What to know
- Homes on Ward’s and Algonquin islands are subject to regulated pricing, with prices ranging from $50,000 to $700,000.
- Buyers must pay a one-time lease fee of about $60,000 on Ward’s Island or $78,000 on Algonquin Island.
- Owners must use their island home as their primary residence and cannot use it as a vacation home or unrestricted rental property.
- Prospective buyers must join the official Purchasers’ List, which has limited openings and an annual renewal fee of $50.
- Applications to join the list are open until Oct. 30, with a non-refundable $20 application fee.
Owning a home in the Toronto Islands comes with significant advantages, from the proximity to the downtown core, to beautiful city views, to much lower fees and property taxes. However, the process to acquire a home in this area is much more complex than simply putting in an offer.
Applications to join the Purchaser’s List for a shot at owning a home in the islands are now open until Oct. 30, but the process to ownership can be much more complicated than you might expect.
Buying a home in a major market like the one in Toronto is far from cheap business, with the average selling price standing at $1,006,409 in September, according to the Toronto Regional Real Estate Board (TRREB), on top of other costs such as land transfer taxes, and legal fees.
But despite the prime location, buying a home on Toronto Island can make the deal significantly more affordable.
Properties on Algonquin and Ward’s islands are regulated under Ontario’s Toronto Islands Residential Community Stewardship Act, 1993, which establishes regulated pricing, lower selling prices, and even lower property taxes.
How much is a house on the Island?
The value of homes in the islands are determined through an inspection process, based entirely on the construction costs of the building, with size and location not weighed in when it comes to establishing their costs. These homes are priced between $50,000 to $700,000, with the average prices between $150,000 and $400,000.
Residents also must make a one-time lease payment. This cost used to be $36,000 on Ward’s Island and $46,000 on Algonquin Island when the Act was first established, but has since increased to about $60,000 and $78,000, respectively.
Property taxes also work differently on the island, with residents paying significantly less than other homeowners in the city. On average, residents pay about $1,530 per year in property taxes, while average Flemingdon Park tenants pay about $4,320 in annual property taxes.
However, anyone who owns a home in the Island must use that property as their primary residence, which must be declared for tax purposes. They are not allowed to use the home for part-time or summer residency, or as a rental property, with only limited rentals permitted.
Buyers must be on the Purchasers’ List
Although it sounds like a great deal, buying a home on the Toronto Islands is not as simple as just putting in a great offer.
As established in the Act, buyers must be on the official Purchasers’ List established by the Toronto Islands Residential Community Trust Corporation in order to purchase on Ward’s Island or Algonquin Island.
Admission to the list is also extremely limited, with applications open only once every two years for a four-week period, while a $20 fee is required to apply and a $50 annual fee is required to stay on the list. Applicants must also be at least 18 years of age or 16 if they are emancipated, and can only submit one application per person.
When a home or lease on the islands becomes available for sale, the Trust Corporation sends offers to about 150 to 250 people at the top of the list. Usually, buyers are among the first 100 on the list, sometimes having gone a bit further down.
Since the list was established in 1994, only 70 homes and leases were sold. The Trust anticipates about one to two homes are sold per year, but it cannot predict exactly how many will be up for sale.
Applications are now open until Oct. 30
Applications to join the list are now open for a short period of time, closing on Oct. 30.
Those interested must fill out and submit the application form online, and pay a non-refundable $20 fee online by cheque or money order addressed to the Toronto Islands Residential Community Trust Corporation and sent by mail.
Those who apply would be added to the bottom of the 500-names list, and the Trust cannot guarantee when a home would be available for them.
To remain on the list, every year they must also pay a $50 renewal fee by Mar. 15 of each year. If the payment is not received by the deadline, their name will be removed from the list.
