Once Toronto's poorest neighbourhood, a textbook skid-row, Cabbagetown on the city's east side bloomed into an upscale, culture-soaked place to live and do business, adored by artists, doctors and everything in between. Cabbagetown is dubbed as being home to the largest area of preserved Victorian homes, whose brick facades lend the area the old-world charm craved by young professionals and well-established families alike. Trendy independent cafes and cozy pubs make their home here too, as well as the city's best weekly farmer's market and a handful of annual festivals.
Plaid-clad hipsters fuel Cabbagetown's eclectic mix of independent businesses, such as the neighbourhood's favourite coffee shop, Jet Fuel, a handful of vintage shops and pet-wear boutiques. A vast majority of the population here is working singles and couples without kids, although about a third are families with children.
Young, working singles and couples who need their fill of culture and a rich social scene. With plenty of nightlife and trendy cafes, the neighbourhood is constantly bustling with the young and stylish.
Those who find utopia in the quiet and calm of the suburbs need not apply here. Cabbagetown is short on space and especially parking, with semi-detached homes with tiny yards and apartments making up the vast majority of the housing landscape.
Yoga studios, pet shops, live music and much more make their homes here in Cabbagetown, with services and shops to suit the tastes of Toronto's trendy scene. There are restaurants serving ethnic foods and a handful of bars to keep folks going after dark. Cabbagetown has a healthy bustle, with plenty of people around at all hours of the day, but is never jam-packed with roving bodies. Families with kids will find parks nearby, as well as public and private schools. The weekly Riverdale Farmer's Market once drew a huge crowd every Tuesday until it closed recently, but at least there are still local festivals like the Cabbagetown Festival, Forsythia Festival and the Cabbagetown Short Film & Video Festival.
Living in Cabbagetown is not for the budget conscious, with rental prices upwards of 40% or more above the Toronto average. But Cabbagetown isn't just those beautiful brick-faced Victorian homes (which sell for a million-plus). Social housing developments are still commonplace in the community and the streets around them are home to apartment buildings that offer more affordable places to rent. As the community continues to make improvements on the older homes and gentrification spreads wider, though, it's likely that prices will continue to increase over time.
Bach/studio: $1,394
1-bedroom: $1,775
2-bedroom: $2,519
3-bedroom: $2,710
Avg. rent compared to other Toronto neighbourhoods
Cabbagetown is 17% higher than TO average
Brick Victorians, mixed with lots of multi-storey apartments
In a neighbourhood dominated by old, established housing, most homes (65%) are owner-occupied, but plenty of multi-storey apartments in Cabbagetown offer rental opportunities for residents.
After starting out as one of Toronto's roughest ghettos, the community revamped itself into one of the trendiest and most charming spots in the city. The quirky name is derived from the produce of choice grown by poor Irish immigrants who once dominated Cabbagetown's population and raised the pungent vegetable in their front yards. Careful preservation of the old homes built here generations ago has transformed Cabbagetown into a mecca of historical charm. Its proximity to downtown is a huge benefit to its residents, who prefer to walk, bus or bike to work, making car-commuters a tiny minority. The University of Toronto and Ryerson University are close by, too. Neighbourhood pubs, from cozy staples to trendy new hotspots, hosting live music, make up the nightlife here.
