Home renovation in Toronto

Renovating in Toronto

Toronto has the oldest and most varied housing in the GTA, and the tightest working conditions. Houses are close together, parking is scarce, and a large share of homes are either a century old or forty storeys up. Renovating here rewards planning.

Toronto’s housing, area by area

The old city: the Annex, High Park, Roncesvalles, Riverdale, Leslieville, the Beaches. Detached, semi-detached, and row houses built largely before the Second World War. They are narrow and deep, with the kitchen at the back and one bathroom upstairs. Renovations here commonly open the main floor, rebuild the kitchen, and add a bathroom. Party walls, older wiring and plumbing, and limited access for materials all shape the plan.

Leaside and East York. Mostly two-storey houses and bungalows from the 1930s to the 1950s. Kitchens are small by modern standards, and rear additions and basement renovations are common.

North York, Willowdale, and Scarborough. Largely post-war bungalows, side-splits, and two-storey homes on wider lots, built from the 1950s through the 1970s. These houses suit main-floor reconfigurations and basement secondary suites, many of which have separate side entrances already.

Downtown and midtown condos. Tower suites from the 1970s to the present. The work is governed as much by the condominium corporation as by the City. See condo renovation.

These are general patterns. We confirm the details of your home at the free site visit.

Permits: the City of Toronto

Permits are issued by Toronto Building. The City’s page When Do I Need a Building Permit? says a permit is required for, among other things:

• structural or material alterations, such as adding or removing walls,
• new windows or doors where none existed, and enlarging or relocating openings,
• installing or modifying heating or plumbing systems,
• finishing a basement where the work involves structural changes, heating or plumbing modifications, underpinning, a new entrance, or a second suite, and
• additions of any size.

The same page lists work that does not need a permit, including installing cabinetry and millwork, repairing or replacing plumbing fixtures, and finishing a basement with no structural or material changes, no second unit, and no new plumbing.

Secondary suites

Toronto permits secondary suites, of which a basement apartment is the most common example, and creating one requires a building permit. Our page on legal basement apartments explains what the unit has to meet.

Heritage, ravines, and neighbours

Toronto has many heritage conservation districts and individually listed properties, and exterior changes to them need heritage review. Properties on or near ravines fall under the City’s ravine protection rules and the Toronto and Region Conservation Authority. And in a semi or row house, work on or near the shared wall affects the house next door, so it pays to talk to your neighbour before the bins arrive. Interior work such as a kitchen or bathroom is usually unaffected by heritage and ravine rules.

What we do in Toronto

• Kitchen renovation in Toronto
• Bathroom renovation in Toronto
• Condo renovation
• Basement renovation and legal basement apartments
• Full home renovation and home additions
• Commercial renovation
• 3D renderings before any of it starts

For how a project runs from first call to final day, see our process. For the rules across the province, see our guide to renovation permits in Ontario.