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As far as Wes Myles is concerned, a pandemic-driven exodus out of Toronto and the corresponding plunge in rental rates he keeps reading about simply isn’t happening. “We’re not experiencing what the media is reporting,” says Myles, CEO of Clifton Blake, a private-equity firm specializing in midrise real-estate development.
Myles points to a three-storey property with 11 new rental suites that Clifton Blake completed last summer in Leslieville. “We rented up the building in the first month,” says Myles. “There’s plenty of demand for purpose-built rental properties in the market, particularly if they’re able to reach beyond a singles lifestyle with suites spacious enough to accommodate couples and families.” What tenants won’t tolerate in this segment – rents for one- and two-bedroom suites at the Leslieville address run between $2,200 to $3,500 per month – is “inferior quality and design,” Myles adds.