University of Toronto - Graduate Housing Options

[canteaus]

I'm currently reviewing my options for housing at the University of Toronto (downtown campus).

I want to either live on campus (residence) or very, very close to campus.

However, UofT being downtown, rent is very expensive and I think it might be worth it to just cough up the extra money for residence.

I am currently considering Graduate House residence.

Any past experiences/advice would be greatly appreciated!

Edited May 2, 2012 by canteaus

[Nerd_For_Life]

In a similar situation and will be watching this thread to see the replies

[MaxiJaz]

I'll be starting at UofT in the fall. I've only lived in Toronto for the past year, but visit often as my brother goes to UofT for the last few years. Even though I haven't lived there, I think you could do better than the graduate residences. I don't advise on restricting yourself to on-campus housing. A single over there is about $860...which is probably on par with some of the nicer places downtown, but with all the additional rules that come with living in a dorm, I don't know if it'll be worth it. Plus the area isn't the greatest if you want to do your own grocery shopping. The campus area is really TTC-connected, so you could broaden your search to around a few closer subway/bus stops and find nice areas, while giving you the opportunity to get around the city.

[Spytgale1]

If you live next to a Subway station the commute isn't bad at all. The Grad Apartments are about a 15min walk to Chinatown/Kensington, so on the contrary, it is actually a really good location for groceries. Many students rent houses with 4 or 5 other people around Kensington, but the area isn't that great (no muggings or anything, just a few crazy people). Another area close to campus and popular with students is the Annex. Again, most of the places there are Houses. If you're looking for apartments, Bay st. and The Village are good neighbourhoods close to campus. Further out there's also Yonge/Eglinton and Yonge/St,Clair that are relatively close to campus (but you would have to TTC)

[ktel]

I know each graduate unit has a certain number of designated spaces it can give its students in Grad House. My department is by itself far away from any of the campuses, so my experience is totally different, but I do go downtown fairly often for sports. I live at St Clair West subway station and it only takes me 15 minutes to get to St George campus. Super quick and convenient.

[wheatGrass]

There are so many great neighborhoods within easy biking/TTC distance from UofT, I think that living on campus would mean missing out on what makes Toronto a great city. Toronto has amazing neighborhoods!

I would try to find a roomate wanted situation in a fairly close neighborhood--Queen west, college st, kensington, dupont, danforth, Christie/St. Clair, st lawrence market area... All of these are a short TTC or bike ride away and you will probably be able to find an apartment share situation for less than residence.

I don't get the draw of living on campus, honestly.

[canteaus]

Thanks for all the great advice!

Throughout my undergrad, I lived in both residence and a house with 5 housemates, so I am familiar with the pros and cons of both options.

Here's the thing though, I am leaning more towards residence because my graduate program (MA) is only one-year. Is it worth moving into a house (desk, bed..etc) when I'm only going to be there or a year?

Also, I am not from Toronto and I don't know anybody there, so residence might be a good opportunity for me to meet people.

Lastly, if I were to live in a house, I would like my housemates to be fellow grad students, which makes the housemate hunt more difficult...

[Nerd_For_Life]

Thanks for all the great advice!

Throughout my undergrad, I lived in both residence and a house with 5 housemates, so I am familiar with the pros and cons of both options.

Here's the thing though, I am leaning more towards residence because my graduate program (MA) is only one-year. Is it worth moving into a house (desk, bed..etc) when I'm only going to be there or a year?

Also, I am not from Toronto and I don't know anybody there, so residence might be a good opportunity for me to meet people.

Lastly, if I were to live in a house, I would like my housemates to be fellow grad students, which makes the housemate hunt more difficult...

Kinda sounds like you've already made up your mind o.O

Personally, I am not a fan of residence because I find the atmosphere to be not very conducive to academic productivity :S

[Legacy23]

On 5/8/2012 at 10:26 PM, wheatGrass said:

There are so many great neighborhoods within easy biking/TTC distance from UofT, I think that living on campus would mean missing out on what makes Toronto a great city. Toronto has amazing neighborhoods!

I would try to find a roomate wanted situation in a fairly close neighborhood--Queen west, college st, kensington, dupont, danforth, Christie/St. Clair, st lawrence market area... All of these are a short TTC or bike ride away and you will probably be able to find an apartment share situation for less than residence.

I don't get the draw of living on campus, honestly.

Hey wheatGrass, would you know of any decent apartments/residences in these areas for around 800$ ? I've tried looking it up on kjiji and craiglist.ca but haven't had much luck yet as most of the apartments are close to 1200$, if not more.

[eternallyephemeral]

On 5/5/2017 at 4:24 AM, Legacy23 said:

Hey wheatGrass, would you know of any decent apartments/residences in these areas for around 800$ ? I've tried looking it up on kjiji and craiglist.ca but haven't had much luck yet as most of the apartments are close to 1200$, if not more.

Rent has gone up a lot in the past five years. Those posts were from 2012, and they are not relevant anymore unfortunately. The average rent for a one-bedroom is 1700 according to padmapper.com, so your estimate of 1200 is reasonable for the area (annex and other places close to U of T). I shared a brand new condo near the waterfront last year with one roommate, it was a one plus den (so I set up a curtain, basically made it a converted two bedroom) and I paid 600 while that person paid much more (they had the actual bedroom). I haven't seen anyone else with a deal this good for a new, clean place, so you could go down that route. But as far as living on your own, it's very expensive and the rez, if it's around 1,000 (last estimate I heard) might be worth it for that reason. Alternatively, some students live a subway ride away (around St Clair West) and likely pay less.

[dr. t]

Just a datapoint - I stayed in the Grad Center last summer for a 6 week program, and it was, at best, unpleasant. I've seen more hospitable prison cells. 

[KinoCat]

Anyone familiar with the Student Family Housing?  Looking at their website, it seems like a very good price, in a good proximity to campus, and maybe not the most beautiful apartment in the world.  Moving from the U.S. with my partner during this very uncertain time, it seems like a very good option for at least the first year.  Any advice? Thanks!