Five Things Newcomers Need to be Aware about Toronto
By: Sebastian Marquez | Tolobi
New to the big city? Toronto may seem like your average North American sprawl of concrete and asphalt, but there are a few unique features newcomers should pay attention to as they begin to find their way around the new setting.
Commuting Woes
If you’re new to Toronto, you may think your congested drive into the city or underwhelming bus ride across town was a one off bad time. But you’d be wrong.
In Toronto, the general attitude is that having transit is better than nothing. People want to live close to a TTC or GO station, but they know that having easy access to transit does not often smooth things out down the road. Toronto’s transit system is plagued by delays. For example, the Eglinton Crosstown Project is rumoured to be delayed till May 2022, which will make a good portion of Eglinton Avenue frustrating to drive along.
In general, commuting in Toronto is stressful. The city has the highest average commute times and the “worst commutes” for major cities in North America, when considering long travel times with high congestion. It is ranked the 6th worst city for commuting in the world.
To get a better picture, try to get in and out of trains from Union Station during rush hour. Union Station is the second busiest transportation facility and the second-busiest railway station in North America. The Yonge-Bloor Station, another major transit hub in Canada, sees an average of 200,000 passengers go through its gates on an average weekday.
Limited Real Estate
If you’ve just moved to Toronto, then chances are that you’ll first want to rent a place to stay. Unlike other big cities, in Toronto, prospective tenants often have the option of using realtor services to find a home to rent.
One major challenge for finding a new home to rent is compromising for price. The problem is that the city has a very low vacancy rate, around 1% (a healthy rate is 3%), and average rental rates are about $2,500 per month. The rental market moves fast and is very competitive, so often times people feel like they have to take what they can get.
That said, there are still ways to better your prospects in this tricky rental market. And if high rental rates are not that much of a concern, Toronto does boast an exciting range of apartments with unique amenities.
Natural Neighbours
Though bears and coyotes are not common, virtually every Toronto neighbourhood has its own urban ecosystem filled with rummaging raccoons, scurrying mice, and flocks and flocks of pigeons to feed or be pestered about.
Newcomers to the city often make the mistake of leaving garbage bins open, not realizing that Toronto’s raccoons are some of the most adept urban scavengers out there. Unlidded garbage bins will often be found tumbled over with the bags inside ripped open and spilling out into the alley.
There are also skunks, squirrels, groundhogs, and not all of these critters will be found outside your home. Some can end up inside!
Bitter Seasons
One thing to note is that Toronto has a continental climate, and though it is somewhat moderated by its proximity to Lake Ontario, it still has extremely contrasting weather between summer and winter.
The summer heat and humidity is contrasted with intense and prolonged freezing temperatures with at least a couple of heavy snowfall events per winter. Often times people are caught unaware when the first signs of winter hit the city, which is why it’s important to gear up for the winter well in advance. Newcomers from Europe, south of the border, or from the west coast of Canada need to bring extra warm clothes to compensate for this.
Utilities will also be more expensive than other cities with more tempered weather. If the place you’re going to be renting from does not include utilities, budget in the winter spike in utility costs.
Weed Galore
Whether you condone it, condemn it, or don’t really care for it, you’re likely to smell skunk-like odours even more now that marijuana is legal everywhere in Canada, and you’re bound to come across it in Toronto!
In October 2018, Canada became the second country in the world, after Uruguay, to legalize the cultivation, possession, acquisition, and consumption of cannabis and its by-products. Since then, dispensaries have been popping up all over the city like breweries and distilleries.
Though many landlords do not allow for smoking inside their properties, unless there’s a condo bylaw or a formal agreement has been signed between tenant and landlord, it is perfectly kosher to light up a joint inside the privacy of your home. The new law also provides for the growing of a limited number of cannabis plants in homes, which could spell a new development in the fashionable house plants trend!
Almost every major city in the world has its own ups and downs. Toronto’s may not even be that concerning when compared to other similar sized cities across the continent. And yet, it would still be astute for newcomers to pay mindful attention to its particular challenges so that they can start with the best foot forward.
