Across the City's Downtown East cluster — 18,110 occupied dwellings, from the Exchange District to West Broadway — 13.7% of households own their home, against 63.1% for Winnipeg as a whole. In Broadway–Assiniboine, the neighbourhood of apartment towers between Broadway and the river, the figure is 7.2%. Of its 3,990 dwellings, 2,970 are in buildings of five or more storeys and only 10 are houses.

Its buildings come from several decades: 26.2% of dwellings are in buildings from 1960 or before, 33.5% from 1961 to 1980, 24.0% from the 1980s and 6.9% from 2016 to 2021. These are 2021 Census figures from the City of Winnipeg's profiles for Broadway–Assiniboine and the Downtown East cluster, from a 25% sample rounded to the nearest five.

What the number actually means for a buyer

Many downtown towers are rental buildings, not condominiums. In the ones that are condominiums, some units are usually rented out by their owners. That affects you directly: owners elect the board and vote on its decisions, and how many of them live in the building changes how it is run. Ask what share of units are rented and whether the by-laws restrict rentals.

The bigger point is that the expensive parts of a downtown home are shared: the roof, the exterior walls and windows, the balconies, the parkade, the elevators, the boiler and the risers. They are paid for from the reserve fund, or by a special assessment when the fund is not enough.

What I look at, and what I do not decide

I look at the common areas before the unit, and I go through the documents with you. Whether the building and the corporation are in good shape is for an engineer, an inspector and your lawyer to say.

The concrete. In towers from the 1960s to the 1980s, I look at balcony slab edges and the parkade for cracked or spalling concrete and rust staining, which usually point to water and road salt getting in. The parkade membrane and the balconies are common big-ticket items.

The envelope. Window frames, sealant joints, and stains on ceilings under other units or at the top floor. In older masonry blocks, the brick and the window heads.

The machinery. When the elevators, the boiler or heating plant, the domestic water risers and the fire protection were last replaced. The answer belongs in the reserve fund study, which in Manitoba must be updated by the end of the fifth year it covers (Manitoba, reserve funds).

The documents. A Manitoba seller must give you the corporation's disclosure statement, the budget, the latest financial statements, the by-laws and rules, and any reserve fund study or a summary of it. A status certificate tells you whether money is owed on the unit. The law also gives buyers a seven-day cooling-off period (Manitoba, buying a condominium unit). Read the package inside that window, not after it.

Where observation stops

A walkthrough of a condominium shows you its condition on one day. The documents show you how it is managed. Use a home inspector for the unit, have your lawyer review the package, and ask the property manager directly about any special assessment that has been discussed but not yet approved.

For converted heritage buildings, read the Exchange District; for the towers south of the river, Osborne Village. Continue in the neighbourhood series, or start a conversation about a unit you are considering.