Estimated reading time: 4 minutes
Originally published in the Toronto Sun by Dianne Daniel in 2024. This article reflects Toronto's multiplex environment and LandLord's projects at that time.
When Toronto approved zoning changes allowing up to four residential units in neighbourhoods across the city in 2023, builders and property owners began exploring how multiplex housing could fit within established low-rise communities.
LandLord Property & Rental Management had already been working with multiplex properties for several years, combining real estate acquisition, design, construction, leasing, and ongoing multiplex Property Management .
Gotham C., Director of LandLord Renovations & Design Build, viewed the zoning changes as an important response to Toronto's growing housing pressure.
“I think it's the way to go. NIMBYism might have been well-suited for the culture 15, 20, or 30 years ago, but I think the culture right now is people are finding it hard to find a place to live.”
— Gotham C., LandLord Renovations & Design Build Director
Designing Fourplexes for Everyday Living
LandLord had been investing in multiplex development since 2017, including projects that transformed older single-family properties into modern multi-unit rental housing.
One design approach divided the building vertically so that the four apartments could occupy two levels rather than stacking conventional single-floor units directly on top of one another.
In this configuration, two units had living areas on the ground floor with bedrooms on a lower level, while the other two had living space on the second floor with bedrooms above.
All four apartments were accessed from a shared entry landing close to the driveway and parking.
Gotham explained one reason for the layout:
“It's a very popular model because no one is walking ‘on top of each other’ while they are sleeping.”
— Gotham C., LandLord Renovations & Design Build Director
Sound transmission remains an important consideration in multi-unit design. Our more recent article on sound insulation in multiplex rentals looks at that issue in greater detail.
Using Tenant Feedback to Improve Multiplex Design
The company also used feedback from tenants to refine its approach to future projects.
This is important because a technically efficient floor plan does not necessarily produce the best rental experience.
Storage, privacy, natural light, circulation, outdoor space, noise control, maintenance access, and bedroom configuration all influence how residents experience a multiplex once construction is complete.
These operational considerations are one reason we increasingly connect multiplex Design-Build decisions with the way the property will eventually be leased and managed.
Watch: Making Room for Multiplexes
Connecting Acquisition, Design, Construction and Management
The model described in the original Toronto Sun feature extended beyond construction.
LandLord could assist with identifying potential properties, negotiating an acquisition, developing the design, coordinating permits and construction, and then moving the completed units into leasing and ongoing Property Management.
That integrated process helps connect early design decisions with the long-term performance of the finished rental property.
A completed project such as Project Livingstone α5 illustrates how those design and construction decisions translate into an operating Toronto multi-unit property.
Construction Timelines Were Still a Challenge
At the time of the article's original publication, Gotham reported that LandLord had completed four multiplex transitions during the previous year, with another five projects planned for the year ahead.
He believed the model was working for both tenants and investors but identified opportunities to improve development timelines.
Permit processing, utility connections, building reviews, and coordination between different parts of the approval system could all affect how quickly a multiplex reached construction and eventual occupancy.
“It's a good sign that there is relative acceptance in the general population. Now they need people from the community of builders, planners and Design-Build companies to have a symposium, to ask, ‘What are the problems? How can we narrow this down? How do we get more fourplexes in the ground?’”
— Gotham C., LandLord Renovations & Design Build Director
Multiplex Development Continued to Evolve
The February 2024 article captured an early stage in Toronto's expansion of missing-middle housing.
The broader policy and development environment has continued to evolve since then, but the central design question remains the same: how can additional homes be added to established neighbourhoods in a way that creates functional, durable, and desirable rental housing?
Our Toronto multiplex development hub contains newer research, project analysis, zoning resources, and development guides.
Based on the original Toronto Sun feature, “Making Room for Multiplexes,” by Dianne Daniel.
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