The condo had sat on the market for weeks.
Then, this spring, in swooped Kori Marin and Ralph Fox.
They painted the exposed brick wall white, changed the light fixtures, and swapped out most of the seller’s furniture for high-end pieces in soft, neutral tones to showcase the church loft conversion at Pape and Danforth in the most flattering light.
It sold within hours.
In today’s market, with hundreds of listings available, selling a condo is no easy feat, underscoring the importance of making upgrades and highlighting unique features, agents say.
And of course, the price has to be right.
“At the height of the market, there were instances where you could take a cellphone picture of a condo with the toilet seat up and still have a successful sale,” said Fox, the broker of record and co-founder of Fox Marin Associates.
“But when you have a situation like we’re in currently, who you hire, how your property is presented, and how it’s priced, matters.”
During the pandemic, as interest rates sunk to historic lows, the already hot condo market in Toronto exploded, particularly in pre-construction units sold in buildings that hadn’t even been built yet.
But lower rates and price dips have now made condos, especially smaller generic units, a much tougher sell for the investors that once drove a lot of the demand.
According to the Toronto Regional Real Estate Board, in the first quarter of 2025 there were almost 15,000 new condo listings in the GTA, up 25 per cent from the same time last year, and only 3,794 sales, down about 22 per cent from the first quarter of 2024.
Average GTA condo prices have dropped about 15 per cent from the peak, in winter 2022.
With so much competition, if owners are willing to spend between $10,000 or $20,000 to make some simple changes like the ones at the Pape and Danforth condo, such steps can go a long way, said Marin, a broker and also a co-founder at Fox Marin Associates.
That one-bedroom plus den loft went for $1.2 million in April, after Fox and Marin took over the listing.
Other small things people can do include painting the kitchen cabinets, getting a new kitchen backsplash, or putting in new flooring.
But it is hard to convince sellers to spend money when it’s not a sure bet that they’ll get a big return on their investment. Staging properties, setting up the space with upscale furniture, fluffed accent pillows, and soft abstract art has long been a strategy to make potential buyers feel at home.
It’s even more important in this market, said Marin.
One of their other properties, a staged one-bedroom condo loft conversion near Trinity Bellwoods, sold in May for almost $100,000 over the listing price, with five offers.
It was another unique property though, with a wood-burning fireplace, peaceful terrace, and private garage.
But what about those owners trying to sell cookie cutter micro condos at or around 500 square feet?
If you ask Fox and Marin, they say hold off until the storm passes.
They can’t guarantee they would “even get showings at your property, regardless of how cute or adorable we make it online,” Marin said.
The pair are now turning down calls from people looking to off-load these condos.
“A lot of those generic type units are going to be struggling just given how much inventory is on the market and how much choice buyers have,” said Fox. “In most instances, we’re recommending to people, if they have these types of properties, keep it rented or rent it out, and just wait it out for the next year or two.”
That’s the advice Mike Carpino, a real estate agent with IPro Realty, has: if you don’t need to sell in this market, don’t.
It also depends on when a seller bought their condo. If it was sometime around 2021, even though the seller may break even on the sale, they might end up losing money on closing costs like land transfer tax and realtor commissions.
“That conversation is a difficult one that I keep having right now, ” Carpino said.
Like Fox and Marin, he stressed the importance of pricing well.
Marin calls it the “goldilocks” approach: not obnoxiously low, but also not introducing an upper limit on the value.
Carpino also said the staging needs to be targeted. For example, if it’s a two-bedroom, the seller may want to put in a nursery so it pulls on the heartstrings of a young couple.
As Business Manager and Owner of Toronto Condo Staging and Design, Lucie Brand understands the importance of staging.
But for the first time in her almost 25 year career, she’s having discussions with realtors about not taking on jobs, unless condo sellers make upgrades like new finishes or light fixtures, or “aggressively” reduce the price.
She also has to prepare owners for the possibility that the unit might not sell for weeks, and that they’ll need to renew their staging. It typically costs around $3,000 to borrow furniture and accessories such as vases, mirrors and art, for the first 45 days.
Like Carpino, Brand said it’s important to stage for the target purchaser, especially in smaller spaces so that people can imagine their furniture fitting inside.
Downtown Toronto buyers, for example, tend to be drawn to trends like earth tones and metals.
“All of a sudden, those investors have dried up,” she said.
The people who are buying these homes are the “end users” — industry jargon for people looking for a home.
“You have to lay it out for them. This is how you’re going to live in this yourself.”
Brand added that she’s seen a recent trend for the first time: owners giving up on selling the unit, and staging it for rental instead.
Carpino recommends targeted social media marketing, otherwise “you’re really just throwing it on Realtor.ca with a hope and a prayer.”
He also offers some advice to buyers: make sure you can live in whatever unit you buy for the long term and don’t overstretch your budget.
In other words, don’t think of it as a “one-to-two year investment,” but as a “roof over your head.”
