[RabidRat]

So I'm starting work in downtown Toronto next month - can anyone chime in with suggestions for which areas to look into, which to avoid? I'm leaning towards living in the downtown core, unless there are huge reasons not to.

I don't mind spending a little more for now, budget's prolly about $1000 - $1500 / mo for a 1 bdrm.

[k3mps]

my sis lives in North York.
she has a 1200sq.ft apartment (kind of modern)
3bdroom 2 bathroom
she pays just 1400 i think
takes about 25min to drive dt in moderate traffic.
i think that's a pretty decent price
1000-1500 might get you a nice place if you move a bit further away

[TheKingdom2000]

^ I live in north york right now.
I would highly suggest not living here. It's a great place and everything, but it is way too far from downtown.
It is convenient if you're on the subway line, but it is a $50 cab ride if you go out and party.

I don't really know what the market is like downtown toronto. All I know is that you'll have a blast. I wish I lived downtown, but it's too far from my school to commute.

[fobulaus]

Where abouts do you work?

I suggest the condos near Bay/Harbour... If not, there are quite a few condos near Air Canada Centre.. Also some nice buildings near Esplanade/Yonge...

I do not recommend North York as it's too far from downtown plus the subways are always delayed.. Also do not recommend CityPlace (Spadina/Front) unless you absolutely can't find anything else due to the location and bad construction quality...

I heard the rental prices have gone up recently so $1500 might be tough finding a 1BR downtown... You could also try bachelor suites or looking for a roommate..

[drunkrussian]

Luxury condominium with upgrades - high floor, 9 foot ceilings (http://toronto.en.craigslist.ca/tor/apa/3015725338.html)

[bcrdukes]

How about...Church and Wellesely? :troll:

[RabidRat]

Where abouts do you work?

I suggest the condos near Bay/Harbour... If not, there are quite a few condos near Air Canada Centre.. Also some nice buildings near Esplanade/Yonge...

I do not recommend North York as it's too far from downtown plus the subways are always delayed.. Also do not recommend CityPlace (Spadina/Front) unless you absolutely can't find anything else due to the location and bad construction quality...

I heard the rental prices have gone up recently so $1500 might be tough finding a 1BR downtown... You could also try bachelor suites or looking for a roommate..

I'll be working near Bay & Wellington.

I was actually looking into some CityPlace units, the price seems reasonable for that kind of view (ie actually within my budget haha). What's wrong with the location?

[Vale46Rossi]

But I thought we could ride together this summer :(

[RabidRat]

But I thought we could ride together this summer :(

Hahaha set something up on the Sportbike subforum, I'm down anytime.

[godwin]

If you are single, I won't suggest North York. To go pretty much anywhere lively you need to drive.

I would suggest you limit yourself south of Eglinton, North of Union station.. Try neighbourhoods like Cabbagetown.

Air Canada Centre is kinda middle of no where too.

[godwin]

Yonge and Finch is FAR! Most new apartment have high ceiling these days.

Luxury condominium with upgrades - high floor, 9 foot ceilings (http://toronto.en.craigslist.ca/tor/apa/3015725338.html)

[RabidRat]

If you are single, I won't suggest North York. To go pretty much anywhere lively you need to drive.

I would suggest you limit yourself south of Eglinton, North of Union station.. Try neighbourhoods like Cabbagetown.

Air Canada Centre is kinda middle of no where too.

Thanks.

What are the "bad" areas of Toronto that I need to stay away from? For example I was looking at the CityPlace condos located around Front and Spadina, but "fobolaus" posted that there's an issue with that location - is this a shady area? I do see train tracks.. is the area prone to crime or something?

[godwin]

One thing about living in Toronto is you should also think ahead of winter public transport. Also if you want to bring your toy/ cars with you. Most apartments have storage, but if you are sharing a house, chances are you will be parking outdoors etc.

It depends on how long you are there and your money situation.. I would think about getting a house over an apartment.

[godwin]

IMO Toronto's crime is more spread out less concentrated than in Vancouver like DTES. Also people in Toronto are more aware of condo safety than Vancouverites... eg don't let strangers into garage and no BBQ on balconies etc. So in that sense, there aren't any particularly bad neighbourhoods I mean if you live on the West side / entertainment district don't be surprised that there are drunks / partying to late in the night etc.

Remember TO has some really OLD apartments or they age badly due to poor management. So even though the unit look nice on the rest of it could be rather crappy. Be prepared that at your price range you will have at least a dozen or 2 units on the same floor etc. Toronto apartment living is more concentrated than Vancouver's.

Thanks.

What are the "bad" areas of Toronto that I need to stay away from? For example I was looking at the CityPlace condos located around Front and Spadina, but "fobolaus" posted that there's an issue with that location - is this a shady area? I do see train tracks.. is the area prone to crime or something?

[dahonga]

How about...Church and Wellesely? :troll:

Hehe welcome to Davie St.

[TheKingdom2000]

Luxury condominium with upgrades - high floor, 9 foot ceilings (http://toronto.en.craigslist.ca/tor/apa/3015725338.html)

lol, this is my building.
It should cost around the same in downtown though.

Let us know what you decide on and how much.
good luck.

[jackmeister]

Jane and Finch is the way to go

[fobulaus]

I'll be working near Bay & Wellington.

I was actually looking into some CityPlace units, the price seems reasonable for that kind of view (ie actually within my budget haha). What's wrong with the location?

Location is not that bad... Around 20 mins to subway and 25 mins to work... I know this doesn't sound like much but when it's -35 degrees in the winter it's a big deal....

I also know some people living there and they said that the build quality is not great... Elevator wait times are long (mostly high rises)... That said, there are around 10 buildings in that area there so each one could be different.

Personally I think Bay/Harbour would be a much better location.. 10 mins to subway and 15 mins to work and 5 mins to "the path" where you can walk underground all the way to work...

[drunkrussian]

lol, this is my building.
It should cost around the same in downtown though.

Let us know what you decide on and how much.
good luck.
cool hahaha are you a realtor? just asking in case i move to toronto in the future as well lol

[TheKingdom2000]

cool hahaha are you a realtor? just asking in case i move to toronto in the future as well lol

Unfortunately not. Just a student.
But, if you need one, I still have the contact of the realtor I used here. He was great and made the transition really smooth.

[NLY]

Eglinton and yonge.

Awesome atmosphere, restaurants are abundant, subway is close.

I'm paying 1800/month for a one bedroom+den

[Liquid_o2]

I'm at Yonge and Eglinton as well.

I pay $1050 a month + hydro, though I live in a 40 year old building, it's very well taken care of and it's a five minute walk to the subway. As rizo said, great atmosphere, tons of amenities, pubs, restaurants, LCBO, Metro, Sobey's on Mt. Pleasant. Plus you can be downtown in 15 minutes.

Some of my friends live in College Park right downtown on Bay Street, or in Concord CityPlace and they are paying soooo much, about 1500 to 1700 for small one bedrooms. If you have a roommate you can get a two bedroom for 2000 to 2400 a month downtown. You can find some older buildings closer towards Bloor (Isabella and Yonge) but I find that area sort of lacking.

There aren't really any horrible areas, even Regent Park is gentrifying.

If I were looking for a place right now with that budget I would look at
-Yonge and Eglinton
-Yonge and St. Clair
- Bloor and Spadina
- Bloor and Bathurst
- Queen Street West

You might find a one bedroom at the top of your price range in CityPlace, but I find it is sort of in no mans land, between the train tracks and the highway. But you have easy access to Jays games!

[BillyBishop]

I know somebody who lives on Church and Carlton beside the old Maple Leaf Gardens. Forgot exactly how much it costs, $1,100 rings a bell. One bedroom, I was comfortable walking everywhere I needed to go from there too. Walking for ~20 minutes took me to Front street where I often had breakfast at the St. Lawrence market, great place!

[godwin]

I would suggest just pick any of the area you want.. eg downtown, cabbagetown etc.. do a short term rental (6 months) and decide on somewhere permanent once you have settled and know the town a bit more. There are so many choices, also go with a realtor for rental too. Especially for apartments, since there are so many foreign buyers buying just for rental. A few of my family works at North York General as docs, there are tons of new apartments in that neighbourhood and most of them are about 50% occupied but 80-90% sold, 3 -4 years after they have been built... so you do the math.

If you are raising a family Avenue / St Clair are where UCC is located, Havergal is further up Avenue. Yonge and Eglington's North Toronto Collegiate is also well regarded for public education. If you are looking long term, eventually Eglinton might connect to Pearson International via some form of TTC.

In the end, there are more and more apartments becoming available in TO, they are overbuilding apartments right now. You just need patience.

Old Maple Leaf garden has been bought and coverted by Ryerson University.. supposedly there is gym / tons of connivence features etc.. not to mention pretty coeds? ;)

[RabidRat]

Good call on looking for a realtor. If anyone can suggest one please PM me otherwise I'm just going to random this haha.

At this point I'm just looking for an apartment relatively close to work. I'm still not sure that I'd want to settle down in Toronto to live long term so I'm definitely going to stick to renting for now.

[Teh Doucher]

sorry, just have a random question for you guys that are moving out to the toronto area.. are you guys landing corporate type jobs? or are you just doing whatever you can? i've been thinking of moving out that way as well but im just a labourer. never have and never will enter the corporate world.

[KuSouL]

i live at the college / bay corridor and unfortunately, if you want a 1 bedroom within a 3 block radius it will most likely run 1500+

[RabidRat]

sorry, just have a random question for you guys that are moving out to the toronto area.. are you guys landing corporate type jobs? or are you just doing whatever you can? i've been thinking of moving out that way as well but im just a labourer. never have and never will enter the corporate world.

I think a bunch of people are down there for school. Personally I'm there for a corporate type job yeah. I'd take a look at the usual job boards but enter Toronto in the search box and see what comes up. In my field there is a LOT more stuff available in the GTA.

i live at the college / bay corridor and unfortunately, if you want a 1 bedroom within a 3 block radius it will most likely run 1500+

Thanks for that data point. I'm probably going to end up at King West or CityPlace, these are the only areas I'm finding that are relatively nice, conveniently located, and within budget. That or I live outside of the downtown area. North York seems considerably cheaper.

[bcrdukes]

never have and never will enter the corporate world.

Never say never.

[godwin]

There are more varied jobs in Toronto than just the typical corporate or union or construction / labourer work in Vancouver.. since their industry base is so much more diverse. There are manufacturing eg auto, aerospace etc. that BC doesn't have. Heck just look on how many metal casting companies here vs there. Pay for large manufacturering jobs are generally unionized.. and the kicker is living cost in TO is lower due to the economy of scale.. just go to T&T's website and compare the prices between groceries in TO vs BC.. you will find even BC produce like dungeness crab CHEAPER in TO than in BC.

I also find people in TO have a more diverse / outward looking world view than people who grew up and live only in BC. People here seem have taken Tourism Board's "British Columbia Best Place on Earth" as fact for everything.

Ontario's economy is on the mend, there are tons of hirings right now.

I always believe if you have the will you will get a job.

sorry, just have a random question for you guys that are moving out to the toronto area.. are you guys landing corporate type jobs? or are you just doing whatever you can? i've been thinking of moving out that way as well but im just a labourer. never have and never will enter the corporate world.

[bcrdukes]

RabidRat: Probably not the most favourable area to live in and I mentioned this to you in chat. My friend lives at Front and Spadina. He works at Bay and King in the Finance District.

Amenities are all there and the buildings in his area are < 10 years old. I believe one of his friends living in the building adjacent to him is going for $1200/month including utilities. Chinatown is just up the street and so is public transportation.

[Drk]

Never say never.

http://images.wikia.com/justin-bieber/images/9/94/Justin-biber-vma-2010-perf.jpg

[K.Dubz]

Check out M5V

M5V Life (http://www.m5vlife.com/)

[Liquid_o2]

Also check out St. Lawrence market area. Just outside the core but cheaper prices.

[RabidRat]

Check out M5V

M5V Life (http://www.m5vlife.com/)

95% sold though, looks like if I decided to buy I'd have to do it soon.

[RabidRat]

Okay so I'm actually getting multiple suggestions for the area surrounding Church and Wellesley. Supposedly it's a nice area and all, seems affordable. Are there actually any issues with this place other than the fact that you know, it's the gay capital of Toronto? I'm not a homophobe or anything, I could probably deal with it.

[drunkrussian]

^if its anything like the gay district of vancouver its prolly fulla better food and safer than everywhere else. gayz b eatin

[bcrdukes]

As much as people joke about it, Church and Wellesley isn't bad. It's pretty good. The people in the area are pretty friendly. Not quite your typical Toronto corporate zombies.

When I worked in Toronto over the summer back in 06, I lived not far from the Village. I was at Yonge and Bloor. Our office was down the street just off of Jarvis.

[Teh Doucher]

Never say never.

no seriously, i mean never. i'd honestly shoot myself if i had to sit in a bloody office all day.

There are more varied jobs in Toronto than just the typical corporate or union or construction / labourer work in Vancouver.. since their industry base is so much more diverse. There are manufacturing eg auto, aerospace etc. that BC doesn't have. Heck just look on how many metal casting companies here vs there. Pay for large manufacturering jobs are generally unionized.. and the kicker is living cost in TO is lower due to the economy of scale.. just go to T&T's website and compare the prices between groceries in TO vs BC.. you will find even BC produce like dungeness crab CHEAPER in TO than in BC.

I also find people in TO have a more diverse / outward looking world view than people who grew up and live only in BC. People here seem have taken Tourism Board's "British Columbia Best Place on Earth" as fact for everything.

Ontario's economy is on the mend, there are tons of hirings right now.

I always believe if you have the will you will get a job.

its funny you mentioned that bit about metal casting, thats actually what i do for a living, im a molder in a foundry. that second part of your response is honestly the reason im considering the GTA. i hear that people are a lot nicer out there and not as closed minded as they are here.

[godwin]

I said metal casting because originally I was going to get some mould made for a small production runs for engine heads of my own design.. In the end, I only needed 2 sets of 2 so I went the CNC route instead... During my research I just notice 1. there are more places that caters to heavy industry out East 2. Generally they are more clear on what they can / cannot do. (vs give us your project we will figure it sales pitch out here West)



its funny you mentioned that bit about metal casting, thats actually what i do for a living, im a molder in a foundry. that second part of your response is honestly the reason im considering the GTA. i hear that people are a lot nicer out there and not as closed minded as they are here.

[dlo]

Jane and finch homie yanno wut I mean
Come bang wit us, chuckie akenz rep our crew yanno wasup cuz

[wouwou]

There are realtors who specialize on condo renting placement, although most of them will need to see you face to face before actually showing places due to regulations.

If you are planning to drive, don't rent in North York, the postal code will kill you.

[RabidRat]

There are realtors who specialize on condo renting placement, although most of them will need to see you face to face before actually showing places due to regulations.

If you are planning to drive, don't rent in North York, the postal code will kill you.

Just the fact that it's a long drive?

I guess it is pretty close to Markham though which is cool (dimsum, NCIX). Any other issues with that area? Is it as boring, soulless, and sparse as people make it out to be?

[TheKingdom2000]

North York is great, don't get me wrong. But, downtown is downtown if you know what I mean.
North York is actually Korea town 2. Lots of food, it is pretty lively at night. But, if I were to stay North of downtown, I would prefer Yonge and eglington or Lawrence.

[godwin]

Long drive, insane traffic getting on and off 401.

It is boring.. people stay in their own little comfortable spaces all the time etc... not to mention fully planned but half built TTC line.

Just the fact that it's a long drive?

I guess it is pretty close to Markham though which is cool (dimsum, NCIX). Any other issues with that area? Is it as boring, soulless, and sparse as people make it out to be?

[wouwou]

Just the fact that it's a long drive?

I guess it is pretty close to Markham though which is cool (dimsum, NCIX). Any other issues with that area? Is it as boring, soulless, and sparse as people make it out to be?

Other than the 401 drag, the emptiness, your auto insurance will be twice what you pay if you have a downtown postal code. Ont insurance has a very different quotation system, and they look at you the driver while where you live. I am in Markham for the family neighbourhood, but I think you are more concerned with a single life.

As for the people, YES they are a lot nicer here. I can chat up anyone at a store and have a great time, and people are generally more helpful than GVRD.

[RabidRat]

^ So you're saying insurance if I live in the downtown area of Toronto is probably going to be double what I'm paying here in BC? And you're also saying that it'll be equally high insurance cost whether I live in North York or downtown Toronto because they judge it to be the same area?

[fobulaus]

Everyone has a unique driving record... Just google a few insurance companies and get a quote yourself..

[RabidRat]

Everyone has a unique driving record... Just google a few insurance companies and get a quote yourself..

I know. I'm just trying to figure out what the heck he was saying LOL

[wouwou]

^ So you're saying insurance if I live in the downtown area of Toronto is probably going to be double what I'm paying here in BC? And you're also saying that it'll be equally high insurance cost whether I live in North York or downtown Toronto because they judge it to be the same area?

What I meant was that if you live in North York, your quote will be twice what you pay if you live in downtown TO.

An example for me: I pay 2018 back in Van with 35% off, and I am currently paying 2074 with a Markham postal code (a relatively cheap area for auto insurance). If I live in North York, my quote will be 28xx, and if I live downtown TO, the quote will be 16xx a year.

Sorry for the bad English though, lol

[froz_v]

if your going to be working near Bay & Wellington, i would suggest looking for a place at college park on Bay & College. I lived there since 2007 about half a year ago when i moved back to Van their rent is about 1300-1800 (lowest would be bachelors and higher ones would be 1bdr). They are a little bit on the higher side but it is a very convenient location as it is connected to a food court, 24hr grocery store, subway, and much more! Your electrical bill is included in the rent if you are in phase 1 (north tower). =D