While all signs point to Toronto’s real estate market being in a coma, with housing sales taking longer than ever, there are still some shenanigans happening.
Take 152 Barrington Ave., for example.
This two-bedroom, one-bathroom detached house in Crescent Town sold in just three days, and it didn’t even have walls.
Exposed insulation in what might be the kitchen.
The home was mid-demolition with exposed insulation, wiring, plumbing, subflooring, and it still managed to sell for over asking.
To be fair, asking was only $599,900, and it sold for $607,000.
A door to the backyard.
And yes, it is a detached house in Toronto that is under $1 million, which is like finding a needle in a haystack. But is it a good buy? It’s debatable.
The shed at the back of the property.
The home is on a generous 25 by 147-foot lot, so there’s lots of room to add to it and potentially even have a garden suite.
The only bathroom.
But the amount of work and capital needed to get the home to be livable is substantial.
Hardwood floors in the attic.
Currently, renovation costs are about $100 to $200 per square foot in Toronto and depending on the type of materials you end up using this can be substantially more.
A bedroom on the second floor.
If you’re adding onto the home or building something new, that is going to cost $300 – $400 per square foot or more.
The kitchen.
So while the house was only purchased for $600K, renovation costs are likely going to bump the price up to well over $1 million.
The unfinished basement.
Not to mention, when it comes to real estate, location is king, and Crescent Town is not exactly considered to be the best of locations.
The extension of the house.
Property values have been dropping almost 20 per cent year-over-year in this area and homes are selling for well below East York averages.
Opened walls and ceilings.
Plus, the crime rate in this area is almost 40 per cent higher than the Ontario average, which can also be a major factor in terms of re-sale value.
The basement.
But if you were planning on using it as a rental property, it might be a bit better.
A sort of finished part of the basement.
Rental prices in this area have been steadily increasing year-over-year, although still below East York’s average.
Despite all that, it is still kinda nice to see a detached house sell for under $1 million in this city.
The large backyard.
It kind of gives hope that housing prices will become reasonable in the future.
