The world is experiencing a gridlock due to the COVID-19, and real estate is also getting affected. Recently, Jersey Giant, which has been a fixture in the St Lawrence market for the past 35 years, has closed its doors. According to the pub’s General Manager Robert Hand, the business may not be reopening as the landlord has terminated their lease due to non-payment. The business has to leave the building by the time the commercial eviction ban is lifted. With the closure of an iconic business such as Jersey Giant, should we expect a downtrend in condo sales in St Lawrence Market?
The St. Lawrence Market neighborhood has a history that is as old as Toronto itself. There’s interesting architecture all over the neighborhood. However, a growing list of businesses is beginning to get closed in the neighborhood. Recently another pub, Failte Irish-Pub, got closed after 22 years in Mississauga. What effect will this have on real estate in the St Lawrence market? It is possible to think that declining business means an equally declining rate of home sales; this isn’t always the case. Generally, there is a drop in the sales of condominiums due to the pandemic in all of Toronto.
There was a 50.8% drop in sales of condo apartment in Q2 2020, resulting in 3,459 sales down from 7,024 sales in Q2 2019. There was also an increase in the average price of condos, with prices going up 5.1% with a projected total of $619,707 in Q2 2020. This market is experiencing a continued sequence from the past year, seeing a rise in year-over-year growth in rental listings than growth in rental transactions. As a result, rent growth is moderately paced and can be tracked on Condo Mapper.
The market is tilting towards recovery since June. Market conditions are becoming more balanced, and reports have it that the average selling price for condos is up by 5.1% in Q2-2020. In Q2 2019, the average selling price for a condo apartment was $619,707. There is still the issue of the impact of businesses shutting down on St Lawrence Market Condo for sale and rental. The Toronto, real estate market saw a decline of 7% in new rental listings. It is also worthy to note that Ontario placed a ban on short-range rentals such as Airbnb due to the pandemic. This might also be a contributing factor to the low rental turn out.
More businesses around Toronto are shutting their doors. Jules Bistro on Spadina has closed shop. As it is, St Lawrence Market has seen a 35-year-old business call it quits due to non-payment on their lease. Although businesses are shut down, they still have to pay rent, and this is affecting a lot of business. The city has, however, offered tenants the option of putting off payments until October. We can only wait and see the impact it will have on condo sales as time goes on.
