These small living spaces — dubbed “micro-condos” — are already common in heavily populated cities like Tokyo, Hong Kong and New York, and they now appear to be coming to select Canadian cities.
“Smart House Condos,” by Urban Capital and Malibu, will be located in the city’s Queen West neighbourhood, with a starting price in the mid-$200,000s for a 300 square foot unit.
Earlier this year, a development in Surrey, B.C., made headlines for its small size and even smaller starting price of $109,000 – a standout in the lower mainland’s famously expensive real estate market.
However, many Canadian think the so called “Manhattanization” is nothing but a bozo bullsh*t.
Will ‘micro-condos’ take off in Canada?
An artist’s concept of the Smart House Toronto project (smarthousetoronto.com)
Canadians need to pull together and build private co-ops themselves for $45,000 a unit, sans profit. Even in downtown Toronto it can be done.Two victorian rooming houses can be replaced with 50 efficiency units on 4 floors, with half a floor underground, princess balconies and nice finishes throughout. CMHC should pull out the stops so folks of modest means, ritirees, etc., can pool meagre resources and build.
Is this another elite climate saving propaganda scheme? Do Al Gore and David Suzuki live in teeny boxes like these? No they have 3-4 homes scattered around various haunts around the world. But they sure are good at preaching to the gullible aren’t they? Go ahead take their bait while they giggle at you for being one of their useful idiots falling for such nonsense.
Gouging by developers. $200,000+ for 300 sq.ft. is highway robbery.
Personally, I think co-op may not be ideal since it’s not that marketable, but it is a solution nonetheless. Co-op is a problem simply because banks say they’re a problem … Now you see the problem ?
The truth is land isn’t that expensive in Canada (“free” in some cases), we are after all, the second largest landmass on earth. Theoretically, you can easily build a 1,500sf house/apartment for $150,000 (actually a lot lesser than that if you can take away the cronies and scamsters). And the maintenance fees ? Well, I say $100 is plenty for now condos. The rest is nothing but pure profits … ?
Well, they say Condo and Construction is a Mafia business, didn’t they ?
Whaddaya Say?