Living In The Annex

Many university students and faculty live in this neighbourhood, which contributes to the college feel of the area but it is by no means exclusive to this demographic. There is so much to do in this youthful and vibrant neighbourhood!

Restaurants, pubs, bookshops, art galleries, and excellent shopping are found along Bloor Street, with easy access to the Bloor subway line for commuters. A primarily residential neighbourhood, The Annex is a lush enclave featuring towering trees that surround the mature homes.

The Annex is well served by public transit, including four subway stations: Bathurst, Dupont, St. George, and Spadina. Spadina and St. George stations act as interchange stations, allowing passengers both north-south subway travel as well as east-west.

Streetcar services run south from Bathurst and Spadina stations. Bus service operates on Avenue Road, Spadina Road, Dupont Street, Davenport Street, and northward on Bathurst Street.

Walk Score: 98
Transit Score: 100
Bike Score: 75

Real Estate In The Annex

Most real estate in the area are Victorian and Edwardian homes and mansions built between 1880 and the early 1900s. The 1950s and 1960s saw the replacement of some homes and mansions with mid-rise and a handful of high-rise apartment buildings in the International style. These were surrounded with landscaped green spaces in an attempt to better fit into the neighbourhood.

But thanks to the government freeze of development in 1975 for any buildings higher than 45 feet, most of the homes have been unscathed. The Annex is home to many examples of a uniquely Torontonian style of house that was popular among the city’s elite in the late nineteenth century.

Examples of this style survive in the former upper class areas along Jarvis and Sherbourne streets, and also within the University of Toronto campus. Most of these buildings are found in The Annex, and the style is thus known by some as the “Annex style house.”