The Lowdown on Brockton Village

Your Typical Neighbour

Families are a mainstay in this neighbourhood. Old-school Portuguese families who have been here for at least a generation. Chinese or South Asian immigrants. Artists who got here pre-gentrification, young professionals looking for the next hip 'hood. Bartenders and baristas renting close to the burgeoning hipster spots they work at.

What We

Classic Victorians can be found for significantly less than a few blocks east. Check out the Toronto Arts Market for handcrafted treasure from local artisans (the same cool people who frequent the funky restaurants and shops popping up everywhere). Grab a coffee and a house plant at Run and Gun Coffee - a minimal style space brightened with a bounty of botanicals, baby clothes and gifts.

What We Don't

Some of the ‘west of Lansdowne’ grit still shows, but fortunately this is quickly fading as the Brockton sheen moves further west. Those that are offended by yards that are completely converted to working gardens or simply paved/bricked over may have problems.

Property Statistics in Brockton Village

Source: TREB Statistics

In 2012 Toronto Life ranked Brockton Village among its top 10 places to “buy now”. (Plus, Brendan and Mel made it their home for more than 5 years! The realtor stamp of approval...) The changes in the retail sector along Bloor Street are a direct result of the influx of a younger demographic that has begun to fully appreciate the area and its offerings. There are excellent restaurant and nightlife offerings along both Dundas and Bloor, with more arriving every year. The northern section's proximity to the Subway is also a major contributor to its popularity.

Most of the homes in this area were built between 1880 and 1920. Narrow Victorian-style homes on narrow lots dominate on narrow streets that offer rear laneway accessed garages. The increase in demand for the area has led to the smattering of infill options that have popped up. These include a handful of lane houses, as well as some condo conversions and townhomes; with a little sleuthing, there are a couple of really chic homes to be found, although many move here for the opportunity to renovate a long-time family home to their own tastes.

Given the excellent and internationally-inspired cheap eats, you can find so close to parkland and increasingly great retail. It’s no wonder that the grittiness that was still present in the late 2000s is giving way to a spit-shining that shows no signs of slowing with new condo developments popping up on Dundas St W & Lansdowne.

Area: 1km

Population: 12,055

Demographics

Kids: 10%

Youth: 10%

Seniors: 16%

Visible Minority: 26.9%

Average Family Income: $63,544

Education

Lower Education: 39.8%

Higher Education: 6.9%

Home Ownership

Owned Homes: 40%

Tenanted Homes: 60%

There are quite a number of schools in the area in keeping with the family friendly bent of the neighbourhood.

ELEMENTARY SCHOOLS

Shirley Street Public School
Brock Public School
St. Helen Catholic School

SENIOR SCHOOLS

City View Alternative Senior School
St. Helen Catholic School

Transit options are plentiful with easy access to the Bloor-Danforth Subway Line, Dundas Streetcar and Dufferin Bus all a short walk away. Dufferin provides easy access to the Gardiner and Lakeshore.

About Brockton Village

Welcome to Toronto’s Brockton Village neighbourhood.

In 2010, the Globe and Mail labelled Brockton Village as one of Toronto’s ‘hottest neighbourhoods’ and described it as “A lunchbox neighbourhood with an arty, relaxed vibe”. That was then. And this is now. We’re heading into 2023 folks, and Brockton Village only continues to get cooler.

Brockton Village was once a town and has kept its name ‘Brockton Village’ after being annexed into the city. (Did we just blow your mind!?) Today it stands as one of Toronto’s most coveted neighbourhoods. Of course, modern-day Brockton was built on the shoulders of the working class, and artists, who were undoubtedly ahead of the curb. Walking down this strip of real estate it’s very easy to see the positive impact of local entrepreneurs, and creatives, who saw something of beauty before there was beauty to be seen.

Real estate in Brockton Village is as diverse as the neighbourhood itself. There’s a touch of reinvention to be seen on just about everything throughout this pocket of the city. That No Frills? It was once the National Cash Register Company and considered “one of the most modern industrial plants in the world”. That laneway house? It was built by a renowned architect who visualized that laneway space as a plot of land for their new home. Out of the box idea ‘makers’, dreamers, creators, and trailblazers, have called Brockton Village home for years now. This has created a prosperous, and competitive, real estate marketplace in the area.

Residents of ‘the village’ are people who were looking for something different. Maybe even, at first, somewhere that was a little ‘quieter’ with less fancy ‘bells’ and ‘whistles’. A neck of the woods that rejected pretension in favour of the casual and unique. What can now be seen, are modern renovations, additions, and new builds, that change just like the changing times of Brockton Village. A place that is consistently reinventing the wheel. But, not in an effort to ‘keep up with the Joneses’…in pursuit of creating something more beautiful than what was there before.


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