What is the cheapest area to live near YYZ?

KAG · Post by **KAG** » Mon Oct 24, 2005 11:21 pm

If you were going to live and work out of Pearson what area would be the cheapest and Most convient place to live? Taking in account commute time and ammenities?
What would the average house cost is said area?

Cheers.

. . · Post by **. .** » Mon Oct 24, 2005 11:34 pm

if you're looking for a house rather than a condo or some form of townhouse then I'd say you can't really get anything liveable for less than $250k. There is really no cheap undiscovered area that's within 30min drive of the airport. Hope for a good schedule that doesn't have you driving out every day and live further away.

West = 401 = insanity
North = 400 = insanity
East = 401 = insanity

your best bet is to try and find an area where you can get to more than one option for your drive in. One dude off fixing a tire = instant 15 min delay in traffic while everyone has to slow down to 3km/hr and gawk as they go by.

hazatude · Post by **hazatude** » Tue Oct 25, 2005 2:53 am

In the sewers. CHUD!

Guido · Post by **Guido** » Tue Oct 25, 2005 4:10 am

...Barrie to the North ...London to the West ...Frickin' Kingston to the East!

Cargodog · Post by **Cargodog** » Tue Oct 25, 2005 4:14 am

Manitoba.

Inverted2 · Post by **Inverted2** » Tue Oct 25, 2005 6:14 am

Brampton, I mean Bramladesh

jumperdumper · Post by **jumperdumper** » Tue Oct 25, 2005 6:27 am

Hamilton by far....
average rent is $700 for a bigger 1 bedroom and about $1000 for a newer townhouse type of rental....
Its 45 minutes to the Pearson airport in a no traffic situtation (traffic is an issue no matter where you live in the GTA) and you anytime if you take the 407 by it will cost you an exrta $6-9 with a transponder and it is well worth it in the mornings.....

Hope this helps...
http://www.myhamilton.ca

and it's not a bad town.....

VeRmiLLioN · Post by **VeRmiLLioN** » Tue Oct 25, 2005 6:41 am

North of Toronto.

Vaughan, Maple, Richmond Hill

Condos can be had for $180g for 2 bedrooms.

neophyte · Post by **neophyte** » Tue Oct 25, 2005 6:58 am

Under the Gardner!!!

Like Inverted2 said, the "desh" works just fine and can be "affordable" by Toronto standards.

learcapt · Post by **learcapt** » Tue Oct 25, 2005 7:07 am

hey KAG......i hear guelph is reasonable, with the university being there and about a 45 minute drive. good luck on your interview. mine is on the 9th

. . · Post by **. .** » Tue Oct 25, 2005 7:08 am

I bet I'm the only guy on here that gets the CHUD reference haza. That sure is an obscure one.

CAL · Post by **CAL** » Tue Oct 25, 2005 7:21 am

bigcanuck · Post by **bigcanuck** » Tue Oct 25, 2005 7:27 am

Woodstock.

1+10 From CYYZ

0+45 From Hamilton

0+30 From London

And Cheap as all get out. For now.

unregistered · Post by **unregistered** » Tue Oct 25, 2005 7:30 am

Hamilton . . . by far.

Kosiw · Post by **Kosiw** » Tue Oct 25, 2005 7:30 am

So 180-300k for a place to live in the GTA, or rent elsewhere's and spend part of the morning or evening commuting to Pearson, all for 34k/yr....hmmm

Pilot_adam · Post by **Pilot_adam** » Tue Oct 25, 2005 7:39 am

Hamilton By far....
But watch that you should get a place up the mountain (Hamilton mountain area) ...no offence to anybody here but downtown is getting really bad now adays,the mountain is safer relatively..
Let me know if you need any further help or have any questions...

Best of luck
Cheers
Adam

EI-EIO · Post by **EI-EIO** » Tue Oct 25, 2005 7:59 am

Just bought in East York not far from DVP/Gardiner for 285k and there's plenty more where that came from. Your best bet is to look on MLS because even if you want to rent it will give you an idea of what property in general costs. Probably not the right side of town for you though.

desksgo · Post by **desksgo** » Tue Oct 25, 2005 8:02 am

Hi Adam,

Haven't been to Hamilton's downtown in a very long time and was surprised that it has become as you put, unsafe. What's going on up there?

Hamilton may be cheaper, but the commute ain't pretty. Now if they run a gotrain to Pearson, that would be the mutts nuts.

Not bloody likely though!

gelbisch · Post by **gelbisch** » Tue Oct 25, 2005 8:14 am

Guelph!

I don't know if it's the cheapest, but it sure is nice... and it's cheaper than t.o. And you can't beat driving by the universtiy to see all the new students every fall!

Whisky 1 · Post by **Whisky 1** » Tue Oct 25, 2005 8:14 am

I would have to go with George Town or Milton. Still not exactly cheep for housing but the drive isn't too bad. Also if you want to drive a little farther I do have to agree that Hamilton is a good option or the east side of Cambridge on the 401 is about a 40 min drive on a good day. Prices in these places are still somewhat reasonable. You could get something very decent for $185,000 to $230,000. No matter where you live make sure you make 680 news your friend for the traffic updates. The drive will suck at least 90% of the time unless you are flying medivac at 2AM the traffic isn't too bad then. And if you do drive the 401 to YYZ, unless you are doin at least 140 in the left lane get the hell out of the way because I'm comming through.

Pilot_adam · Post by **Pilot_adam** » Tue Oct 25, 2005 8:35 am

desksgo wrote:Hi Adam,

Haven't been to Hamilton's downtown in a very long time and was surprised that it has become as you put, unsafe. What's going on up there?

It is getting really bad downtown,I work night shift on a major intersection downtown and have seen it all ...I guess high profiles are moving from Toronto and else where into Hamilton and find it easy downtown

Mind you the police is doing a great job and they are everywhere but i guess the bad boys are getting smarter .... robberies,BAEs,stabings and murders...but it still depends on where you go downtown and who you socialize with ...
Cheers
Adam

tlux · Post by **tlux** » Tue Oct 25, 2005 9:02 am

Richmond Hill, Thornhill, Markham, Woodbridge, or anything else along or near access to the 407 corridor. Take the ETR....might be a bit more expensive but commuting will be a sinch.

No matter where you go expect expensive housing with mid-scale quality.

Northern Skies · Post by **Northern Skies** » Tue Oct 25, 2005 9:17 am

As for Hamilton, I live on the West Mountain and it is very nice, but with all of those houses going up in Ancaster the already-saturated 403 hill is a nightmare at peak times. That highway was the major campaign promise last election, but the outlook is sour on that one.

As for the commute in this area, the major issue is the bottleneck all through Hamilton until that monster intersection in Burlington. The worst area is at the linc/403 interchange, where all of the mountain traffic meets with the Ancaster traffic, and no exit until downtown. Things get easy after that with the 407, but be prepared to pay out of your ass! As an alternative the 403 the rest of the way in until past mississauga is hit-and-miss, and I wouldn't trust it if you have a departure time to make. After that, your other problem will be when you merge with the 401 just before YYZ, I have been stuck there a few times.

Dundas is also nice, however it is a desolate sea of subdivisions with very little infrastructure. The atmosphere is nice and the people are friendly, but it is also expensive. Other areas include Westdale, where the university crowd is. I find that the masses of young people out at night drive away the undesireables that would be found to the east of king&james...... it's a rule of thumb in any city. Around Dundurn st. at the foot of the hill seems ok too, but I'm not certain of that since it's so close to the downtown core.

In conclusion, Hamilton is good, but be prepared for the commute from hell. If this is part of the daily grind and you are travelling at the same time as everyone else, I wouldn't recommend it. However, at other times of day the drive is relatively easy. If you would be travelling at off times, especially if it is not every day, then go for it.

What about somewhere like Milton? Any thoughts?

good luck, and I'm happy if this helps.

B612 · Post by **B612** » Tue Oct 25, 2005 10:06 am

KAG - what are you looking for? Guelph, Orangeville and Cambridge are nice with reasonable commutes. If you don't have kids consider downtown Toronto. Rents are going down in YYZ - nice one bedrooms in High Park for 750 - 1000/month, newish condo's in Queens Quay or Yonge and Eglington for just over a grand, two bedrooms for a bit more. Living downtown is a hoot, reverse commute to the airport for an easy drive, and tons to do. Most guys that move to YYZ and hate it chose suburbia. Lots to see and do downtown and you won't regret having tried it. If you can handle letting go of vehicle dependancy you can easily take the TTC or hotel shuttles to Pearson. Condo's downtown are springing up like crazy and some really good deals are around for both rent and purchase. Whatever you decide, I'd rent for a year to get an idea of what living in Toronto means.

Chris · Post by **Chris** » Tue Oct 25, 2005 10:11 am

Consider Caledon, Orangeville, & Grand Valley areas. Very popular area with YYZ pilots. <50min commute during rush hours. Safe areas, reasonably priced...for now.

Maple is nice area, but getting pricey and lots of traffic.

Milton is good choice, growing like crazy. (Second fastest growing town in Canada I think?)

Georgetown...relatively expensive. Big traffic battle to yyz.

Stay away from the east end though. You don't want to battle 401 traffic.

Downtown T.O. is not a bad choice really. Gardiner out of the city in the morning can be slow, but north 427 is never really that busy.