Are Modern Condos "Luxury"? 

Good video, though it would have been nice to touch on the dynamic where supply shortages mean the units are already going to be naturally very expensive (regardless of amenities), so why not just aim fully at the top of the market while you're at it!

The Zac Jardak song is back! That's... quite the thumbnail

I keep seeing (new) condos where the balcony is literally 20% of the floorspace of the unit. In a climate where you can only use the balcony a few months of the year! If anything was being built without that particular luxury I'd be all over it, personally.

Hey, so great examples in the condo space, but given the majority of housing in cities is lower density (townhouses, singles, duplexes), I feel like you are missing a ton of the code requirements. Ask your people how much they would remove from the value of a home for the following deficiencies: 1) stairs with 30" treads (vs 36) 2) winders that turn 90ndegree corners (vs the rounded offset now required) 3) living rooms with 4 sockets (instead of 8) and bedrooms with 3 sockets (instead of 4) 4) heating registers that aren't under the window but located somewhere else 5) a perimeter drain that vents to daylight near a storm drain, rather than connecting directly to the sewer 6) Trees that are on average 10 years older. 7) A yard that is only double the size of house and garage, rather than 3 times the size. Because for a new build where I live, these requirements can easily double the cost per square foot of housing, especially for smaller homes. That's where the stupid government over regulation is killing us, not condos (where these expenses are often communal and benefit from economies of scale or are diluted across many units).

This really makes me think that maybe private development isn’t the only way we should be building new units for buyers. Perhaps the government should be stepping in and building at least some with fewer amenities, in addition to the cooperative housing they should also be building but aren’t. A girl can dream.

One example where the modern code often DOES go beyond actual demand is 1-2 garage parking spaces per unit.

People in Montréal would rather have a balcony than a garage

5:40 LOL @ Nightwash :D more like Morningwash while I clean the coffee I just blew all over my desk.

Love the quality of your videos! Honestly, it's channels like yours that really makes me want to pursue a masters in Urban Planning.

Let's say balconies are a must have when buy a place. At least when you can't get a garden or something like this. Still i don't see why every unit must have one.

I can't live in an apartment without a balcony and actually think they should be bigger on new buildings. They tend to be too small. The shared one in the back that doubles as a fire escape is a good idea though. After moving to a single-family home I really miss the low maintenance and efficiency of condo life. Nowadays I feel all my free time is used up with DIY projects around the house. I lived in a simple 4-story building with no "luxury" amenities. It did have a balcony, elevator, in-suite laundry, and underground parking for about 1/3 of the units.

I did not see the balcony thing coming either. I often bike alongside the Lachine canal going downtown and the parks are always crowded, but I almost never see anybody on the balconies in the new condos.

I think the balconies are SUPER important. Specifically in our struggle to convince Americans to live in dense transit-oriented neighborhoods, and stop buying mansions in suburban culdesacs. Balconies, outdoor terraces, and Rooftops with clubhouses to host parties are our first line of offense on the suburbia.

Nice reference on the self sealing stem bolts 🖖

During my daily walks I never see anyone on balconies. Except of course the people below my apartment use their balcony, and with my window open I can hear everything they say. It's like they are in the room with me. It's super annoying.

Listening to your accent is wild! I'm also a Kiwi and picked you out within a few words, but some random words also sound extremely American

Love your content!!! Moving to Montreal from Ottawa next week! Maybe I'll see you around town sometime :)

Damn the balcony thing is real, although I really dont get it myself, I would much rather have that space as part of the apartment or let the apartment be cheaper. Here in Vienna we have cluster of skyscrapers a bit away from the central part of the city (where the UN is located) and they built an office skyscraper there which had an all glass facade. It was part of a development with two buildings that looked similar (both all glass facade), but they didnt build the second building because there is too much office space in Vienna and it wasnt economical. So they planned to build it as an apartment tower instead, but they redesigned the tower because they claimed they couldnt get their apartments sold if they dont have balconies and those were not possible with the old design. Initially I thought thats a stupid reason, but now with your video I have some doubts. Still makes no sense to me, what are you going to do with a balcony 150 meters up in the air when the wind blows strongly all the time, well I guess people are still paying for them so it makes sense

That's interesting considering I would take laundry over an elevator (if the building is a smaller walk up and not some giant tower of course) ANY day.

Balconies and washing machines are very important for me in looking for an apartment.

Great video. Good to see you on CBC too.

Great Mac and me reference

Interesting take Paige but I suspect reducing these 'luxuries' wouldn't actually produce more residential units. This in turn keeps the prices sky high with no 'luxuries' to show far. In Edmonton there are a ton of older condos lacking elevators etc.. and they aren't selling (or are selling at a loss) due to all the newer condos having these amenities. I feel cutting these 'luxuries' (they ain't luxuries!) would just make it very difficult to resale when you want to move/upgrade. IMO you've tackled the real issue in another video; insufficient high density projects being blocked are causing the bulk of the skyrocketing prices.

Great video. I've never thought of this.

Cool video dude I hope you get more views

I talked to a developer once about what could be cut from a development to save the most amount per unit? The answer is simple and unequivocal.. PARKING. Burnaby as of 2023 said it costs approximately $100K per parking space to build. If you scrap it entirely (as is now allowed anywhere in Edmonton) the cost of housing would plunge by 30-40% per unit... If you are within 400m of a rapid transit station you really don't need parking period. Mass Transit becomes your daily whip....

Great video!

Thank you. I'm thinking of making a video about the housing crisis using ex-commieblocks as a comparison. They were built with ZERO amenities, zero architectural decorative features, painted concrete walls and ceiligns, and many don't even have a lobby. Most of these former commieblocks are actually now condominiums. The result? Condos that cost 150-200 thousand złotych (about $40K-$60K in Canadian money). Poland also restricts foreign property ownership with a law that has been in place since 1920.

You're getting a like for the DS9 reference.

8:23 was that a subtle star trek reference I detected ?

Regressive development fees have a lot to do with it too I'd say

The Greenfell tower neither had spinglers nor an elevator for the fire brigade and only one set of stairs.

RE Fire safety - lol. Look at the actual costs of fire safety on building construction. Often the regulations are 30 years behind the technology, the sprinklers do nothing, and even make things worse. My Condo had 10+ floors of furniture destroyed due to faulty sprinklers. Regulation in almost all cases are useless if not harmful.

Your accent can be hard to pin down sometimes but the kiwi came out strong on "garage to park your car".

Balconies should be mandated. You can dry your clothes using the sun instead of carbon fuelled dryers. You can smoke. You can put smelly drying paint craft projects out there to dry. You can put a rug out there after dog has had an accident on it. You can grow a plant to provide food for birds and bees. Balconies are essential.

How does subsidize housing fit in the real estate? I’m kinda curious on what you think about it?

... And we decide what we want based on what we can afford, which is largely dictated by various questionable government programs like CMHC insurance drastically increasing what we can get for a given monthly payment.

Depends on who you ask. Try asking somebody who lives under a bridge or a tarp. Hot water is a luxury to somebody who has a condo with no hot water.

glad that just like the government and developers i can also be groups into one stereotypical category that i need all these features. Except for laundry i couldn't give a shit for any other feature

I see what living in Montréal has done to you lol People aren’t as friendly in rest of Canada as they are in Montréal(maybe it’s just a by product of city design) Also go to the park and hangout? Well that’s not a thing in rest of Canada because of drinking laws and shit parks in general. I have lived in Toronto, Waterloo, Vancouver and now in Montréal.

But... Where do you put your clothes to air dry in the summer if you do not have a balcony?

Great video. You, urbanity, and njb should do a collab

8:25 - Damn that reminds me, I desperately need some self-sealing stem bolts, I've got a guy that is willing to trade me seven tessipates of land for hundred of them but damned if I can find any these days. If anyone knows anyone from The Noh-Jay Consortium please tell them to contact me

When a developer… 😂

Still we people have become lazy. In some communities it is regarded standard to face stairs even the elderly. (Yes this true for north America and london too many stations are not accessible.

Paige: "Just go to a park!" Me: *Cries in covid quarantine*

I mean tbh you get all of this stuff for free in Vienna. I'm not gonna rush to blame modern people for wanting modern things especially when it's so easy that a government can find a way to get it to the average person for free. Would it be tough? Sure. Does our current system not give us a way? Sure. But it can't be that hard if it's already happening.

Condos often sit empty. We need more rentals.