Toronto’s Smallest House Up For Sale

Call it Little House Not On The Prairie. Toronto’s smallest house is back on the market. And at a time when real estate prices are through the roof, this place has a price tag that’s almost as tiny as the property.

You may never have seen the home at 128 Day Ave. in the Rogers and Dufferin area, because it’s easy to miss. The entire place has a living area of just 300 square feet and was never meant to actually be a home at all. It was built in 1912 when the city approved a laneway for the property as a de facto driveway for a neighbouring home. But when Old City Hall didn’t cut the curb, the owner decided to put up a home there using the existing space. And there wasn’t much of it.

Subsequent owners have managed to squeeze a lot of living into that small area and the residence has since become something of a local landmark to those who are even aware it’s there. “Holy cow, that is the smallest house,” cab driver Kamran Ghuman noted after pulling up to the west end address. “It looks like it used to be a garage and then they made a house out of it.”

It’s one of the few homes in Ontario with its own personalized website, where you can take a  mini-tour of the compact quarters. (Although the resulting publicity has been knocking the site down at times, so be patient.)

Renovations and improvements have upped the asking price to $173,000, cheap for a detached bungalow in the city. This home-on-the-strange boasts a lot of upgrades, including new cabinetry, hardwood floors, appliances, a gabled roof and a stone walkway out to a charming – but tiny – garden.

Current owner David Blois admits he’s trying to squeeze a bit of profit out of the reduced residence. He bought it last spring for just $139,000. “It reminds people of a small cottage or what they may have seen in a storybook,” he asserts.

Previous owners have been very clever about making things stretch. Despite the lack of room, they’ve managed to squeeze in a patio and parking for two cars. There’s even a storage basement, although you have to open a trap door to reach it.

Real estate agents call the place a good bargain, if you don’t mind a “little” hassle. “Even though this is only 300 square feet, it looks more spacious than a condo that’s 700 or 800 square feet,” Cristina Lopes maintains. “It all depends on the layout and the layout of this home was really nicely done.”

Some offers that were given when the house hit the market fell through – hopefully, they weren’t over the trap door at the time. So the place is still up for sale. If you’re interested in putting up a small bid of your own – and what other kind could there be? – click here.

With files from Reuters