-19119#photo-8

14. Ohhh, those hipsters living downtown life in a doghouses for a million, stumbling over homeless dudes while parading to the center of Universe at Yong/Dundas square.

    Dude, you can buy a house in SF in 20 min from DT
    http://www.trulia.com/property/3172336349-2262-48th-Ave-San-Francisco-CA-94116
    for 1/3 of this doghouse price

15. The gonna build 50 storey condo, a lot of sq ft

16. I am not talking about flipping houses. Are you saying you’d have no issue at all if you bought a $1MM house “because you like it”, only to be able to get $500k for it if there’s no demand for it 10 years later? If that would be fine by you, then I bow to you. It really must be so nice to be able to throw around house-buying money on a completely whimsical basis.

17. I hate to break it to you Nexus, eventually you will die and at that point you’re going to have to divest of your assets.

    A Honda is worth whatever someone is willing to pay for it, that said paying half a million for a Honda is probably not a good idea, no matter how long you plan on owning it. Same thing with houses, you don’t want to over pay because one day you’re going to need to sell it.

18. An more fair comparison for that property would be picking a house in the beaches or somewhere else similarly distanced from the core, and you’ll can see that they’re priced similarly.

    The property in the house is ridiculously close to downtown and that’s why it’s so expensive. It’s not rocket science.

19. There is no comparison, because Toronto is above and beyond any.

20. When you find a house for $400,000 in Markham, please tell me – you can’t buy a CONDO in Markham for $400,000! Homes average in the high $800,000’s – $900,000s with many subdivisions with homes in the millions. Believe me, I know!

21. Dundas and Euclid, 3 blocks from the forgettable/half scuzzy Dundas and Bathurst intersection, is now considered “Trinity Bellwoods” ha ha ha ha

22. No, in SOME places in the United States you can buy a house like that. You picked a home in a Philly neighborhood that’s actually well-known for its integration and affordability. You’re cherry-picking.

    Meanwhile, in NYC, $1 million gets you something not dissimilar, and at least the Toronto house in this article has an actual yard:

    http://www.trulia.com/property/3160216972-3332-Bedford-Ave-New-York-NY-10001#photo-1

23. Well, that’s what I said – Toronto known for its idiocy with houses prices plus socialism in every aspect of life.

    And it has yard?!
    Hahahaha
    fells over the table
    bhahahahaha, yard
    No, yard?!
    Seriosly, yard?!

24. umm…so million dollar home prices are somehow a sign of socialism? Do you know what that word means??

    also, you don’t have to go to the US to find cheap homes. As with virtually any other major city, there is a premium to pay in order to live there (see NYC, London, etc). For some people, that is more important than the size of the patch of green space behind their house. There are at least 2 million people in Toronto who choose to do so, and live quite happily, regardless of what you think about them.

25. Toronto is a major city because people pay premium in order to live here. And because they pay premium – it’s a major city!

    Got it.

26. 900k houses in Markham is even more funny than 1mln doghouses at the Toronto Center of Universe right at Dundas St West

27. first, I would like to reiterate – you cannot find 400k homes in Markham and second, why is the thought of 900k homes in Markham funny? what is your perception of Markham?

28. No, its a major city because it has the 4th largest population in North America (which drives up prices, yes – that is how supply and demand works. Except possibly in places that are actually socialist FYI. I hope you have looked up that word by now)

    It is also a major city because it is where the TSX (3rd largest in North America) and all the banks are headquartered, it has the biggest university in Canada and the most biomedical research outside of Boston, it has the most pro sports teams in Canada, and the list goes on. So yeah, backyards are hard to come by but that is probably not what all those people are looking for when they move there. And proximity to all those things is why there is a premium to live there.

29. Yes, man. I feel your pain – no 300k houses in Markham. Not even 400k.

    But 900k houses in Markham become a joke.

    If the hipsters here in Toronto arguing that houses at Dundas station cost over million because it’s less than 1km from Yonge/Dundas square and they have urban living while still being in a village – then I just can’t imagine what people of Markham think about this situation.

30. Man, you go in circles. Toronto is expensive, because its big and attractive. And because it’s so big and so irresistibly attractive – its so f..ing expensive!

    Have you been in these brand new bank headquarter towers in downtown? They are ridiculous. Completely sterile, no space organized for humans at the lobby, office floors with uncovered cement ceilings with wires and all crap exposed.

    Have you been in this first class city subway? Saw what’s Union station looks like and most of others? It looks like there partisans held it and fight for years so metal tokens continued to be used.

    Gardiner expressway maybe? With forest of idiotic condos blocking traffic flow from and to the city of the highway? And those condos towers itself looks butt ugly, but it needs more of course.

    How about blackouts at least once a year? How about traffic lights without synchronization that this world class city just can’t afford.

    And yes, it’s the city of socialism. If you been living here long enough you probably already figure that out.

31. Trust me, I would never pay that kind of money to live among the hipsters + be close to work. Difference between downtown Toronto + Markham is at least we can come home to big backyards + some privacy. Add to that the conservation areas making it very picturesque. As much as Markham has grown, there’s still a small town feel.

32. To be fair, in northwestern Markham, there have been some listings for houses recently in that price range – and plenty of condos. But upon further inspection, you’re right, Markham probably wasn’t the best example for that price range (I’ve mostly been in Italy and England this year, I’m a bit out of the Toronto loop).

33. haha, circles? Read your first paragraph again – all you’ve done is say the same thing twice in a different order. Its like saying ‘rain can cause things to get wet’ and ‘wetness can be caused by rain’. Both statements are true because you are saying the same thing. I would be speaking in circles if I said Toronto is expensive because it is big and attractive (true) and it is big and attractive because it is expensive (never said that).

    As for your rant about all the things that are wrong about Toronto, i’m not saying that it is a perfect city. I’m saying that 2 million people either aren’t bothered by those things, or are willing to put up with them because of all the things I described. What is more idiotic, being willing to put up with the negatives and making a conscious decision to live in the city, or living in Toronto and being so miserable that you need to complain about everything that is wrong in your city on public forums?

    And finally, I’ve lived here more than a decade. How can you possibly say that it is ‘socialist in all aspects of life’ when a house is being privately sold at more than a million dollars based on market value. What part of that is socialist to you?

34. “No, its a major city because it has the 4th largest population in North America (which drives up prices”
    +
    “And proximity to all those things is why there is a premium to live there”

    because major city -> which drives prices —|
    ^ |
    |—– people pay premium <——————-

    This way better?

    That's not the prices that make Toronto so ridiculous. It's ok to live here if stay away from miserable doghouses for a million.

    It's combination of country-like look style, even at very downtown area and believe in its "exception" because of population and prices (and TSX) – that what makes its so irrilvant.

    And socialism on top of that.

35. Again, your circle makes no sense. Major city –> drives prices is true (due to demand). People pay premium –> makes it a major city is not true. What I said is that a large population (and the resulting things that come with that – ability to have pro sports teams, tons of clients for businesses to move in and have the TSX, enough density to have major festivals and concerts, etc) makes it a major city. That is not the same as saying that people paying a premium makes it a major city. The line is still in the same direction. A major city with lots of stuff in it leads to demand which leads to prices going up.

    If you do not understand the very simple concept that big cities all around the world, and particularly living closer to their downtown areas, are more expensive than smaller cities and living further away (and somehow still think that a million dollar private house sale is somehow relevant or related to socialism), I give up on you.

36. One moment please – this is not a 1700 Sq ft house. When size is usually quoted in real estate, it doesn’t include the basement. Unless this house is 100 feet deep, it’s really a 900 sq ft house with an 800 sq ft basement.
    That doesn’t alter the value/scarcity/well-placed but ratty neighbourhood/manhattan-like/mania/hipster discussion going on but makes the ratios more comparable: It’s only 1/4 the size of a Markham house.
    Carry on…

37. And one wonders just how quickly the likes of too many of these now quite commonly lofty and arrogant Torontonians will ask for bailouts on the part of all Canadians when the market crashes.

38. I just wanted to ask if missisauga is a major city as well, along with Rihmond hill?
    Because they’d better be to justify prices of houses.

39. I have no idea how people justify paying that much to live in mississauga or Richmond Hill. I don’t live in either of those places and I am not interested in it.

    Either way, it is not relevant is it? Trinity Bellwoods (the topic of this article) is not in Mississauga or Richmond Hill. Either you bring it up because you consider those places to be part of Toronto (ie the GTA), in which case you have your answer about being a major city, or that is a completely separate conversation. If you are bringing it up to argue against my point, you again fail to grasp the direction of my argument. I have said that major cities are generally expensive around the world. I have not said that all places that are expensive are major cities. Although I would guess that mississauga and richmond hill are expensive because people want to be close to Toronto and still have a big yard (which would cost several million dollars in the city itself)

40. Why, they got a mummy as a major and best shawarma joints plus most weird condo towers in all Northern America. They surely qualified as a major city, c’mon Toronto is and Sauga can not?! Sure it is major too, you can’t buy anything there for less than half a million.

    On the other side, Toronto has a crack crack cocaine addict as mayor:
    http://www.wrjphoto.com/wp-content/uploads/2013/11/rob-ford.-A-classy-guy.jpg

    Toronto stock exchange with a display hello from 90’s
    https://www.google.ca/maps/@43.6486334,-79.3803468,3a,48y,319.96h,98.85t/data=!3m4!1e1!3m2!1scdvgQHZr22arS3BCn7hFhA!2e0?hl=en

    and plenty of raw houses at Trinity Bellwoods desired location with some especially ugly doghouses sold for million
    https://www.google.ca/maps/@43.6499233,-79.4090249,3a,75y,262.6h,84.85t/data=!3m4!1e1!3m2!1sm3ywC-BEF0iUF8ytfeFyLQ!2e0?hl=en

41. SHEER LUNACY – WHO ARE THESE IDIOTS!!!!

42. I HOPE ALL YOU PRO TORONTO REAL ESTATE IDIOTS ON THIS SITE START SAVING NOW BECAUSE SOON THIS HOUSE ( I USE THE TERM LOOSELY) WILL BE 4 MILLION AND YOU WILL NOT BE ABLE TO LIVE IN TDOT ANYMORE!!!!

43. come to Windsor, you would have paid 90,000 lol

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