Home Renovation Service
Home Renovation in Yorkdale-Glen Park
Yorkdale · Glen Park · Allen Road · Lawrence Avenue West
Yorkdale-Glen Park: storey-and-a-halfs between the mall and the Allen
Yorkdale-Glen Park sits just south of the 401, between Dufferin and Allen Road, with Yorkdale Shopping Centre at its northern edge and the Lawrence Heights redevelopment across the Allen. Most of its housing went up in the 1940s and 1950s, and that makes it older than much of North York. Lots are narrow, and the houses are small: brick bungalows and storey-and-a-half houses with bedrooms tucked under a sloped roof. A growing number have been replaced by large new two-storey houses, so many streets alternate between the two. For owners of the originals, the question is how to make a small house live bigger without an addition. The answer is usually in the half-storey and the basement: rebuild the upstairs into proper bedrooms with a bathroom, dig out storage below, and open the main floor where the structure allows. Yorkdale and Lawrence West stations are minutes away.
Price ranges: North York · cost guide
Proof of work
Recent projects in North York, near Yorkdale-Glen Park
We have not yet published a project in Yorkdale-Glen Park itself. These are the 2 projects we completed in North York, the city Yorkdale-Glen Park sits in — the same crew, the same drive. View all projects.
Glen Park streets and the houses between the infills
Storey-and-a-half streets
Houses with two bedrooms upstairs under a sloped ceiling and one bedroom on the main floor. The upstairs is often cold in winter and hot in summer. Insulating the knee walls and slopes, then adding a small bathroom, is the change that pays off most.
Small brick bungalows
One-storey houses on narrow lots with a single bathroom and a basement accessed from the kitchen. A second bathroom in the basement and a kitchen rearranged to lose the basement door are the most useful updates.
Next to new infill
Original houses beside large new builds. Owners keeping the original house usually want it to hold its value next door, so we focus on the kitchen, bathrooms and floors, the rooms a buyer looks at first.
Near Yorkdale and the 401
Streets close to the mall and the highway see more traffic and noise. Interior renovations here often include better windows by another trade and denser insulation on the street side, which we coordinate with our framing.
Allen Road edge
Houses near the Allen and Lawrence West station. Across the road, the Lawrence Heights redevelopment is ongoing. For our crews it only means planning parking and deliveries around construction traffic.
The half-storey rebuilt into real bedrooms
In a Glen Park storey-and-a-half, the upstairs is usually two small bedrooms with low knee walls and a narrow stair from the main hall. We strip it to the rafters. With the slopes open, we add spray foam or rigid insulation so the rooms finally stay warm, and frame storage into the space behind the knee walls. The plumbing for a small three-piece bathroom comes up through a closet on the main floor, so we plan that closet first. Wiring is replaced throughout because it is often the original. Drywall, new oak or engineered flooring, and a rebuilt stair with a proper handrail finish the floor. Surprises: old roof leaks visible once the plaster is off, and joists too small for a tub. Plan on six to eight weeks with a permit.
People also ask
Home Renovation questions - Yorkdale-Glen Park
What drives the cost of a home renovation in Yorkdale-Glen Park?
The upper half-storey. Many Glen Park houses are storey-and-a-halfs with bedrooms under the roof, and that floor drives cost: knee walls with little or no insulation, a steep, narrow stair, and plumbing that has to climb from the main floor to add a bathroom. Insulating the slopes properly can mean furring the rafters and losing an inch of headroom. Doing upstairs and main floor together usually saves money over two separate projects.
Can we add a bathroom upstairs in our storey-and-a-half?
Usually, if there is a path for the drain and vent. We look for a closet or a wall cavity on the main floor below that can carry the stack. The bathroom itself tends to be compact, with a shower rather than a tub, because sloped ceilings limit where you can stand. We confirm the floor can carry the load and plan the layout around the headroom.
Is renovating worth it when the houses around us are being rebuilt?
It can be. A renovated original house is often a cheaper way to get a modern interior than building new, and it keeps the lot’s existing setbacks. The limit is size. If you need much more space than the house has, that is an addition or a rebuild, which we do not do. We help you see what the current footprint can hold before you decide.
Let’s talk
Contact Osoba Renos & Design
Planning a home renovation in Yorkdale-Glen Park? Book a free in-home estimate.
- Phone647-562-4275
- E-mailosobarenos@gmail.com
- Service areaMississauga & GTA