Cost of Living
What Torontonians make and how they spend it
“i admit i could spend less, but i love exploring new places in the city”
What She DoeS
Freelance event marketer
What She makeS
$85,000 a year
Where She liveS
A two-bedroom, 1,100-square-foot apartment in the Annex that she shares with a roommate
34 toronto life July 2018
RegulaR expenses
Rent $900 a month. “In the Annex, you get a lot of space, even if it’s in an older, weathered apartment.” inteRnet $40 a month. cellphone $250 a month. “I use it a lot for work and Instagram. I’m always going over my data limit.” tRansit $100 a month, for the TTC. savings $450 a month, into an RRSP. going out $400 a month, for meals and drinks at spots like Grey Gardens, Piano Piano and Bar Raval. “I admit I could spend less, but I love exploring and experiencing new places in the city.” gym $60 a month, at GoodLife. laundRy $50 a month, for a wash-and-fold service. “I know I could do it myself, but I value the time I save.”
Recent spluRges
condo $60,000, for a down payment on a $319,000 one-bedroom unit in Corktown that’s currently under construction. She plans to move in once it’s completed in September 2020. tRavel $4,500, for a month-long trip to Greece, Turkey and France last April. dJ lessons $120 per lesson. “I took them every two weeks for a few months.” cameRa lens $250, for her Sony A6000. “I have a blog, and I’m trying to get more Instagram followers, so I’ve been working on my photography.” computeR $2,400, for a 2017 MacBook Pro. aRt $250, to buy and frame a piece she found in Kensington Market. “I was waiting to get into Cold Tea and saw this cool print at the flea market next door.”
photograph by erin leydon. reporting by luc rinaldi
emily Zajac, 27
