Masonville homes for sale, from Medway Creek to the North Thames

Where does the Masonville planning district begin and end?

When we say Masonville, we mean the City's whole planning district, which is larger than the mall area most Londoners picture. Its edges run like this:

• North: Fanshawe Park Road. Across it are Sunningdale on the west side of Richmond Street and Uplands on the east side.
• West: the Medway Creek valley and the Medway Valley Heritage Forest, with the Medway district beyond.
• East: the North Thames valley, where the Thames Valley Parkway's North Branch path passes Northbranch Meadows and Tetherwood Park, with Stoneybrook to the northeast.
• South: Windermere Road and the edge of Western University's lands, which the City places in its North London district (the area we call Old North).

Inside that line, the City's NeighbourGood London site names two resident-defined neighbourhoods: Masonville itself, around the mall, and Old Masonville, which it places "between the many meanders of Medway Creek and Masonville Mall." Both the mall and Old Masonville sit on the west side of Richmond Street.

Detached house, townhouse or condo tower: what does Masonville offer?

The City of London's neighbourhood profile, using 2016 Census data, counted 3,760 occupied dwellings in the district. About 61% were single-detached houses, 13% were row houses, 17% were apartments in buildings of five or more storeys and 8% were in smaller apartment buildings. Roughly one home in four is an apartment, which is why condo buyers look here as well as house hunters.

Tenure has shifted. Owners held 84% of homes in 2006 and 73% in 2016, while the number of rented homes rose from 565 to 1,010. In practice you will find long-time owners, downsizers and investors on the same streets.

The street names tell you which side of Richmond you are on. West of Richmond they read like a map of England's Lake District: Ambleside Drive, Grasmere Crescent, Ullswater Crescent, Thirlmere Road, Buttermere Road, Bassenthwaite Crescent and Penrith Crescent. East of Richmond the pattern switches to Doon Drive, Orkney Crescent, Paisley Street, Angus Road and Muskoka Crescent, with Tetherwood Boulevard and Sunnyside Drive reaching toward the river.

If you want a condo, compare Masonville with condos for sale across London before you settle on a building.

How close is Masonville to Western, and what does that mean for buyers?

As the crow flies, CF Masonville Place (1680 Richmond Street) is about 2.2 km from Western University's main address at 1151 Richmond Street, and Masonville Public School about 2.5 km. Both are on or near Richmond Street, and LTC buses run along Richmond between the mall and Windermere Road.

The university shows up in the census. In 2016 the 20-to-24 age group was the largest five-year band in the district, at about 10% of residents, even though the median age was 46.8 and 21% of residents were 65 or older. Part of the district also falls inside the City's mapped Near-Campus Neighbourhood Area, so planning and rental questions deserve a closer look here before you buy.

If you plan to rent the home out, check the City's current rules first. See how Masonville compares with the other neighbourhoods near Western University, some of them closer to campus.

Which schools sit inside the Masonville district?

Two elementary schools are inside the planning district. The Thames Valley District School Board's Masonville Public School is at 25 Hillview Boulevard, west of Richmond Street, and the London District Catholic School Board's St. Kateri Catholic School is at 220 Sunnyside Drive, east of Richmond.

Two secondary schools that the City's NeighbourGood pages mention for this area sit just outside the district: A.B. Lucas Secondary School (TVDSB) at 656 Tennent Avenue and Mother Teresa Catholic Secondary School (LDCSB) at 1065 Sunningdale Road East, which the City lists as offering French Immersion.

Attendance areas change, and the nearest school is not always the school for a given address. Enter the exact address in the TVDSB school locator and the LDCSB school finder before you firm up an offer.

What is it like to have the Medway Valley Heritage Forest next door?

The Medway Valley Heritage Forest is one of London's Environmentally Significant Areas, and several of the City's ESA parcels lie inside the Masonville district. The Upper Thames River Conservation Authority, which manages it under contract with the City, says the public ESA covers 133 hectares with 12.2 km of managed trails on both sides of Medway Creek, which winds between banks up to 25 metres high. The main access points are the Elsie Perrin Williams Estate and Sunningdale Road, and smaller entrances include Ambleside Park, Gloucester Road, Glenridge Crescent and Windermere Road.

The ESA is open from 6 am to 10 pm, pets must be on a leash of no more than 2 metres, and visitors are asked to stay on the trails marked with yellow or white blazes. The UTRCA also notes the valley has been used by Indigenous peoples for thousands of years, and that more than 500 years ago a large village stood where the Museum of Ontario Archaeology is today.

Closer to home, the district's City parks include Ambleside Park (tennis courts and a play structure) and Helen Mott Shaw Park (forest paths) on the west side, Carriage Hill Park off Pinebrook Place, Hillside Ravine, Tallwood Valley, and Tetherwood Park and Northbranch Meadows near the river. A connector path from Tetherwood joins the Thames Valley Parkway's North Branch, part of a 45 km riverside pathway linked to more than 150 km of other paths.

How do you get around Masonville by bus?

The City describes CF Masonville Place and the commerce around it as the transit hub for the entire north end, and London Transit buses also serve Fanshawe Park Road, Richmond Street, Windermere Road and the streets on the east side. Routes change, so check the stop nearest a specific address on londontransit.ca.

What is within reach for shopping, books and a night out?

CF Masonville Place at 1680 Richmond Street is the anchor, with national retailers, restaurants and an entertainment venue under one roof. The London Public Library's Masonville branch is across from the mall at 30 North Centre Road.

In Old Masonville, the City's NeighbourGood page points to Windermere Manor, a hotel and conference centre, and the Elsie Perrin Williams Estate, used as an event venue. It also lists the Old Masonville Ratepayers Association as the residents' group for that area.

What should you check before buying in Masonville?

A few checks come up in this district more than most:

• Heritage status. The City's heritage records list several Masonville properties, including designated houses at 1576 Richmond Street (1926, Tudor Revival), 1603 Richmond Street (about 1844) and 153-161 Windermere Road (about 1890), the 1916 Windermere estate, and listed properties such as Spencer Hall at 551 Windermere Road. If an older house catches your eye, confirm its status with the City before you firm up an offer and before you plan changes.
• Valley lots. Land along Medway Creek or the North Thames may be regulated by the UTRCA under Ontario Regulation 41/24 because of the valley slopes and floodplain. Check with the UTRCA before counting on an addition, pool or deck.
• Condo documents. For an apartment or townhouse condo, the status certificate gives key information about the unit and the corporation; the Condominium Authority of Ontario says a corporation must provide it within 10 days of a request.

If you need to sell a Masonville home before you buy, start with a free home evaluation from our team, and we'll show you how the north end compares with the rest of London.