Leaside Homes & Real Estate Toronto

Reaching west from Laird Drive to Bayview Avenue, and south from Sunnybrook Park to Moore Avenue and Southvale Drive, Leaside is among the most prized (and more expensive) real estate districts in Toronto —particularly popular with young families, who appreciate the community’s schools and recreational facilities.

Leaside takes its name from the Lea family, English immigrants who settled the area in 1819 and built what is believed to have been York Township’s first all-brick house. When John Lea died in 1854, his son William built an octagonal home close to the present site of the Leaside Memorial Gardens and named it Leaside.

Some years later, The Ontario & Quebec Railway bought land from William Lea for the Peterborough & Ottawa line, and Leaside became a name on the map when Leaside Junction Station was built in 1894. The station remained one of the city’s busiest for 75 years.

In 1927, the Leaside Viaduct was built across the Don Valley, with an underpass below the railway line. Residential construction began in the 1930's and continued for the next 20 years.

In 1967, The Town of Leaside became part of The Borough of East York, and was amalgamated into the new megacity of Toronto in 1997. Today, Leaside homes and real estate are in high demand among upper middle income families who see the neighbourhood as an ideal place to raise a family — attracted by quiet streets, excellent choice of schools, one of Toronto's best shopping districts on Bayview Avenue, and ready access to public transit and the city centre.

Leaside housing stock offers a broad range of sizes and styles, from bungalows to mansions — typically all-brick two-storey, with arched and peaked entryways, broad wooden door casings, and elegant cut stone facings around entrances and front bay windows. Leaside homes sit on comfortably-sized lots, and many have retained the leaded windows and decorative wainscotting popular in the 1930s, while home interiors often display lovingly cared-for traditional wooden mouldings, baseboards, and floors.

In a nutshell, Leaside is one of the best full-service neighbourhoods in the city, with housing options to suit a wide range of budgets. As with other popular Toronto neighbourhoods, Leaside real estate prices have risen, in recent years, with $900,000 a common entry point for North Leaside homes. South Leaside offers more economical alternatives, including semis and bungalows closer to $500,000.

For current information on available listings for Leaside homes and real estate, please see the column at the right of this page. Listings are updated daily, so we recommend that you bookmark this page and check back frequently.