Where to live?

[RMSC2000]

I recently got into Osgoode, and as it is my first choice I'm most likely going to accept. However, every single person I have talked to who went/goes to Osgoode or is from Toronto/GTA has said something along the lines of "DON'T live near YorkU, it's dangerous." 

For those of you who do go to Osgoode and are not from Toronto/GTA, do you live near YorkU? If you do, what has your experience been like? 

If you don't live near the school, what area of Toronto do you live in? I'm currently considering living more downtown Toronto (closer to UofT) and commuting, but I'm not sure a 35-40 subway ride will be worth it (especially given the recent surge in crime on the TTC). 

I am open to any/all suggestions and advice! 

 

[LMP]

People very much overstate the supposed danger of the area. There are a couple of places, off campus, where I'd recommend a bit of added caution but they are hardly the lawless zones people pretend them to be. 

I always advise people to live on campus, the price is reasonable and you're right by the school.

[123]

I think it really depends on what you mean by dangerous. Generally speaking, even if you live at Jane and Finch or whatever, the chances of you personally being the victim of a violent crime remain extremely low. Compared to almost everywhere else in the world, the areas around Osgoode are pretty safe neighborhoods for people not involved in organized crime. 

If you’re talking about public nuisance, rather than violent crime — noise and disturbances from mentally ill persons, sirens, witnessing low-level crime, etc — yeah, I have seen that in the areas around Osgoode. There are neighbourhoods that can feel sketchy, especially for women later at night. That’s something to consider, either in choosing somewhere you’ll feel more comfortable or taking reasonable precautions. But, with the caveat that I didn’t go to Osgoode (I’ve just spent time in the area), I don’t think most Osgoode students are at any particular risk of serious or violent crime by virtue of living near campus. 

[BlockedQuebecois]

I’ve written about this before, although it might have been on the old forum. The idea that Jane and Finch is particularly dangerous is largely a result of racism because Jane and Finch is a largely racialized neighbourhood. When you look at the actual data, such as the TPS’s neighbourhood heat maps, you’ll see that for virtually all criminal activity it is on par with much of downtown Toronto. 

With that said, I don’t really know why someone would live “near” but not “on” campus. Passy is cheaper than apartments in the area, and you don’t really get better amenities by going off campus until you’re much further away than the Jane and Finch area. 

If you’re going to live off campus, I would recommend living in another “dangerous” neighbourhood like Kensington, the Annex, etc. That way you get to enjoy living in Toronto in a way that you won’t if you live on campus. 

[luckycharm]

How can you beat a five minutes walk to classes?

I didn't have to pack luch because I returned to my residence for lunch. 

[law0012]

 

On 12/28/2022 at 6:00 PM, BlockedQuebecois said:

I’ve written about this before, although it might have been on the old forum. The idea that Jane and Finch is particularly dangerous is largely a result of racism because Jane and Finch is a largely racialized neighbourhood. When you look at the actual data, such as the TPS’s neighbourhood heat maps, you’ll see that for virtually all criminal activity it is on par with much of downtown Toronto. 

With that said, I don’t really know why someone would live “near” but not “on” campus. Passy is cheaper than apartments in the area, and you don’t really get better amenities by going off campus until you’re much further away than the Jane and Finch area. 

If you’re going to live off campus, I would recommend living in another “dangerous” neighbourhood like Kensington, the Annex, etc. That way you get to enjoy living in Toronto in a way that you won’t if you live on campus. 

This is totally correct. Jane and Finch is a majority Black neighbourhood and that is a large part of why it gets a bad rep. Now, is it an affluent neighbourhood? No. But I used to live on campus and it was fine. The local No Frills is a bit run down but it's cheap, I never saw anything suspicious, and people generally just mind their own business like anywhere else. You do hear about some crimes occurring on campus but it wasn't anything more than what would happen at U of T or TMU. If you can, you should absolutely live on campus. The apartments for Osgoode students were decent and in this rental market, you will not find an apartment in the city for less than $2000. My rent at Passy was half that. 

That being said, there really is not much to do around York. If you can't live on campus I would try to find a place close to the subway line because it is pretty far out of the way.

[hiccups]

Are you going to be stabbed in a targeted violent crime while living there? Probably not.  But my sister lived there for 2 years, and with all the sirens and other things that does happen there, she was pretty nervous walking home alone every evening.  On more than one occasion she was in arms lengh to a homeless person with mental illness that suddenly became reactive.  

One of the commenters said the crimte rate based on stats is similar to downtown.  That's probably true, but I was living downtown and aside from side alleys where I would avoid at night, there were many stores that opened late with plenty of people. By sticking to the busier streets I never felt scared. 

[BlockedQuebecois]

I doubt there is a meaningful difference in the number of “sirens and other things” that occur in the Jane & Finch area compared to the areas of downtown Toronto where crime rates are similar. I hear sirens constantly in my neighbourhood, which is a pretty nice one in downtown Toronto. 

That’s not to say people who have lived near Jane & Finch might not feel like it has more “sirens and other things” than the nice, white neighbourhoods downtown. It just means that perception is likely being shaped by racism and unconscious bias. That’s actually part of what makes racism and unconscious bias so insidious – people have real feelings that are driven by racism and similar concepts, even when the facts don’t support those feelings. 

[PzabbytheLawyer]

Still, just so you actually get to live in Toronto, live in the annex or Kensington and commute up. Lots of decently priced housing there with roommates, and an easy subway commute up to York.

Back in the day it's a different calculus since there was no subway up.

[whereverjustice]

Also in addition to the points above I'm just going to note that Osgoode is like a 30 minute walk from Jane & Finch. Imagine deciding not to go to U of T because you're nervous about being near Dundas & Sherbourne.

When I lived at York I got a membership to Black Creek Pioneer Village because I figured I'd visit it a lot to see the goats and you know what, it didn't pay off, because it was kinda far.

Also I strongly recommend living in Passy for 1L at least, if you're on the fence. 

(Caveat: I graduated over 10 years ago)

[ZineZ]

Echoing the idea of living at Passy during 1L. Its likely the year where it has the most real impact - you're five minutes away from classes, the library and from on-campus events. And you're surrounded by classmates who are going through the same experiences as you (though this cuts both ways - you can end up in a rather stressful bubble).

I stayed all 3 years and really enjoyed it. I will also say that the subway was a gamechanger - while the campus is still isolating, it is MUCH easier to get off-campus.