When the idea for this blog post first came across my desk (thanks to blog reader Kathy before sending…), I thought the topic would be something along the lines of: “How do you define a bedroom?”
As you will soon read, that is part of today’s theme.
Many years ago we started the discussion about what a ‘bedroom’ actually is. What features must be present to rightly call it a bedroom?
Once upon a time, the rule of thumb was that a bedroom should contain four elements:
1) A window.
2) A closet.
3) A door.
4) A minimum length and width measurement.
The measurements were clearly a moving target as apartments were made smaller and smaller, but the theory was that if a standard prison cell was 6 x 8 feet, a bedroom had to be larger.
I’m not kidding! This was often mentioned in the real estate community.
But in the late 2000s, when ‘soft lofts’ became all the rage, we started seeing those ‘built-in’ bedrooms that were in the middle of the flat and therefore had no windows.
Many agents argued that this could not be called a “bedroom” and should be described on MLS as a “plus one,” also known as a “den.”
But other officers simply argued, “There’s a closet. There’s two sliding doors that enclose the space. And there’s a bed. It’s a bedroom.”
Here’s a classic example:
Bedroom?
Y/N?
Do you see where the argument started?
There’s definitely a bed in there. And a closet. And two sliding doors. But there isn’t one window.
Anyway, this was around the time the debate started over what actually constitutes a “bedroom.”
I dare say that organized real estate has thrown away the concept of standards many years ago, but I digress.
That brings me to the example I want to discuss in today’s blog.
I recently saw something that, in my opinion, underscores exactly how and why we got into the current predicament in the downtown apartment market we find ourselves in.
What condition? Well, there are many! Sales are down, prices are down, supply is up, etc.
But I mean the predicament surrounding the quality of apartments.
We read countless articles in 2025 about micro apartments and how no one wants them Why developers built them in the first place. But what’s missing from that conversation is the discussion about how bad the average floor plan has become.
I have always maintained that a “square plan” is king. There is no wasted space. Just a square or rectangle divided into kitchen, living room, dining room, bedroom and bathroom.
For example:
But over time, condominium developers started building apartments looked well and strikingly designed on the outside, but the floor plans inside the unit were completely bastardized.
I wrote about this in 2025: “Design versus functionality: the problem with new apartment floor plans”
Here’s an example:
That’s pathetic.
So for comparison, this map doesn’t seem that bad:
Right?
It is open concept, spacious, light and bright!
But here’s another angle:
Oh, okay!
So are the living room, dining room and kitchen one big room.
But isn’t that normal in 2025?
Here is the map:
Yeah, it’s not my favorite.
Far from it, in fact. Awkward corners, irregular spaces and difficult to furnish.
But you know what could make this map even worse?
You know what can make it so bad that it’s almost impossible to sell?
What if we got really greedy and had the following thought process…
“If I have my An-bedroom apartment in one two-bedroom apartment, I think I can improve the value.”
Here’s how, when and where Toronto apartments completely lost the plot.
And there are more than one owners of this floor plan who have decided to turn it into a 2-bedroom!
Even worse, the unit shows up for sale on MLS with a hand-drawn map with the second ‘bedroom’.
Check this out. This is the worst thing I’ve seen in a long time:
The word ‘Bedroom’ is placed over ‘LIVING ROOM’ below.
The bed is drawn by hand.
What is that in the kitchen? Is that one bank?
Folks, let’s think about this for a moment. Because there’s more here.
Someone drawn by hand the bed and the couch, which means they did this on a piece of paper. But then they wrote ‘Bedroom’ in it font typesmeaning they did this on their computer.
WHY?
HOW?
Don’t they have that? Paint on their computer?
If they wanted to hand draw a bed and a couch, couldn’t they use one? white-out on the words “LIVING ROOM” in front typed “Bedroom?”
This is insane.
But perhaps even crazier is the new living room, dining room and kitchen as a result:
No, seriously, people. That is what remains when you turn your living space into a second bedroom. That is the kitchen and ALL living space in the entire apartment.
How do people live there?
Oh, it’s simple!
You simply place a chair, table, pot, cushion and throw, as shown in this staged photo of another unit putting up the same wall:
Welcome home!
“Luxury awaits you!”
But the best part is yet to come.
They performed a dining table in the apartment and took a photo as follows:
That’s cool, right?
Just a standard dining table. So what’s all the fuss about?
Think about the map for a moment.
This photo is an illusion!
There’s only one way to get past this and get to the front door:
Excuse the arrow I made Paintunlike the one who created the map above.
But think of where they put this table!
It’s here on their ridiculous map:
Like I said: you literally cannot reach the table to enter/exit the apartment!
This might be one of the worst floor plans I’ve ever seen, and that’s saying a lot, especially if you read the blog post I wrote in 2025, linked above.
So the question remains:
“Why would someone so bastardize their map?”
Because they didn’t know any better.
Because they wanted to turn a one-bedroom into a two-bedroom.
Because they were greedy.
Because they thought they would rent the apartment to two foreign students who were thinking about it palatial compared to what they had at home.
But when it comes time to sell the apartment, is there an end user in town who wants that floor plan?
No chance.
I believe that this floor plan makes the apartment completely unsellable in this market.
Try to change your mind, if you dare…
#apartment #floor #plan #unsellable #Toronto #Realty #Blog