What kind of home would your hard-earned Hogtown rent money have gotten you 50 or a 100 years ago?
↑ In 1913, in what's now Koreatown, you could have rented a suite of five 'handsomely decorated' rooms plus bath in the Bowden Apartments at 330 Clinton Street. The suite had a back verandah and private porch, and could be yours for $40-$45/month. The building is still there; rents are presumably much higher.
↑ 75 years ago, the Montclair Apartments at 1554-1574 Bathurst Street (near St. Clair Avenue) were fairly new and elegant buildings, close to two streetcar lines: probably a fantastic place to live if you were a junior clerk or a young family. In 1938, $30 dollars a month would get you a newly decorated one-bedroom apartment.
↑ 25 years later, in 1963, a five-room equipped apartment in Cabbagetown was on offer for $100/month. The heritage building at 77 Winchester has been part of a non-profit housing co-op since 1981.
↑ By 1988, rents start to look a little more familiar. An 'affordable' two-bedroom on Queen Street East (no address given) was listed at $900/month (plus utilities); on the other side of town, a renovated two-bedroom at Queen and Sorauren was $775. Today, a two-bedroom in Roncy or Parkdale can easily go for $1500 or more.
· Renters Week 2013 Archives [Curbed Toronto]
· What Parkdale Used to Look Like in Toronto [blogto]