Google's New Toronto Headquarters
Google made a big announcement last week. They’ll be opening 3 new offices in Toronto, Montreal, and Kitchener. They’re bringing 5,000 new jobs with them and we couldn’t be more excited.
King Street East
They have just signed a long term lease agreement to occupy a brand new 400,000 square feet, 18 floor office building being built at 65 King Street East, Toronto.
When this building first came to conception and began construction, it was being built completely on spec. This means that Google had not signed any leases for the building, as any builder typically would when it comes to a general office building before actually starting construction.
This can be risky, as the builder has to cover the costs associated with running the building. This includes the mortgage, the operating costs, and other expenses. Because Toronto continues to have the lowest office vacancy rate in Canada, the builder, Carttera Group, felt completely comfortable starting this building without securing any tenants.
Looks like their decision paid off, with Google signing a long term lease just last week for the entire building.
We’re Moving East
This announcement is exciting because we’re moving into the east side of Yonge. Google is moving in, we’ve had Coca Cola here for a number of years now, Globe and Mail, SAS Canada, and a number of companies that are starting to move their office space to east of Yonge Street.
As soon as Google made their announcement, one of my top clients called me and mentioned they want to buy a condo in The Saint, a Minto building currently in presales. It’s going up at 89 Church Street, only a 2 ½ minute walk to the Google building.
There are a couple other condo buildings going up further east this spring. We have Corktown Condos at 18 Eastern Avenue, a boutique style building situated in the Court Town District, and Canary Condos in the Canary District.
I’m excited because I own a number of condos in that area, which is still more affordable from an investment perspective than going west of Yonge.
I actually purchased a 2-bedroom condo in the Canary complex some years ago at $579,000. It’s a nice quiet pocket just on the outskirts of the city core. I see it as where the future urban family is going to live. It has wide sidewalks, a 28 acre park at the end of the street, your zone for a future school, and a lower height density. I’ll be renting it for $3,000 per month and expect the market value to be about $850,000. Of course, all with the added bonus of being walking distance from the Google office right on the brand new streetcar line to come.
Jump In
It’s expensive to buy downtown and we’re looking for our value pockets. East Yonge is still trying to catch up to the west side but that’s going to level off as all these jobs continue to pour into this area.
If you’re interested in investing in condos and specifically want to be downtown Toronto, reach out by emailing contact@alexjwilson.com or you can call/text (416) 996-5181. I’ll show you where you want to be investing and build your generational wealth. I want to help you secure your financial freedom.