Station Park | 18, 28, 36, 43, 50 fl | U/C

[taylortbb]

Do you have any opinion on the September timeline provided? A few of my realtor friends say that they will most likely bump the date as they can so without penalty.

What type of date is it? They're all formally defined under Tarion. Based on your realtor friends reaction I'm guessing final tentative? Not yet final firm?

[CP42]

Do you have any opinion on the September timeline provided? A few of my realtor friends say that they will most likely bump the date as they can so without penalty.

What type of date is it? They're all formally defined under Tarion. Based on your realtor friends reaction I'm guessing final tentative? Not yet final firm?

September is final tentative occupancy date.

[CP42]

I know a lot of people assume they want to drag out occupancy as long as possible, but wouldn’t they want to close quicker and collect payment from the purchasers so they have adequate capital to start the next phase?

[taylortbb]

What type of date is it? They're all formally defined under Tarion. Based on your realtor friends reaction I'm guessing final tentative? Not yet final firm?

September is final tentative occupancy date.

Then I'll 99% guarantee it gets delayed. How much? Can't say. But with condos, especially on the lower floors, final tentative rarely becomes final firm without at least a little delay.

I know a lot of people assume they want to drag out occupancy as long as possible, but wouldn’t they want to close quicker and collect payment from the purchasers so they have adequate capital to start the next phase?

Occupancy != financial close. The first move-ins will almost certainly be interim occupancy, where you effectively pay rent to the builder but not a mortgage. The interim occupancy fees aren't allowed to be profitable to the builder, they're exactly property taxes + condo fees + interest-only mortgage. So you're right a builder has an incentive to close quicker, but there isn't really much incentive to get interim occupancy sooner. It does probably save them some interest costs, but it also makes all the work they're doing more expensive as they have to work around occupied areas.

[CP42]

September is final tentative occupancy date.

Then I'll 99% guarantee it gets delayed. How much? Can't say. But with condos, especially on the lower floors, final tentative rarely becomes final firm without at least a little delay.

I know a lot of people assume they want to drag out occupancy as long as possible, but wouldn’t they want to close quicker and collect payment from the purchasers so they have adequate capital to start the next phase?

Occupancy != financial close. The first move-ins will almost certainly be interim occupancy, where you effectively pay rent to the builder but not a mortgage. The interim occupancy fees aren't allowed to be profitable to the builder, they're exactly property taxes + condo fees + interest-only mortgage. So you're right a builder has an incentive to close quicker, but there isn't really much incentive to get interim occupancy sooner. It does probably save them some interest costs, but it also makes all the work they're doing more expensive as they have to work around occupied areas.

I’m on one of the top floors of tower 1 and also was given a September final occupancy date, albeit a week or so after those on the lower floors. Since my unit is on one of the upper floors I assumed there wouldn’t be a long interim occupancy period, as I believed they can register/close once a significant majority of units has been occupied. Unless the process is held up by some bureaucratic red tape?

[taylortbb]

Then I'll 99% guarantee it gets delayed. How much? Can't say. But with condos, especially on the lower floors, final tentative rarely becomes final firm without at least a little delay.

Occupancy != financial close. The first move-ins will almost certainly be interim occupancy, where you effectively pay rent to the builder but not a mortgage. The interim occupancy fees aren't allowed to be profitable to the builder, they're exactly property taxes + condo fees + interest-only mortgage. So you're right a builder has an incentive to close quicker, but there isn't really much incentive to get interim occupancy sooner. It does probably save them some interest costs, but it also makes all the work they're doing more expensive as they have to work around occupied areas.

I’m on one of the top floors of tower 1 and also was given a September final occupancy date, albeit a week or so after those on the lower floors. Since my unit is on one of the upper floors I assumed there wouldn’t be a long interim occupancy period, as I believed they can register/close once a significant majority of units has been occupied. Unless the process is held up by some bureaucratic red tape?

Hard to say. I bought at Charlie West, and as I was on an upper floor I had no interim occupancy period. But at Charlie West the delay between first and final occupancy was 7 months, not 1 week. The very first units had about 4.5 of months of interim occupancy.

Van Mar seems to be doing things very differently from Momentum, so while I standby my expectation there will be some delay, I really can't say anything about how long. I'm curious how much ability to customize did you get? Momentum offers a ton, I think had to make 50+ different choices at my selection appointment, most with 5+ options. So likely no two units at Charlie West are the same, which may factor into why there's such a huge difference in unit completions. Some of the options, like paint colour, don't make a huge difference, but I had 4 different options for ceiling lighting layout which would require running significantly different wiring.

[CP42]

Hard to say. I bought at Charlie West, and as I was on an upper floor I had no interim occupancy period. But at Charlie West the delay between first and final occupancy was 7 months, not 1 week. The very first units had about 4.5 of months of interim occupancy.

Van Mar seems to be doing things very differently from Momentum, so while I standby my expectation there will be some delay, I really can't say anything about how long. I'm curious how much ability to customize did you get? Momentum offers a ton, I think had to make 50+ different choices at my selection appointment, most with 5+ options. So likely no two units at Charlie West are the same, which may factor into why there's such a huge difference in unit completions. Some of the options, like paint colour, don't make a huge difference, but I had 4 different options for ceiling lighting layout which would require running significantly different wiring.

For Union Towers there were 2 standard packages, 1 “Investor Package”, “Upgrade A” and “Upgrade “B”, and then “Upgrade Ca” and “Upgrade Cb”.

Each package with its own combination of flooring, cabinetry, backsplash, hardware, paint colour, etc. 
Once you selected a package, you could then select from the list of additional upgrades. While there is an upgrade for pot lights, it was a pre-determined layout.

[taylortbb]

Interesting. I do think that's less choice than Momentum, but it's still a lot of choice. Not like an apartment building where they'll have everything the same. So I don't think it would significantly speed up interior finishing vs Momentum, but I'm also no expert.

The upgrades sure do look expensive though. $3k to change the plumbing fixtures... Momentum had several tiers but even the most expensive were only a few hundred dollars per bathroom (and one didn't have to style both bathrooms the same, though I did).

[ijmorlan]

$405 for two USB plugs in the Kitchen?

https://www.homedepot.ca/product/leviton...1000806312

It should be $32.95 per pair, with any number of receptacles anywhere in the unit able to be upgraded. There is no difference in the labour to install the USB receptable vs. a normal one, and we’re talking about construction time here.

At these prices you’d be better off hiring an electrician to switch out the receptacles later.

[taylortbb]

$405 for two USB plugs in the Kitchen?

It should be $32.95 per pair, with any number of receptacles anywhere in the unit able to be upgraded. There is no difference in the labour to install the USB receptable vs. a normal one, and we’re talking about construction time here.

Your link is $32.95 each, not per pair.

Also, I disagree with zero labour cost. While the actual installation is the same amount of labour, there's overhead costs for tracking which units are getting them (and which outlets if you let people choose), getting them delivered in the right quantities to the right units (they may not be an inventory item for the electrical contractor), and the inevitable costs of corrections when mistakes are made.

All that said, I agree $405 is insane. Momentum wanted $95 for the same, which seemed like an understandable markup. Upgrades are always higher margin for the builder though, as they are in any product.

[ijmorlan]

$405 for two USB plugs in the Kitchen?

It should be $32.95 per pair, with any number of receptacles anywhere in the unit able to be upgraded. There is no difference in the labour to install the USB receptable vs. a normal one, and we’re talking about construction time here.

Your link is $32.95 each, not per pair.

Also, I disagree with zero labour cost. While the actual installation is the same amount of labour, there's overhead costs for tracking which units are getting them (and which outlets if you let people choose), getting them delivered in the right quantities to the right units (they may not be an inventory item for the electrical contractor), and the inevitable costs of corrections when mistakes are made.

All that said, I agree $405 is insane. Momentum wanted $95 for the same, which seemed like an understandable markup. Upgrades are always higher margin for the builder though, as they are in any product.

I meant per pair of USB outlets, of which there are 2 on each duplex receptable (thus making them bi-duplex, with 2 AC plugs and 2 USB?). You’re absolutely right about costs not really being zero though. Momentum’s price sounds much more reasonable.

[Rofltropter]

I’ve always just assumed that I would take these measurements myself when I get the PDI tour.

Also on that note… are folks going with the builder-partnered window coverings? They seem insanely expensive, so I’ve been exploring some other options.

Way too expensive. I will do them myself!

Same here, doing it ourselves. They weren’t worth it.

[taylortbb]

I meant per pair of USB outlets, of which there are 2 on each duplex receptable (thus making them bi-duplex, with 2 AC plugs and 2 USB?). You’re absolutely right about costs not really being zero though. Momentum’s price sounds much more reasonable.

Gotcha. I interpreted the upgrade as being for two separate outlets (each containing two USB sockets), but you might be correct. The Momentum $95 upgrade was two separate outlets, so only a $30 markup.

[taylortbb]

Also on that note… are folks going with the builder-partnered window coverings? They seem insanely expensive, so I’ve been exploring some other options.

At Charlie West I also declined the builder shades, as I wanted motorized. After talking to many different vendors I finally had a really great experience with Shade Works. They were able to sell me Lutron Triathlon shades for less than most vendors wanted for a lower end product, and had by far the best customer service.

Not a cheap offering, but much better value for my money than anything from the builder.

[CP42]

Walked by today and there is a CBRE Commercial Space for Lease sign up as well as the DUO sign.