In a recent 3-page news story in the Toronto Star regarding the gentrification of Ossington Avenue between Dundas and Queen St., the area was described as one of the hottest new areas of downtown Toronto. The proliferation of shops, cafes & boutiques on this strip, running directly north of the trendy Queen St. West area, is due, according to the Toronto Star, to the trendsetting new "Toft" condominium project recently completed by Willowfield Homes, a division of Norstar Development Corporation. Willowfield Homes' West Side Story was designed by the internationally-renowned architect Gabriel Bodor who, along with Norstar's in-house design team, combined the look of a Townhouse with the feel of a loft to create the "Toft" – a new genre in the housing industry.

Purchasers of Norstar Development Corporation/Willowfield Homes' Peartree Estates project were pleased to see the recent Grand Opening of a new townhouse project in the adjacent community of Port Credit. This new community is almost exactly the same size and with very similar product. Starting prices are almost $100,000 more than Peartree purchasers paid. For the purchasers of Peartree Estates, this was obviously a case of being at the right place at the right time.

Another indication of Toronto's red hot real estate market is Norstar Development Corporation's "boutique" townhouse development, Park Hill Place, in Toronto's chic Forest Hill area. It was completed less than a year ago, and similar new townhomes in the immediate area are now starting at $60,000 more than Norstar's purchaser paid.

Norstar Development Corporation's Independence Way, a 244-unit "Townsuite" project, was heralded by the Toronto Sun newspaper as one of the fastest-selling new home communities in the Greater Toronto Area in 2004/2005. The "Townsuite" is the best of both worlds. They look like Townhomes on the exterior, but since most of them are on one level, they feel like a suite in a condominium building. This is an ideal solution to low-rise condominium living. With 98% of the "Townsuites" sold and the construction well underway, the sales office is being converted to an on-site decor centre. Purchasers will be invited in on an appointment-only basis to select their interior appointments. The remaining few Independence Way "Townsuites" will be marketed from Norstar's Harmony Village on the Humber River sales centre.

Norstar's Harmony Village on the Humber River sold out their first phase of luxury Townhomes before the "Official Grand Opening". The second phase experienced a huge success when the Grand Opening featured Townsuites priced from $159,900. The Grand Opening campaign caught the public's attention by offering every new Townsuite purchaser a FREE 2005 PONTIAC SUNFIRE SL. This resulted in over $10,000,000 in Townsuite sales in record time. The Grand Opening offer continues as the company prepares to open phase three. The project is located in North York overlooking the historic Humber River with a TTC (Toronto Transit Corporation) bus stop conveniently located at the main entry into this private community.

Norstar Development Corporation revolutionized Toronto's New Home Industry in 2004/2005, and by doing so took a lion's share of the low-rise market by deciding to explore new construction methods and materials in the construction of low-rise homes. Industry standards had always called for wood frame construction when building low-rise products like detached, semi-detached or townhouses. At both their Independence Way and Harmony Village on the Humber River Townsuite communities, Norstar opted to build using concrete floors and walls separating every Townsuite. One small step for man. One large step for new home buyers.