T -Dot. The 6ix. The Big Smoke or Hollywood North. The nicknames for Toronto are many, as are the reasons both employers and their assignees continue to place Ontario’s “Megacity” among Canada’s top relocation destinations. “People want to live here,” affirms Julia Sakas, director of marketing and communications with Toronto Global, a not- for-profit investment attraction agency. “The Toronto Region is progressive and exciting. It leads North America on almost every important quality-of-life metric, including safety, crime, health- care, education, housing, culture and entertainment.” Toronto’s expanding inventory of rental accommodations, housing, temporary accommodations and shared service alterna- tives allows all visitors to establish roots, no matter how long they plan on staying. And while the city has traditionally been perceived to have one of the tightest real estate markets in the country, the reality is that comparisons to other North American hubs work out in Toronto’s favour. “When comparing the cost of apartment rentals across each of the key tech markets in North America, the Toronto region comes out ahead in terms of affordability,” says Sakas. “Toronto stacks up pretty well from an affordability perspective against other global tech markets like New York, Boston or Chicago.” As for residential housing, Sakas adds that the inventory of stock is also growing to accommodate the steady influx of newcomers and immigrants to the city. “We have a huge stock in develop- ment now, with 40,000 new units being built every year,” she says. “We are prepared for this region to continue to grow and become a global hub.” Canada’s largest metropolis checks all the boxes when it comes to attracting international players to a new destination DESTINATION SPOTLIGHT By Matthew Bradford DESTINATION TORONTO hallmark lind Group realty ltd., brokerage independently owned and operated Service with Professionalism HALLMARKLINDREALTY.COM 905-841-0000 DIAMOND CLUB PRODUCER 18 PERSPECTIVES Summer 2018