Condos in Ottawa have a hierarchy to them. There is the best, the most popular, the “ok” ones, the “oh no way in hell” ones, and the “what is that”? The Confederation Line of the O-Train isn’t just making the best buildings shine, it’s making the less obvious ones start to look like diamonds in the rough. Here are the top three condo buildings to benefit from the O-Train:
SoHo Parkway | 201 Parkdale Av:
What’s the first thing that comes to mind when you think of Parkdale Ave, the Parkdale Market or the busy corner of Parkdale Ave and Wellington St? Parkdale Avenue was supposed to become the next to be condo corridor in Ottawa (think of Rideau Street), but it didn’t materialize. Parkdale Avenue is turning into rentals, one huge lot is for sale, and one developer is still waiting to see what happens. That said, there is one newer building on the street that bears mention, SoHo Parkway | 201 Parkdale Av. The forgotten child of the SoHo family (SoHo Lisgar, SoHo Champagne, and the ‘coming soon’ SoHo Italia), SoHo Parkway | 201 Parkdale Av offers similar amenities (minus the concierge and hotel) and same finishes the SoHo brand is known for. The building has had a history of condo fee issues, but those seem to be subsiding and stabilizing. One-bedroom units in the building are selling at an average of $289,846. Compare that to standout buildings in the Mechanicsville / Westboro area, such as 150 Caroline Av with an average sale price of $323,300 and One Thr3e One | 131 Holland Ave at $348,208, and you’re looking at price difference of 10% and 16% respectively. Considering SoHo Parkdale has the shortest walk (just six minutes!) to the O-Train at Tunney Pasture of all three buildings SoHo Parkway seems to have great value.
East Market Phase 3 | 179 George St:
The hustle and bustle of the Byward Market has been dampened over the last few years by the closure of Rideau St and the persistent issue of people wandering through the street. Anyone care to wander down Waller Mall alone at night (or during the day for that matter)? Fortunately, things are looking up in the market! Rideau St is starting to open back up, new condo developments are being announced, such as Claridge Royale, and the Salvation Army is set to move out of the Byward Market and into Vanier. One of the prime buildings to benefit from all of this is East Market Phase 3 | 179 George St. East Market Phase 3 has been a slightly forgotten project with the recent developments of Claridge Plaza, The Galleria, and 90 George St. As the only soft loft in the market, East Market Phase 3 caters to a specific condo clientele. The rejuvenation of the Byward Market could create massive value buying opportunities at East Market Phase 3. Currently, the average sale price of a one-bedroom condo in the building is $269,575. That’s 15% lower than Claridge Plaza Phase 1 | 200 Rideau St and The Galleria Phase 2 | 238 Besserer St! With a quick 5-minute walk to Rideau Station, East Market Phase 3 is poised to be a renewed hot condo building.
The Pinnacle | 445 Laurier Ave W
Centretown saw a massive condo boom from 2014-2016 with new buildings such as Hideaway |340 McLeod St, SoHo Lisgar |300 Lisgar St, TriBeCa | 179 Metcalfe St, The Slater | 199 Slater St, Gotham | 224 Lyon St, and Cathedral Hill | 428 Sparks St. Since then there has been a big lull in new developments, with the exception of SoBa | 203 Catherine St, which was completed in 2019. With not a lot in the condo pipeline, a few of the older buildings are going to get a second look; primarily the Pinnacle. It was built back in 2007 and generally has larger floor plans than the newer builds. The average sale price of a one-bedroom unit is $290,214, which is 8% less than the Mondrian | 324 Laurier Av W and 18% less than Gotham | 224 Lyon St. With a 4-minute walk to the Lyon O-Train station, the building could provide great value for Centretown condo buyers.
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