How we work in North York
North York visits are scheduled by area. Assembly and mounting jobs here are grouped with other bookings from the north end of the city, and we agree the day with you when we quote, so mention early if a delivery or a move-in slot fixes the date. The founder does that work himself, and small repairs can join the same visit.
Larger projects are quoted with licensed trade partners and written into one contract with us: wiring by a Licensed Electrical Contractor, plumbing by a certified plumber, concrete by a concrete contractor, with us coordinating and doing the light work around them. Which partner covers a North York job is confirmed before you are quoted; the details are under larger projects. However long the list, it starts with your photos and ends with a flat-rate price in writing, before anything begins.
The homes, and the work they bring
The six wards of the City's North York community council area held 261,830 homes at the 2021 Census. Almost half, 48.9 percent, are apartments in buildings of five storeys or more, about a quarter are detached houses, and the biggest building period was 1961 to 1980, when a third of today's homes went up. Owners and renters are close to even, at 52.8 and 47.2 percent. Those averages hide two quite different places.
Willowdale, the ward that straddles Yonge Street north of Highway 401, is a tower ward: 60.7 percent of its homes are in buildings of five storeys or more, 54.7 percent are condominiums, and 44.8 percent were built in 2001 or later. Work there looks like downtown work: TVs and shelves on concrete, furniture after a move, an elevator to book and a concierge to sign in with.
Don Valley East is older and mostly rented, with 43.5 percent of its homes built between 1961 and 1980 and 55.7 percent of households renting. Don Valley West has more houses than either, with 36.8 percent detached and 35.5 percent built in 1960 or before. Houses from those decades bring sticking doors, old caulking, worn hardware and walls full of old anchor holes, and some sit on lots that run back to a ravine.
Ravine lots have their own rules
The branches of the Don River cut deep ravines through North York, and the City protects them under its Ravine and Natural Feature Protection By-law. Inside a protected area, a permit is needed before anyone harms or removes a tree of any size, changes the slope by digging or adding soil, dumps fill or refuse (garden waste, leaves and branches count), or builds or replaces a structure or a retaining wall. The City’s by-law map shows whether your address is inside one.
For a yard cleanup, that means everything we gather leaves the lot in bags and bundles for collection. A new shed, deck or retaining wall near the slope waits until the permit question is answered, and that kind of work is quoted as a larger project with the right trade.
Four depots, four sets of rules
Four of the City’s seven drop-off depots are in North York, and they are not interchangeable:
- Dufferin, on Vanley Crescent, takes mattresses and renovation waste, but no drywall, hazardous waste or electronics.
- Ingram Drive takes up to a tonne of clean drywall, hazardous waste and electronics, and runs around the clock from Monday morning to Saturday at 12:30 p.m.
- Bermondsey Road also takes clean drywall and hazardous waste, and runs around the clock from Monday morning to Friday evening.
- Victoria Park Avenue takes hazardous waste and electronics, but not drywall.
All four need a car or a truck; walk-ins are turned away. A mixed clear-out can mean trips to two depots, and that is where junk removal saves the driving.
Neighbourhoods in our North York area
- Willowdale
- North York Centre
- Newtonbrook
- Lansing
- Bayview Village
- Bayview Woods
- York Mills
- Hoggs Hollow
- Don Mills
- Parkwoods
- Victoria Village
- Flemingdon Park
- Bathurst Manor
- Clanton Park
- Armour Heights
- Lawrence Manor
- Downsview
Not sure whether your street is covered? Call (416) 474-0156 or email
help@homeresetters.ca.
Sources
- Community Council Area Profile: North York, 2021 Census, City of Toronto
- Ward Profile: Willowdale, 2021 Census, City of Toronto
- Ward Profile: Don Valley East, 2021 Census, City of Toronto
- Ward Profile: Don Valley West, 2021 Census, City of Toronto
- When to apply for a tree or ravine permit, City of Toronto
- Drop-off depot locations, City of Toronto
