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Although Toronto has seen a steady decline in its rental prices over the past year, the average one-bedroom apartment will run you at least $2,000 per month — meaning many tenants under a tight budget are still being forced to consider alternative living arrangements and unconventional spaces to live in.
As a result, a select group of landlords in the city have taken it upon themselves to list budget-friendly spaces that almost always compromise privacy, cleanliness, or in some rare instances, safety.
Over the past year, head-scratching rental listings throughout the GTA have dominated headlines, including kitchens and laundry rooms converted into “bedrooms,” rooms stuffed with multiple beds at small distances, and even rooms with no access to a kitchen.
The latest listing to make rounds on social media is a narrow room up for rent in Toronto for $900 per month. The landlord listing the space ruffled feathers when photos of the room were shared on Reddit.
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“It looks like a hallway,” one user commented, adding that they felt “claustrophobic just looking at the picture.”
As seen in the photo, the narrow room is stuffed with a couch, TV, office chair, desk, mini fridge, mirror, and what looks to be a small table in the corner.
“Oh wow that mirror really opens the place up,” another user said sarcastically.
“I remember maybe seven years ago when we used to rent out our basement we charged $850 for a bedroom living room kitchen bathroom everything, it was pretty big honestly. Wifi and utilities included, along with a huge coat roam and washing machine and dryer. What the f*ck has this become,” one comment reads.
Despite this, some came to the defence of the landlord and argued that the price of the listing was justified.
“I mean, yes, it’s small. But it’s a non-shared unit with a bathroom, in Toronto, for under $1000 a month,” a user argued, while another agreed, writing, “Other than being a little small, it doesn’t look so bad. Would be perfect for an 18-25 year-old who’s just getting started into the workforce and doesn’t have much money.”
Other questionable listings to make rounds on social media this year include a bathroom-turned-bedroom in Brampton for $550 per month, a Scarborough rental that advertised a bed in the middle of a kitchen for $500 per month, and a laundry room-turned-studio in Brampton for $550 per month.
