Leaside

Around the Neighbourhood

Cultural landmarks: Bayview Avenue itself is the institution here, a low-rise shopping street that functions as the neighbourhood’s town square, and the new Line 5 stations at Bayview and Laird are quietly becoming landmarks of their own.

Hot local spots: McSorley’s Wonderful Saloon & Grill at 1544 Bayview has been the local pub since 1991, Patisserie la Cigogne at 1626 Bayview does proper Alsatian baking, and Olde Yorke Fish & Chips near Bayview and Eglinton is the long-running chippy.

Parks & green space: Trace Manes Park is the heart of south Leaside, with tennis courts, a rink and a playground, while Serena Gundy Park and Sunnybrook Park open onto the Don valley ravine trail system to the north and east.

Your Typical Neighbour

Leaside is affluent, established and family-heavy. Most residents own their homes, single-detached houses make up the bulk of the housing, and household incomes run well above the Toronto average… the 2021 Census put the median household income for Leaside-Bennington around $148,000, roughly double the city figure. Education levels are high, with about 73% of adults holding a bachelor’s degree or more. It’s professionals, established families and a fair number of longtime owners who raised kids here and stayed.

Source: City of Toronto Neighbourhood Profile, Leaside-Bennington, 2021 Census 

What We Love

The village feel inside a big city. You can walk to dinner, the bakery, the hardware store and a hockey rink, and run into half the neighbourhood doing it. The housing stock is handsome and well-kept, the parks and ravines are genuinely good, and the new LRT finally gives Leaside the east-west transit it always lacked. For families who want space, schools and a real community without decamping to the suburbs, it delivers.

What We Don’t Love

Pride of ownership tips into keeping-up-with-the-Joneses, so there’s near-constant renovation, and the “perfect” sheen can feel a bit Truman Show if that’s not your thing. It’s also expensive and not especially diverse or buzzy… this is a settled family neighbourhood, not a scene. And the Bayview-and-Eglinton corner is in for years of construction as the density around the LRT goes up.

Real Estate

Leaside is mostly detached and semi-detached houses from the 1920s through the 1950s on regular lots, with a steady stream of teardowns and rebuilds pushing the high end up. The newer story is condos: the Line 5 stations have triggered mixed-use development along Bayview and Eglinton, including projects like Leaside Common at Bayview, which is adding attainable-by-Leaside-standards units near the transit. Expect more of that around the LRT nodes over the next several years. New to the market? Start with our First-Time Buyer guide.

(Current prices and days on market appear in the live statistics block below, updated quarterly.)

Schools

ELEMENTARY SCHOOLS

Bessborough Drive Elementary/Middle School
Rolph Road Elementary School
Northlea Public School
St. Anselm Catholic School

SENIOR SCHOOLS

Leaside High School

PRIVATE SCHOOLS

Maria Montessorri School

For school rankings and Fraser Institute scores, see our interactive Toronto school map.

Transit

The headline is Line 5 Eglinton, open since February 2026, with stations at Bayview and Laird on the neighbourhood’s southern edge, plus Sunnybrook Park just east. It connects to the Yonge subway at Eglinton station and runs across midtown to Kennedy. Local buses serve Bayview and Laird, and drivers reach the Don Valley Parkway quickly via Bayview or Millwood.