The Best
(and Worst)
Places to Live
All 140 neighbourhoods ranked
The great thing about living in Toronto is that every neighbourhood comes with bragging rights. Rosedale has prestige schools. Trinity-Bellwoods is the capital for small-batch picklers. Etobicoke has low crime rates, Scarborough has lush parks, downtown has the most transit. Every neighbourhood has something going for it. But Torontonians are competitive, and we like knowing how we stack up.
To that end, we present a ranking of Toronto’s 140 neighbourhoods—a definitive document that separates the great from the good, the average from the awful. We teamed up with the urbanists, economists, sociologists and information scientists at the Martin Prosperity Institute, a think tank at U of T’s Rotman School of Management. They crunched every stat they could drum up: census data, community health profiles, the Fraser Institute’s school report cards, the Toronto Police Service crime figures and independent studies.
The last time we ranked the neighbourhoods, in 2013, we conducted an online poll of Toronto Life readers to determine what they look for in their neighbourhoods. This time, we used the same criteria and weightings, but improved our methodology, adding new information and more controls for land area and population. The city has drastically changed, and so have our rankings (to wit: Rosedale, the former champion, has dropped to number 18).
We scored each neighbourhood in 10
categories, broken down as follows:
1Housing (15%): affordability (cost versus income), appreciation (year-over-year change) and quality (how many homes recently required major repairs).
2Crime (13%) the number of incidents per neighbourhood by type
3Transit (11%) the number of overcrowded routes and TTC stops per square kilometre
4Shopping (11%) the number of groceries, hardware stores and pharmacies per square kilometre
5Health (10%) the number of cancer screenings and health care providers per capita, and the amount of air pollution, tree coverage and green space
6Entertainment (10%) the number of sports facilities, bars and restaurants per square kilometre
7Community (8%) the number of street beautification efforts per square kilometre, plus voter turnout
8Diversity (7%) the number and proportion of various ethnicities
9Schools (7%) the number of schools in each ’hood, and their performance in the Fraser Institute’s report card
10Employment (7%) the number of jobs and businesses per capita, plus unemployment rates
For more detailed look at our methodology, please visit the Martin Prosperity Institute’s website.
Of course, the perfect neighbourhood is a subjective ideal, so we’ve created an interactive (and addictive) feature that lets users create their own custom ranking by selecting and weighting their priorities. We’ve also included a smorgasbord of all the data we couldn’t let go to waste: tidbits about real estate, crime, money, schools, demographics and transit that help us better understand our city.
Some of our findings confirm what we already know—that wealthier neighbourhoods score higher for schools, that a huge number of jobs are downtown, that the suburbs are transit deserts. But there were also some surprises, especially in our top 10, which stretches across the whole city and features some rapidly emerging new players. So here it is: our mostly scientific, wildly controversial ranking, one that pits east versus west, downtown versus suburb, neighbour versus neighbour. Let the turf wars begin.
View the map
Intro
Toronto Life worked with the Martin Prosperity Institute at the University of Toronto to generate the definitive ranking of Toronto ’hoods. In the process, we discovered all sorts of fascinating geographic tidbits about real estate, money, schools, race and transit that help us understand our neighbourhoods and our city. Here, the coolest things we learned.
Housing
Some of us want transit access. Some of us want good schools. But we can all agree on one thing: housing is crucial. Toronto Life determined the best place to buy a home by measuring affordability (cost versus average family income), quality and appreciation. We also looked at the city’s rental market, the condo craze and who owns where. The biggest takeaways: Rosedale’s property values are starting to slip, and Scarborough is a gold mine.
The best neighbourhoods for housing are
1. Rouge
No. 1 for appreciation
No. 12 for affordability
No. 3 for quality
2. Centennial Scarborough
No. 2 for appreciation
No. 15 for affordability
No. 14 for quality
3. Highland Creek
No. 2 for appreciation
No. 30 for affordability
No. 25 for quality
The most expensive houses are in
Bridle Path-Sunnybrook-York Mills
$2.6
million
(Average home price)
The highest percentage of condos are in Waterfront Communities-The Island
South of King, condos comprise 83 per cent of all housing and sell for an average of $477,000 a pop. The fewest condos—zero, in fact—are in the %er-suburban Etobicoke pocket of Princess-Rosethorn.
One-bedroom Homes
are in the Church-Yonge Corridor
70%
Two-bedroom Homes
are in Flemingdon Park
47%
Three-bedroom Homes
are in Eringate-Centennial-West Deane
52%
Four Or More
are in Highland Creek
67%
Rosedale is the city’s only neighbourhood with depreciating property values. They dropped five per cent in the last year.
The fastest-rising property values are in
Rouge
13.73% Y/Y change
Avg. price in 2011: $418,356
Avg. price in 2015: $585,736
On the market: 92 Misty Hills Trail, listed
at $569,000
Malvern
13.28% Y/Y change
Avg. price in 2011: $455,705
Avg. price in 2015: $675,161
On the market: 35 St. Magnus Dr., listed
at $1.4 million
Centennial Scarborough
13.28% Y/Y change
Avg. price in 2011: $455,705
Avg. price in 2015: $675,161
On the market: 35 St. Magnus Dr., listed
at $1.4 million
Yonge-Eglinton
11.32% Y/Y change
Avg. price in 2011: $899,866
Avg. price in 2015: $1 million
On the market: 46 Castlefield Ave., listed
at $1.8 million
Corso Italia-Davenport
11.15% Y/Y change
Avg. price in 2011: $466,783
Avg. price in 2015: $673,014
On the market: 102 Auburn
Ave., listed at $959,000
East vs. West
Real estate in the east end is slightly cheaper than in the west, averaging $614,956 versus $639,533. The most expensive east-end ’hood is Playter Estates-Danforth, which averages $1.2 million. In the west, it’s Kingsway South at $1.4 million.
Downtown vs. Suburbs
Contrary to popular belief, housing downtown runs cheaper than in North York—probably due to the condo boom. It averages $559,300, versus $735,736. The priciest real estate in the core is in Cabbagetown, which averages $800,066. North of the 401, it’s Bayview Woods-Steeles at $972,106.
The highest percentage of owners live in
The highest percentage of renters live in
The best housing stock is in
Waterfront
97.7%
(Homes that did not require major repair)
Willowdale East
97.7%
Princess-Rosethorn
97.6%
Rouge
97.5%
Niagara
97.5%
The worst housing stock is in
Regent Park
17.4%
(Homes that required major repair)
Scarborough Village
17.1%
Oakridge
15.2%
Woodbine-Lumsden
14.9%
Black Creek
14.8%
The Cheapest Houses Are In
Flemingdon Park
$262,258
(Average home price)
These are the top condo hubs in the city
We found condo-booming neighbourhoods that also score hight for affordability, appreciation and quality. Here, the best places to buy
Waterfront Communities
83% condo housing.
The buy: Lighthouse Tower, part of Daniels’ million-square-foot mixed-use development on the old Guvernment grounds
Niagara
83% condo housing
The buy: Garrison Point, from architects Hariri Pontarini, has lots of family-friendly units, a playroom and an outdoor pool with splash pad
Waterfront Communities
78% condo housing
The buy: Lighthouse Tower, part of Daniels’ million-square-foot mixed-use development on the old Guvernment grounds
Willowdale East
70% condo housing
The buy: Beacon Condos, a new 35-storey tower at Yonge and Park Home with a gaming lounge, spa, steam room and yoga studio
Bay Street Corridor
69% condo housing
The buy: The Britt, the new 41-storey complex that replaced Sutton Place. The big sells: an infinity pool and spa with private cabanas
Bayview Village
49% condo housing
The buy: Condos at the new mid-rise hub Vida will feature private terraces, soaker tubs and marble finishes. There are also a sports bar and fitness centre
The cheapest rent is in
Regent Park $631
Hillcrest Village $677
West Hill $686
Weston Pellam Park $719
Oakridge $730
Rustic $740
The most expensive rent is in
Bridle Path Sunnybrook York Mills $2,480
Kingsway South $1,621
Casa Loma $1,495
Rosedale Moore Park $1,468
Bay Street Corridor $1,462
Bayview Woods Steeles $1,460
(Average monthly rent)
People
Toronto is multicultural. Our neighbourhoods aren’t. The average ’hood has about 42 per cent people of colour, but many of those groups are homogeneous: Chinese, black or South Asian Torontonians make up as much as 40 per cent in some areas. We also looked at family breakdowns, and discovered that most couples with kids live uptown, while the west end is the singles capital of Toronto.*
The most families live in
Bridle Path
90.8%
Forest Hill South
90.1%
Kingsway South
89.3%
Kingsway South
89.1%
Lawrence Park South
88.9%
The most singles live in
Black Creek
41%
Beechborough-Greenbrook
39.8%
Rustic
39.2%
Glenfield-Jane Heights
36.9%
Mount Dennis
36.5%
20%
of Toronto’s Chinese population lives in three adjacent Scarborough neighbourhoods: Steeles, Milliken and Agincourt North. That works out to some 46,000 Chinese-Canadians.
East vs. West
The average east-end ’hood has about 52 per cent people of colour, compared with just 38 per cent west of Bathurst. The numbers are more even for recent immigrants: the east end averages 10 per cent, the west eight per cent.
Downtown vs. Suburbs
Per capita, downtown ’hoods are whiter than those in North York, with an average of 47 per cent people of colour versus 56 north of the 401. The north also has more recent immigrants, averaging 16 per cent in each ’hood compared with eight downtown.
The most childless couples live in
The highest percentage of new Canadians settle in
Henry Farm 32.7%
10.6% from East Asia
8.1% from South Asia
5.2% from Middle East
3.3% from Europe
2.2% from Southeast Asia
1.9% from Africa
1% from Central and South America
Thorncliff Park 29%
19% from South Asia
4.4% from Middle East
1.9% from Southeast Asia
1.7% from Europe
0.8% from Africa
0.6% from East Asia
0.2% from Central and South America
Don Valley Village 23.4%
10.3% from East Asia
5.4% from Middle East
3.4% from Europe
2.8% from South Asia
2.2% from Southeast Asia
0.8% from Central and South America
0.7% from Africa
The most diverse neighbourhoods in the city are
The highest percentage of men live in
Moss Park
58.1%
The highest percentage of women live in
Englemount-Lawrence
56.1%
The biggest families live in Thorncliffe Park
The cluster of towers south of Laird and Eglinton is one of the densest chunks of the city, with more than 6,000 people per square kilometre. That’s because its residents have a lot of kids: children under 14 make up 26 per cent of the population, and 23 per cent of families have three or more offspring. (Regent Park is the runner-up with 21.7 per cent.)
You’re most likely to find single parents in Black Creek, where 41 per cent of families fall into that category. Single moms account for 36 per cent, dads for five per cent.
The whitest neighbourhood in the city is Kingsway South
91.4%
The best ’hoods in the city are among the least diverse
The top 10 neighbourhoods in the city all have one glaring downside: they perform terribly on diversity, achieving an average of 26 out of 100 in the MPI’s scoring. The winner, if you can call it that, is Casa Loma, which scored a relatively respectable 51, with decent diversity and income equality. The worst offender: Cabbagetown, which scored 1.4 out of 100 on those counts.
The most divorcees live in New Toronto and Mimico
10%
1,305
Number of residents over age 85 in Englemount-Lawrence, the neighbourhood in the city where the most elderly people live.
Where people settle
East Asians
Most likely to settle in Steeles
Least likely to settle in the Bridle Path and Rexdale-Kipling
Middle Easterners
Most likely to settle in Don Valley Village
Least likely to settle in Riverdale and the Junction
Africans
Most likely to settle in Elms-Old Rexdale
Least likely to settle in University and Lawrence Park
Europeans
Most likely to settle in Westminster-Branson
Least likely to settle in Milliken
South Americans
Most likely to settle in Mount Dennis
Least likely to settle in Leaside and the Kingsway
South Asians
Most likely to settle in Thorncliffe Park
Least likely to settle in Beach and Yonge-Eglinton
Southeast Asians
Most likely to settle in Ionview
Least likely to settle in High Park and Yonge-St. Clair
Who speaks what where
We compared home languages spoken in downtown cultural pockets versus their suburban counterparts
Crime
The safest neighbourhoods in the city are the ones
that no one notices—the areas with modest wealth, low population
density and limited entertainment options. That means the downtown core is a magnet for
assaults, and upper-middle-class hoods like Bedford Park-Norton and the
Annex attract a large number of break-and-enters.
The most dangerous neighbourhood is…
Waterfront Communities-The Island
The sprawling downtown catch-all includes not only
the densely packed condoland south of the Gardiner, but the boozy circus
that is the King West entertainment district. The result: a staggering
number of violent crimes and arsons.
The safest neighbourhood is… Humber
Heights-Westmount
The residential pocket, just south of Lawrence and
Royal York, ranked low for every type of crime, with only 41 assaults,
eight car thefts and zero murders in 2011. It’s immune to the high
crime counts in surrounding hoods like Weston and Willowridge.
219
The number of break and enters in Bedford
Park
The stately uptown hood, just south of Lawrence and
Avenue, had the most break-and-enters of anywhere in the city. The
runner-up: Islington, with 207.
The most violent crime occurs in…
The most property crime occurs in…
The Annex, which had 573 crimes in 2011, is six times as dangerous as
Casa Loma next door, which only had 89.
East vs. West
The most dangerous neighbourhood east of the DVP is
Woburn, with 733 altercations in 2011. The most crime-ridden hood west of
Bathurst is Downsview, with a total of 860 incidents.
Downtown vs. Suburbs
The most dangerous neighbourhood downtown (or
anywhere) is the Waterfront, with 1,121 incidents. In North York, the
winner is Don Valley Village, with 456 reported crimes.
The least violent crime occurs in
Woodbine-Lumsden,
with only 31 reported incidents in 2011. Other safe
bets: Lambton Baby-Point (41), Caledonia-Fairbank (43) and
Humewood-Cedarvale (44)
The least property crime occurs in Forest Hill
South,
with only 20 reported incidents in 2011. Other safe
bets: Bridle Path (26), Lambton-Baby Point (32) and Yonge-St. Clair
(32).
906
The number of assaults reported in Waterfront
Communities-The Island
in 2011. That’s more than twice as many as
anywhere else in the city.
288
The amount of thefts in West
Humber-Clairville
75
The amount of sexual assaults in Mount
Olive-Silverstone-Jamestown
3
The amount of murders in Woburn and
Downsview-Roding-CFB
Money
We diagnosed the economic health of all the neighbourhoods in Toronto by measuring their employment stats and the number of local businesses per capita. Uptowners are the richest, with an average income of $160,056, and downtown remains the financial kingpin—it’s responsible for 51 per cent of the city’s GDP.
The best neighbourhoods to work in are
1. Waterfront Communities
2.% overall unemployment
0.07 businesses per capita
2 jobs for every resident
1. University
2% overall unemployment
0.06 businesses per capita
1.4 jobs for every resident
The worst neighbourhoods to work in are
1. Lampton Baby Point
5.6% overall unemployment
0.01 businesses per capita
1 jobs for every resident
1. Pleasant View
4.7% overall unemployment
0.01 businesses per capita
1 job for every resident
The richest neighbourhoods are
(Average family income)
The most people live beyond their means in the Bay Street Corridor, where 52 per cent spend more than a third of their income on housing.
The poorest ’hood is
Regent Park
$34,825
(Average family income)
Residents struggle financially, especially in a ’hood where 77 per cent of families have kids. The area also scores low for jobs, with 6.2 per cent overall unemployment.
There are
85,891
jobs in the Bay Street Corridor
The neighbourhood only accounts for 0.02 per cent of the city’s area and 0.7 per cent of the population, but holds 14 per cent of all the jobs in the city. The runner-up is Waterfront next door, which has 88,058 jobs and accounts for 7 per cent of Toronto employment.
East vs. West
People are slightly richer on the west side of the city, with an average family income of $70,964, compared with $65,145 in the east end.
Downtown vs. Suburbs
North wins for wealth: the average family above the 401 has a household income of $76,741—a good deal higher than the average of $67,444 south of Bloor.
Where the most jobs are
The highest employment rates are in
Kingsway South
The ritzy west-end ’hood is mostly residential, with only a couple of thousand local jobs and 0.02 businesses per capita. But it has a population of hard workers, with only two per cent overall unemployment.
The lowest employment rates are in
Oakridge
This patch of Scarborough, just east of Victoria Park and north of the CN Railway tracks, is an employment wasteland, with just 1,700 jobs in the vicinity, 0.01 businesses per capita and 6.4 per cent overall unemployment.
The highest percentage of low-income households are in
Schools
We determined the best school zones based on a complex calculus of quantity and quality, averaging the scores for all elementary and secondary schools on the Fraser Institute’s provincial report card. Wealthy residential pockets dominate in this category, especially if they’re uptown—nine of the top 10 education hubs land north of Bloor.
The best neighbourhoods for schools are
1. Waterfront Communities
2.5% registered unemployment
0.07% businesses per capita
2 jobs for every resident
1. University
2.5% registered unemployment
0.07% businesses per capita
2 jobs for every resident
The worst neighbourhoods to work in are
1. Lampton Baby Point
5.6% registered unemployment
0.01% businesses per capita
1 jobs for every resident
1. Pleasant View
4.7% registered unemployment
0.01% businesses per capita
1 job for every resident
The top-ranking primary schools are in the east end
Arbor Glen Public School, Hillcrest Village
Arbor Glen is open concept—the classrooms have no walls. It seems to work: less than 1 per cent of students fall below EQAO standards.
Kennedy Public School, Steeles
Kennedy has averaged a perfect Fraser Institute score for the past
five years. It has excellent arts, science and literacy programs.
Cherokee Public School, Pleasant View
This techy east-end school offers Smart Boards in every homeroom, a popular eco club and after-school Mandarin classes for students.
East vs. West
East-siders are better educated by a hair, averaging 66 per cent post-secondary grads compared to 63 in the west end. The most east-end grads are in the Beach (82 per cent); in the west, it’s Kingsway South (89 per cent).
Downtown vs. Suburbs
Downtown averages 76 per cent university grads, versus 82 up north. The most downtown grads live in the Bay Street Corridor (89 per cent); north of the 401, it’s Willowdale East (86 per cent).
The best TDSB high school is in Bathurst Manor
William Lyon Mackenzie CI is a nerd’s paradise of AP programs in math and tech. Ninety-five per cent of its students are accepted into college or university.
$281,309
Funds raised by Forest Hill Public School’s parents’ council during the 2012–2013 school year. That works out to $450 per student.
The fastest-improving schools are
The most post-secondary grads live in
Lawrence Park North 92%
Yonge-St. Clair 91%
Lawrence Park South 90%
The fewest post-secondary grads live in
Glenfield-Jane Heights 37%
Keelesdale-Eglinton West 39%
Black Creek 41%
Transit
Downtowners have the edge in Toronto’s threadbare transit system, with their proximity to the subway horseshoe and an average of 34 TTC stops per square kilometre. The more you stray from the core, the harder it is to find a reliable stop: far-flung ’hoods like Rouge, West Hill and Morningside have fewer than 10 TTC stops per square kilometre, and each route is packed like a pickle jar.
The best neighbourhoods for public transit are
North St. James Town,
with 37.5 streetcar and bus stops per square kilometre
Wychwood,
with 30 streetcar and bus stops per square kilometre
Regent Park,
with 35 streetcar and bus stops per square kilometre
Church-Yonge Corridor,
with 44 streetcar and bus stops per square kilometre
The most reliable bus route in the city is
8 Broadview
89%
(Punctuality rate)
The least reliable bus routes in the city are
The busiest bus routes in the city are
The transit hubs of the future are
Beechborough-Greenbrook
The new Caledonia station will provide a Crosstown LRT stop and a new GO station on the Barrie line with all-day service.
South Riverdale
The first stops east of Union on the new SmartTrack route will be built in the East Don Lands and Queen East, connecting to the 501 streetcar.
York-university Heights
The Spadina subway extension will be up and running by the end of 2017, providing residents with four new stations.
East vs. West
The average east-end ’hood has 73 stops, versus 65 in the west. Per area it shakes out evenly, with an average of 16 and 17 stops respectively per square kilometre.
Downtown vs. Suburbs
The average downtown and North York ’hoods both have 54 TTC stops overall. Downtown averages 34 stops per square kilometre, versus 15 up north.
These people live in transit wastelands
We asked local residents to describe their commutes
Adele Rowe, Rouge
Starts at: Meadowvale and Generation Road
Ends at: Victoria Park and McNicholl
“I ride three buses to work. It can take an hour and 15 minutes, but that doubles during the school year.”
Yeabsira Gebre-michael, West Hill
Starts at: Morningside and Coronation Drive
Ends at: Church and Gerrard
“I take two buses to Kennedy, then the subway to Yonge. It takes about an hour.”
Rada Mlajden, Eringate
Starts at: Rathburn and The West Mall
Ends at: Eglinton and Royal York
“I travel about 40 minutes each way on two buses. I used to take Brampton and Mississauga transit. TTC is by far the worst.”
Senait Sebhatu, West Humber-Clairville
Starts at: Martin Grove and Eglinton
Ends at: Islington and Rexdale
“I have to take two buses to pick up my daughter at daycare. It takes about an hour and a half.”
Danny Lau, Downsview
Starts at: Yonge and Elgin Mills
Ends at: Dundas and Jarvis
“I have to take the bus to Finch station, and then the subway all the way down. It’s about an hour each way.”
The post
Hoods Facts
appeared first on Toronto Life.