It’s all in the details
Trends that are making homes work a little harder...and look a lot better.
Luxury waterfront living is an easy sell, but with new restrictions in place that only a pandemic can create, the allure to live closer to a shoreline is being magnified even further.
According to Anthony Hitt, president and CEO of Engel & Völkers Americas — a company that operates in 30 countries and specializes in the brokerage of premium residential properties, commercial real estate, and even yachts and aircrafts — living next to the water has been important to people at all price points since the beginning of time.
He says there are several reasons, including the views, as well as the serenity and tranquility of being around water.
“There are so many studies that look at the effect that water has on our psyche and stress levels,” he says. “In the time that we are living in, where stress levels are so high because of the new normals that are coming out virtually every day, we are looking for that space that allows us to reconnect.”
Hitt adds that as a result of the lockdown, people’s tastes have changed when it comes to their living needs.
“There is a move to people saying, ‘I need to have a space that makes me feel a certain way and gives me the ability to work a certain way as well,’” he says. “Space wasn’t as important when you were traveling 50 per cent of the time, and in the office, and having dinners in restaurants. When suddenly everything is happening in your own space, you need that extra bedroom or that extra office or that nook that you can use.
“As we go through our lives and evolve as a society, the reality is that people are always going to want to be in beautiful places. Being next to the water is always going to be an attractive place for anyone, especially for those who have the ability to afford it.”
There is no shortage of premium waterfront condo units across the GTA, though only a sprinkling of actual homes. But none can compete with a two- storey marvel situated at 16 Harbour St., located on the 54th and 55th floor, now on the market for $ 7.25 million. It comes with a multitude of amenities, including perhaps its most stunning feature: the private indoor sky pool and spa.
“There is no other condo in the GTA with a pool inside,” says John Fortney, a sales representative with Harvey Kalles Real Estate Ltd., the brokerage firm holding this listing. “This one is larger than some of the public pools in condos. It’s huge.”
A fascinating gamut of people have already expressed an interest in buying it.
“It is the epitome of a bachelor pad — it’s incredible. It is also great for a family, especially if they want privacy and do not want to use the public pool. They have everything they want in the condo,” Fortney says. “I have had international buyers — people who have multiple homes around the world. And then there is the über- cool kind of bachelor who wants the ultimate party place, and even some young people who have some money, as well as families.”
These potential buyers have homes outside of the city, and this would be their downtown abode.
“One person asked if we could figure out how they could park their yacht out in the harbour because there were no bays in Toronto large enough for their boat,” Fortney adds. “Life’s big problems.”
And then there are the views: “Depending on the day, the view is completely different, whether it’s cloudy or sunny,” Fortney says. “It is like a train set. You can watch the trains coming and going from Union Station, you have the Gardiner and DVP, and you have the airplanes and the sailboats. There is so much to watch. It’s like you are on top of the world. It’s spectacular.”
As for the layout of the three- bedroom unit, according to a Harvey Kalles spec sheet, two walkouts access the “large SouthWest terrace offering spectacular views across the Lake and the Island. Separating the living from the den is a floor to ceiling black granite two- sided fireplace.”
All bedrooms include full ensuite bathrooms, and whoever ends up buying the unit will also inherit all the furnishings ( should they want to keep them), an elevator between the two floors, their own private entrance with a separate concierge, and six parking spaces.