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A working HandyForce territory, not an available one
North York is not currently available. The territory has been operating since 2024 out of a HandyForce office at 480 Wilson Ave, run by one of our franchisees.
We have kept this page up rather than taking it down, because if you are researching a HandyForce franchise it is more useful to see a territory that is actually running than one that is only being described. North York is what a mature HandyForce market looks like about two years in: a permanent office address in the community it serves, a crew, and a customer base built from the housing stock described below.
Why this market works, and why it went first
North York is the largest concentration of 1960s and 1970s detached housing in Canada, and that single fact defines the business here.
The 2021 Census counted 261,830 occupied private dwellings in the North York Community Council area. 86,190 of them, just under a third, were built between 1961 and 1980. Another 62,165 date from 1960 or earlier. Together, 56.6 percent of the housing stock is at least 45 years old.
The distinction between North York and downtown Toronto is not how old the housing is, it is what kind. Toronto’s old stock is narrow semis and rowhouses on small lots. North York’s is bungalows, sidesplits and backsplits on wide suburban lots, built fast during the postwar boom with materials and systems that are now at the end of their service life all at once. Roofs, windows, furnaces, panels, driveways, garages, kitchens and bathrooms in these houses were installed within a few years of each other, and they are failing within a few years of each other.
North York by the numbers
| Measure | Figure |
|---|---|
| Population (2021) | 647,245 |
| Occupied private dwellings | 261,830 |
| Owner households | 138,145 (52.8%) |
| Renter households | 123,685 (47.2%) |
| Built 1960 or earlier | 62,165 (23.7%) |
| Built 1961 to 1980 | 86,190 (32.9%) |
| Median household income (2020) | $86,000 |
The wide lots change the job mix. A North York territory produces work a downtown territory rarely sees: detached garages, driveways, fences, decks, additions at the back of the house, and legal basement apartment conversions. At 47.2 percent renters there is also a substantial apartment tower inventory, which supports commercial and property maintenance accounts that run year round and are not weather dependent.
If you are looking at North York, the markets next to it share the same postwar housing stock.
Where to look instead
If North York is the market you had in mind, the reason is probably the housing: postwar detached stock, owner-occupied, all coming due at once. Two neighbouring territories share that profile.
Etobicoke has the oldest housing of any territory we sell. 64.9 percent of its 231,775 occupied dwellings were built before 1981, and it has the highest ownership rate in Toronto at 55.4 percent. If you liked North York for the housing age, Etobicoke is the stronger version of the same argument.
Vaughan sits directly north and is the opposite case: newer stock, 64 percent single-detached, 85.9 percent owner-occupied. The work there is planned improvement rather than failure repair, and the job values are larger.
Markham and Mississauga are also open, and the full list is on the territory page.
Why a sold territory is worth reading
Franchise websites tend to show you maps full of availability. That is easy to produce and tells you nothing. A territory that has been running for two years, from a permanent office address you can drive past, is a more useful data point than a shaded map.
On a discovery call we will put you in touch with existing franchisees directly, including operators in markets like this one, so you can ask them what the first year actually looked like rather than taking our word for it.
What it costs to open a territory
The total investment is $140,000, with $90,000 in cash required to open. The investment page sets out the franchise fee, capital expenditure and operating capital requirement in full, along with the 6 percent royalty and 2 percent marketing fund. Background on the system is on the franchise page, and common questions are answered in the FAQ.
No construction experience is required. Franchisees must live within one hour of their office location.