Best Toronto neighbourhood for doctoral student?
 

I know Toronto a little bit as a visitor but what would be your advice as to the best neighbourhood(facilities, entertainment, proximity to U of T) for a 23 year old male student. There is a possibility of renting a relative's place at Yonge and Eglinton..inconveniently far or a much better choice than close to the uni?

Hi horatio,
Good luck with your doctoral program! What's your subject?

Coincidentally, I live at Yonge and Eg and work at UofT. I happen to drive, but it's a very easy commute by subway. I've done it often.

Have you check with the student housing office to see what's available locally? The areas you'd be interested in are The Annex, Harbord/Spadina, College/Spadina. East of the university is more student-oriented. West of it is mostly high-end condos. But I do know that the university has married student housing -- maybe that's also available for grad students.

In any case, if your relative's place is a good price, Yonge/Eg is a great, lively neighbourhood -- you really can't go wrong there.

Question one is whether you want to walk to school or not. When my daughter went to theRoyal Connservatory, which is on the UofT grounds,she walked and found this very convenient, but later, at UofT itself, her classes were organizzed so it was easy enough to come to schyool in the morning on the subway, and take it home at night.

And sometimes, the subway is easier than walking.

And what's your budget? Story in the paper the other day of two students sharing the rent on a $2000 a month condo.

Yonge and Eglinton is not bad. Easy subway ride downtown, interesting restaurants in various price ranges, a grocery store or two.

If you do not have time to come and scout for yourself, take the Y&E opportunity.

Thanks to the both of you..it is my son actually and he is presently at Bloor and Brunswick..so in a hopping place. He is toying with the idea of moving to a "better" place..the place he is in is so convenient but aesthetically not so much. He has asked us what we think and in the next couple of months..when his lease expires he will have to re-sign or move. I thought he just may miss a lot of the action that seems to be where his is..that Yonge and Eg is more for older people..I don't know.

Well, just to give you a hint, the nickname for Yonge and Eglinton, is 'Yonge and Eligible' -- there are tons of people your son's age around there. There are bars, movie theatres, restaurants, a big bookstore, coffee shops, supermarkets, shops. My 28 year old nephew just bought a condo there (he moved from the subs) and he loves the streetlife.

Trust me -- your son won't miss any of the action.

Are you British? Brits are the only ones I know who say 'uni'.

goddess, Aussies use "uni", too.

horatio - I'd love to live around Bloor and Brunswick - it has everything - my son lives in the area.

But Yonge and Eg is great, too, but you have to take our beloved TTC to school.

And look what those guys did to us this weekend...a last minute strike stranding lots of people at midnight (me being one of them). If you live at Bloor/Brunswick, there would be no problems getting to school.

Yonge & Eglinton might have the nickname "Young and Eligible" but it seriously lacks the kind of character that would likely interest a grad student. It's high rise, soulless apartment-ville, and its shops & restaurants cater more to the parents and families in the nearby neighbourhoods.

The subway is jam-packed during the morning commute, and depending on where your faculty is located at U of T, you'll still have to walk, ride the subway loop around to Queen's Park, Museum or St George, take the Wellesley bus or walk to he campus.

If the relative's apartment is a really great deal, take it. Otherwise, find a more convenient and interesting place to live.

The Annex would be the most convenient location. It might also be worth looking at apartments around St Clair West. It also lacks character, but it's closer to the centre of the university, there's a very convenient Loblaws grocery store right at the station and the subway isn't as crowded in the mornings. There are some older apartment buildings in the area that could be a good deal.

Thanks again..to all of you...frogoutofwater..that is what I was thinking...for a 23-27 age group I am not certain the Yonge and Eg area would be as hopping when you want it to be. As I said before, he now lives in the Annex and is trying to decide if and where he should relocate this summer...thanks again!

Hi Horatio,

My husband is a doctoral student at UofT and I work on the campus. We're both in our late 20s.
I have to agree with frogoutofwater about Y&E's character. Of course it's a matter of personal opinion, but if your son likes the vibe in the Annex then he probably won't be happy at Yonge-Eglinton.
After about two months of searching for decent apartments in the Annex and finally giving up (I'd kill for a place at Brunswick & Bloor!) we found a great place at Summerhill subway station. It takes 25 minutes to walk to UofT, 20 minutes to Yonge-Bloor and 10 minutes from the shops and services of St Clair-Yonge.
Another area we were considering was the Avenue Rd (north of Dupont St) strip of older apartment buildings.
Good luck!

Beaches (Beach?) for being near Lake, Queen Street West and College Street West have an ethnic and/or younger vibe.

The Beaches are nice (we used to live on the edge of this neighbourhood) but a) it's more of a 30-40 something family neighbourhood; and b) it would be a long commute to U of T on public transit: Queen Streetcar to University and then subway north to the University.

I agree about the Beaches not being suitable. It's a lovely neighbourhood -- very small town-ish, and very family-oriented. The kids I see there are little up to young teens. If your son is looking for people his age, he won't find lots of them in this neighbourhood.

The Annex is great, certainly. I grew up there in a house that now sells for about 1.5 million (sigh). I also went to art school in that neighbourhood and now I work there, so I really do know it well. Yes, it's chock full of university students who live in boarding houses or share flats and it's also full of extremely well-off families who own those bazillion dollar houses that aren't broken up into flats.

I totally disagree with the 'soul-less' statement about Yonge/Eg. The streets are full of young people and it's certainly not those families with small children that are patronizing the bars and dance clubs. Re transportation, it's five subway stops to Bloor Street and then two or three (or a walk) to St. George (the university). I take that subway often. I sometimes get a seat on the Yonge Street part and I always get a seat on the Bloor Street part. He wouldn't have to go all the way downtown and loop around -- that's not at all logical-- nor would he have to take the Wellesley bus, though that's not a bad idea, depending on where he's going on campus.

Yonge/Eg may have young people patronizing bars and dance clubs, but I doubt those places would have the kind of vibe that would appeal to a U of T doctoral student - not crunchy or funky enough.

OK, but I think you've got a sort of odd idea of university students. I'm with them every day. My SO teaches them. "Crunchy"? "Funky"? I dunno.