Spotted: Your feedback for those who live in glass condos

A CBC News story suggesting many of the glass condominium towers filling up the Toronto skyline will fail 15 to 25 years after they're built is prompting lots of lively comments from CBC audience members.

Citing industry experts who claim buyers of glass-walled condos could soon find themselves grappling with problems including insulation failures, water leaks and steep energy costs, the story triggered a surprisingly consistent response in community members who felt condos of any kind were a bad investment.

Some Vancouver residents - who've seen their share of condo problems - were among the first to weigh in.
 

• "Seriously, as a vancouverite transplanted to Ontario, its just a little bit too cold here during the season that comes between fall and spring to live in a glass house... in fact, it seems to be about the least sensible way of building a home here." - sebastian toombs.
• "Vancouver already faces issue with those things, it's a wonder if anything is built to code at all anymore." - Meggsy.
• "People in the city of Vancouver just went through their own leaky condo nightmares; the result of shoddy workmanship and greedy developers cutting corners." - FeteChef.

People quickly identified pricey condo fees as a bigger problem than the glass windows described in the news article.
 

• "And if you think your condo fees are high now..." - fritthum.
• "The worst thing is that all of these condos have fees that the tenant must pay every month. These fees are not written in stone and can be increased at any time if voted on. So in 10 years time, if these giant windows require replacing or maintenance, the fee may jump from, let's say $300 a month per unit to $600 for a period of a year or maybe even more to compensate for a major repair." - Jake64.
• "Whether or not these guys are right... time will reveal the truth. Most of these condos have small units. If the projections are correct, they will soon have big condo fees. Bad investment." - canuck2012.
• "I don't know how these condo units resell at all 10 years down the round. I see some of them which have 600-700 dollar maintenance fees which almost rival the mortgages to carry them." - Chris(ccp).
• "Hey, if you want to spend $300,000 on a tiny, tiny 'apartment that you own' and then have to forever pay another smaller monthly 'rent' that they like to call "condo fees", be my guest, enjoy...but you'll NEVER see me living in one of those buildings." - spbroers.

Some audience members took a harsh view of those who choose to live in the glass buildings.

• "Respectfully, this is no surprise. I don't understand how one can spend so much on a shoebox made with low quality material and expect anything more. Bottom line. DO YOUR RESEARCH BEFORE YOU BUY!" - TorontoSSC.
• "I've never understood how people could be naive enough to buy one of these condos in the first place. You have to know ahead of time that glass is poorly insulated, leaky, and easy to break. Why would you willingly live in a place that doesn't have real walls to protect you? And while the views might be pleasant, they'd be just as pleasant if you stood on a nice, concrete balcony." - Jade Alexis.

Others felt it was unfair to blame the buyers.
 

• "I think it is wrong to blame the people who buy or rent glass condos. It's the fault of the builders and condo owners. People seeking a condo are often left with little choice if they wish to live in a newer condo in the GTA. Housing prices have increased so much in recent years that buying a detached or even semi-detached home is out of reach for many. Also, singles or couples without kids may actually prefer a condo over a larger living space. The issue isn't what people are purchasing, but what is out there on the market in the first place." - ZoeMorrow.

 
Regardless of their respective positions on condos, everyone could agree that better materials and stricter regulations are in order.

• "Ontario needs some serious regulation of the condo industry. It's the Wild West right now. Once the unit is built and in the hands of the condo association, the builder walks away." - CommieCanuck.
• "The solution from this point on is simple: Stiffen the building codes to ensure that buildings are designed and built in a sustainable manner and are efficient on energy for their occupants. If glass walls don't hit the standards, they should not be used." - ghoward81.
• "City should ban full glass windows. They are not safe and this has been proven a few months ago with the glasses shattering." - Emilie27.
• "Watch the cement that's been used for the construction as well......there are different types and grades and sometimes they sneak in the less expensive types......So I've heard!" - AimHigh.
• "It's all in the details folks. That's why this architect will never work for developers." - peasoupRPM.

 
And Georooney couldn't resist making one jokey reference to the glass walls mentioned throughout the story: "People who live in glass houses shouldn't."
 
Thanks to all of you for sharing your comments with us. We hope to see more feedback from you in future!