Plaza on Yonge: a new Yonge Street condo you can move into now — who is it for?

Stand at the corner of Yonge Street and Cummer Avenue and you can see the H Mart that opened in September across the road, with Finch station a few blocks south. On that corner stands a finished new condo. Normally you sign for a new condo and wait three to five years for the keys. Here, you sign and move in.

So the question in this column is not “is it good?” but “good for whom, and on what terms?” I will go through it line by line using the October 6, 2026 price list and floor plans I received directly from the developer (Plaza). You can download the full price list and every floor plan on the project page. Prices and units left change daily, so read the numbers below as “the price list on that date”.

Where it is: a walk to Finch station, H Mart across the street

The address is 5858 Yonge St. Yonge is Toronto’s spine, so TTC buses pass the building, and the Korean restaurants and grocery stores around Yonge & Finch and Yonge & Steeles are right there. Thornhill and Richmond Hill are just north.

The subway is Finch station: the north end of Line 1 Yonge, and the terminal where GO buses and York Region buses meet. Measured on map coordinates it is about 400 m from the building in a straight line (a reference figure from OpenStreetMap). The developer also describes Finch Station as a short walk away. If you commute downtown or transfer to a York Region bus, this one fact matters as much as the price.

Groceries end at the crosswalk. At 5803 Yonge St is H Mart (H Mart Cummer), which opened on September 17, 2026. You will not need the car for Korean groceries. Restaurants, cafés, banks and pharmacies line Yonge Street, and the developer notes Centerpoint Mall and parks nearby.

How many minutes the walk takes depends on your pace. Walking it yourself is the most accurate test, and I am happy to go and time it with you.

The H Mart address and opening date are from September 2026 blogTO and Curiocity reports (checked November 1, 2026); the distance is a reference figure from OpenStreetMap coordinates. Transit and shops change, so check for yourself when you visit.

The price list, taken apart

The list has three parts: tower suites, terrace suites with a large private terrace, and two-storey towns. Starting prices by model (as of October 6, 2026, with the HST rebate included):

Per-square-foot figures are the starting price divided by the area, for reference only. Floor premiums may apply, and areas are approximate per Tarion Bulletin 22.

“So what’s the catch?” — that question first

The table raises an obvious question: if a two-bedroom in a new building on Yonge is $575,000, something must be off. So I lined up the published starting prices of the 50 GTHA pre-construction and new projects I track (checked October 2026, the list on the pre-construction page). Only one project, in Pickering ($344,990), starts below $399,000. Within the City of Toronto this building is the lowest, and the next one starts at $487,990. Most of the others are pre-construction with occupancy in 2027 to 2029; this one is already built.

It is also low next to resale condos. In TRREB’s September 2026 statistics the average condo apartment sale in the City of Toronto was $640,248 and the median $535,000, and the Toronto C07 district, where this building sits, averaged $552,031 (33 sales). Averages mix unit sizes, so it is not a direct comparison, but it does mean a new building is selling in the price range of existing condos.

So why? Three things I could verify. First, the starting prices are for lower floors and north exposures (floor premiums apply higher up). Second, the second bedroom in the tower suites is mostly small (dimensions below). Third, the whole Toronto condo market is trading below last year’s prices right now. There is also something I could not verify: why the developer chose this price at this moment. Only the developer knows that, and I will not guess at it in print.

Starting prices are the lowest price each project publishes; unit size, floor and what is included (parking, closing costs) differ, so the comparison has limits. Per square foot, tower suites work out to about $853 to $1,005; Toronto pre-construction projects on my list that publish a per-square-foot price start at $995, and one at $1,600. Statistics and prices change every month.

The numbers as one family’s month (a made-up example)

This is not a real client; it is an example invented for the arithmetic. Say a couple renting in North York buys the 637 sq ft two-bedroom (2-C, $575,000, one parking space included).

The $28,750 deposit is not an extra cost; it becomes part of the down payment. Land transfer tax (twice in Toronto), legal fees and the 8% sales tax on the premium are extra cash at closing. The payment is a reference figure at an assumed rate; your real limit is set by the stress test (contract rate + 2% or 5.25%). The blog post on the mortgage stress test has the full calculation.

Three things that caught my eye, and the “but” for each

• Two bedrooms from $575,000. The 620 sq ft 2-A (floors 27 and up, southwest) is $579,000 and the 637 sq ft 2-C is $575,000, with one parking space included. But the floor plan shows the second bedroom in 2-A at 9'2" x 8'2": room for a double bed and a small closet. Decide with a tape measure whether it works as a child’s room or a home office.
• Terrace suites are “a condo with a yard”, which you should read as “a terrace”. The 2-T (903 sq ft, $950,000) comes with a 26'4" x 16'8" private terrace, and the 3-C (1,157 sq ft, $1,150,000) with a 35'4" x 16'0" one. But they cost more than tower suites of the same size. The question is whether outdoor space is worth that difference to you.
• Towns include two parking spaces and two lockers, and a 911 sq ft two-storey town (TH-A) starts at $985,000. The maintenance fee is $0.29 per sq ft against $0.73 for suites. But most plans put the bedrooms upstairs and the living room and kitchen on the ground floor, so you climb stairs every day. They may not suit parents living with you or anyone with bad knees.

Terms: 5% deposit, move in now, closing costs

The terms are simple. You pay 5% of the price on signing by bank draft or certified cheque (deposits go to the lawyers Eizenman & Dale LLP, in trust), and you close right away. Compared with the usual pre-construction 15% to 20% spread over years, the upfront amount is small.

Do not skip past “builder’s closing cost included”. In pre-construction, development charges, meter installation and Tarion enrolment fees usually get added at closing; this price list says the builder covers those. Which items exactly must be checked in the adjustments clause of the agreement. Land transfer tax and your own lawyer’s fee are still paid by you.

Move-in ready also means there is no interim occupancy period (living in the unit before the condo is registered). There is no occupancy fee, and your mortgage starts right away. In other words, you borrow at today’s rates, today. Get a pre-approval first.

Maintenance fees and monthly costs

Estimated maintenance fees are $0.73 per sq ft a month for suites (internet included) and $0.29 for towns. A 637 sq ft two-bedroom works out to about $465 a month, and a 1,255 sq ft town to about $364 (reference calculations). Hydro, water and heating/cooling (BTU) are separately metered, and parking adds $65 a month and a locker $20.

Fees are “estimated” and can change with the first annual budget after you move in. The good news: because the building is already built, the status certificate (the document with the condo corporation’s finances and rules) shows the real budget and reserve fund. In pre-construction you usually cannot see that document; here you can. That is this building’s quiet advantage. Get it before you sign.

What “HST rebate included” means

The price list says prices include the proposed HST rebate. When you buy a new home and you or a family member live in it, part of the HST comes back as a rebate; the developer takes that rebate and lowers the price by that amount. If you plan to live there, that is fine.

If you plan to rent it out, it works differently. Investors normally pay the rebate amount on closing, then apply for the rental rebate separately after signing a lease of at least one year with a tenant. The conditions and amounts follow CRA rules, so check with an accountant. The glossary entry “HST new housing rebate” goes into detail.

Who it suits (my opinion)

• First-time buyers, especially those paying rent along Yonge Street: studios to one-bedrooms are $399,000 to $445,000, and you can move in with 5% down. Put your rent and a mortgage payment side by side, as in the example above, and the answer shows itself.
• Families who need to stay in North York or Thornhill for parents or school: the two- and three-bedroom tower suites ($575,000 to $829,000) and the towns are the candidates. School assignment depends on the address, so confirm with the school board.
• Investors who do not want to wait: the building is finished, so you can rent it out right away, and the terms are simple. Sort out the HST rebate and the tax rules that changed from 2025 first.
• It may not suit: anyone who needs large bedrooms (second bedrooms in the tower are mostly small), anyone who finds stairs hard (towns), and anyone who planned to save the deposit slowly while waiting years for occupancy (this project needs a mortgage now).

Before you sign

1. Get a mortgage pre-approval first. Since you close right away, your loan terms decide what you pay every month.
2. See the actual unit, floor, exposure and balcony. Use the advantage of a finished building. Remember the plans are “not to scale”.
3. Get the status certificate and check the reserve fund, the budget and the rules (pets, short-term rentals and so on).
4. Review the agreement and disclosure statement with a lawyer inside the 10-day cooling-off period. Confirm what the included closing costs cover and the HST rebate conditions at this stage.
5. If you plan to rent it out, settle the HST rebate and tax filing with an accountant in advance.

In short: the lowest starting price of any new building in the City of Toronto, a station and a grocery store within walking distance, and a 5% deposit with immediate move-in. In exchange you accept a small second bedroom and “today’s rate, today’s loan”. Whether that trade fits your family is answered by a tape measure and one pre-approval letter.

One thing to do today: call your bank or mortgage broker and ask for a pre-approval. I can confirm the units left and the floor premiums with the developer right away. I represent the buyer and look at the terms from your side, not the developer’s.