A mid-rise condominium development at 875 The Queensway in Toronto will be the first to be marketed under Equiton Developments' new Maxium Collection brand. Maxium is focused on buyers who plan to live in their condos, according to the firm's chief operating officer.

“The condo market has gone through quite a transition and we believe that transition is more permanent, not just a moment in time,” Equiton COO Christopher Wein told RENX. “That speculative investor market that was highly addicted to tiny units and studios has really gone away, which I'm happy about.

"I think the future Toronto condo market is going to be healthier than the previous one.”

The 11-storey Maxium at 875 The Queensway will have 152 units and 2,500 square feet of commercial space. It was originally planned to have 178 units, but slower-than-desired sales after an initial soft launch last summer contributed to a redesign.

“We re-looked at the building from the inside out and re-did all the amenities, both on the main floor and on the rooftop,” Wein explained. “We changed the whole circulation of the building and then adjusted the average unit size, the unit make-up and the unit count.”

New unit mix at 875 The Queensway

Maxium at 875 The Queensway will now offer: nine studios; 59 one-bedroom and one-bedroom-plus-den units; 69 two-bedroom and two-bedroom-plus-den units; and 15 three-bedroom units.

Sizes range from 424-square-foot studios to 1,156-square-foot three-bedroom suites while prices range from $390,000 to $1.4 million.

Burlington, Ont.-headquartered Equiton has gone back to people who bought units last summer and given them the opportunity to change to one of the redesigned options.

The Icon Architects-designed Maxium at 875 The Queensway features interior design by The Patton Design Studio and Scavolini-designed walk-in closets and kitchens with integrated Bosch appliances. Other amenities will include:

• a wellness spa with an infrared sauna;
• an exercise room;
• a kids' play area with a treehouse; and
• a rooftop terrace with views of Lake Ontario.

Equiton acquired the 875 The Queensway site, formerly occupied by a gas station and car wash, from Format Queensway Inc. for $12.75 million in August 2023. The previous owner had achieved a zoning bylaw amendment and the property was in for site plan approval when it was acquired.

Equiton held a Maxium at 875 The Queensway launch event for brokers on Jan. 28 and has been doing more presentations this month. It will start writing deals in March.

Even though there’s been a major slump in Toronto condo sales, and Equiton does develop purpose-built rental buildings, Wein said there was no serious thought given to converting the site into an apartment development.

Equiton plans to start construction at the end of this summer and is targeting occupancy in early 2027.

Future Maxium Collection condos

All of Equiton’s future mid-rise condos in Toronto will likely be part of the Maxium Collection.

“We want to target Maxium projects in established neighbourhoods that have always been desirable neighbourhoods — not necessarily expensive neighbourhoods — but neighbourhoods that have a fabric of culture and have existed in Toronto for at least 50 years,” Wein said.

Equiton anticipates launching a Maxium-branded condo at 257 Kingston Rd. -- a development formerly called Sandstones -- this summer. It was originally proposed as a 13-storey condo with over 300 units and approximately 9,000 square feet of retail space at grade.

Designs are being finalized and talks with the City of Toronto are taking place regarding another Maxium-branded condo at 1099 Broadview Ave. near Danforth Avenue that was formerly known as TEN99 Broadview. It was originally proposed as a 12-storey, 355-unit condo with 4,697 square feet of commercial space.

“Maxium is a product line for us, not a project,” said Wein, who noted all the buildings will have larger units and share similar qualities, features and finishes, but still have distinct identities. “By buying a Maxium product, you know what to expect.”

Looking to acquire more properties

Equiton has approximately 16,000 investors and 240 employees. It owns 48 properties valued at around $1.5 billion in 18 communities and its developments have an estimated completion value of $1.45 billion.

Equiton continues to purchase purpose-built rental apartments through its Equiton Residential Income Fund Trust as it also seeks more sites to develop both condos and apartments.

“We're actively making offers every few weeks,” Wein said. “One of the challenges that we find is that the land vendors’ expectations on price for land versus land buyers’ expectations on price for land don't seem to be fully aligned at this moment in time. 

“I think the vendors of development sites are still holding out for prices that perhaps need to be adjusted for the future.”  

Marquis Modern Towns and Riverain District

Equiton recently completed Marquis Modern Towns, a partnership with Reid’s Heritage Properties for 96 stacked townhomes across four buildings along with a 6,800-square-foot The Beer Store on a 3.5-acre site at 710 Woolwich St. in Guelph, Ont.

All of the sold units will be occupied by the end of February and some finished units are still for sale.

“We've been doing lots of open houses and, since the last interest rate cut, we've noticed a lot of increased traffic and increased deal flow,” Wein said.

Riverain District is a three-phase, purpose-built rental development in partnership with Main and Main on a 4.2-acre site at 29 Selkirk St. and 2 Montreal Rd. in Ottawa. It will have over 1,000 units managed by Equiton Living upon completion.

Lease-up and occupancy have begun for the first building and construction of the second could begin by the end of this year if all goes well.