It’s no secret that the condo market in Toronto is a little saturated at the moment. The number of transactions have dropped considerably in resale units and even more so in new construction projects over the last half of 2012. There are many benefits of a hard loft.

Gaze in the general direction of downtown and count the cranes; there are many more units to come. Prices have leveled out as well.

What to do if you’re in the market for a condo? Consider a hard loft: you’ll get the condo lifestyle while softening the blow of a potential price drop. A hard loft is an older building, often a factory or warehouse that has been restored and converted for residential use. They typically feature some combination of exposed bricks, beams, ductwork, pipes, high ceilings and large, often original windows. Hard lofts are not to be confused with soft lofts which are new construction buildings trying to achieve the look and feel of a hard loft.

Aside from being awesome in general, a big advantage of buying a hard loft in Toronto is that there are a finite number of conversion opportunities. Most of the building that can be converted have and there are not that many more to convert. This should act as a buffer to price fluctuations in the condo market. Supply and demand folks, not many units + lots of people think they are cool.

Own a hard loft? We love listing them. It gives us a chance to be creative and give our photographer free range to explore her artistic side. Makes for a killer listing trailer opportunity, too!

Over the coming weeks we will look at some of our favourite hard loft conversions in the city. We will start next week with The Wrigley Lofts in Leslieville.

Interested in buying or selling a hard loft? Want more information? Call or email us  info@nickandhilary.com. We welcome the opportunity to work with you.