REAL ESTATE IN CLARKSON

This is also another district of Mississauga that is southbound with part of its boundaries having some amazing lake views. It is located near the southwesternmost point of Mississauga next to Southdown district where there is very little housing.

THE AREA "LOWDOWN" TO MEET YOUR LIFESTYLE

Just like Port Credit, Clarkson has been going through a rejuvenation period over the last decade or more. The downtown core is further expanding east and west, these districts are having home buyers and investors moving further out of the city to get more for their money.

Investors and contractors are starting to have their way here as well with new condominiums, townhomes and estate homes starting to appear over the last ten years. Especially around Royal Windsor Drive and Southdown Road, which is just down the road from Clarkson Go Station.

Clarkson is still a community that is going through its urban modernization stage where you find there are still pockets of less desirable homes and community shopping centres with some tattered looking shops. Again let me stress that these are pockets and there are many nice community shopping centres not far with your mainstay franchises involved.

It is a great area if you are looking for a "fixure upper" to sink some money into and design it to your likes and wants. I feel it would be a smart area to buy in. Don't get me wrong there are some lovely homes in this area, boasting decent sized lots and quite a few million dollar homes with some lake views. I just think that Clarkson is one of the last areas with some lake front that is catching up with giving itself a modernized facelift.

There are some nice parks that reside in Clarkson just of Lakeshore Road, with Birchwood Park, Jack Darling Memorial (split between Lorne Park area) and the Rattray Marsh Conservation Area as well. Rattray has a nice Lake Ontario waterfront trail that connects to Jack Darling Memorial and it's great for the health enthusiast or if you want to take your dog for a nice venture (leashed of course!)

Another heads up is that the schools in Clarkson don't have the best overall ratings but they do continue to improve every year which is a great sign for things to come.

SURROUNDING COMMUNITIES NEAR CLARKSON

If Clarkson doesn't appeal to you but you'd like to be in the vicinity these are some of the other districts that surround this community. All of these areas have their own unique charm and appeal, but have a lot of similar characteristics as well.

CLARKSON SCHOOLS AND THEIR RANKINGS

The schools in Clarkson are pretty decent overall. They mostly all fall in the seven out of ten range.
Please look below for an explanation on why some schools do not have a mark from the Fraser Institute (F/I)

ELEMENTARY SCHOOLS IN CLARKSON

Clarkson Public School - 888 Clarkson Road South, Mississauga (905) 823-4470  F/I Score: 7.1/10 ("12-13 rank)
Elmcrest Public School - 2620 Chalkwell Close, Mississauga (905) 822-1675  F/I Score: N/A
Garthwood Park Public School - 3245 Colonial Drive, Mississauga (905) 607-0800  F/I Score: N/A
Owenwood Public School - 930 Owenwood Drive, Mississauga (905) 822-0311  F/I Score: N/A
Willow Glen Public - 1301 Epton Crescent, Mississauga (905) 822-4171  F/I Score: N/A

MIDDLE SCHOOLS IN CLARKSON (6-8)

Green Glade Senior Public School (6-8, Extended French 7-8) - 1550 Green Glade, Mississauga (905) 822-8386  F/I Score: N/A
Hillside Middle School (6-8) - 1290 Kelly Road, Mississauga (905) 822-0122  F/I Score: N/A

SECONDARY SCHOOLS IN CLARKSON (9-12)

Clarkson Secondary School - 2524 Bromsgrove Road, Mississauga (905) 822-6700  F/I Score: 7.1/10

CATHOLIC SCHOOLS IN CLARKSON (JK-8) (9-12)

All Saints - 4105 Colonial Drive, Mississauga (905) 828-6348  F/I Score: 5.7/10
Christ the King - 3240 Garthwood Road, Mississauga (905) 569-0220  F/I Score: 6.9/10
Iona (9-12) - 2170 South Sheridan Way, Mississauga (905)823-0136  F/I Score: 7.2/10
Loyola (9-12) - 3566 South Common Court, Mississauga (905) 820-9822  F/I Score: 7.2/10
St. Helen - 1325 Bodley Road, Mississauga (905) 822-4564  F/I Score: 8.2/10 ("12-13 rank)
St. Louis - 1450 Lewisham Drive, Mississauga (905) 822-8251  F/I Score: 4.7/10

*Rankings Come From the Fraser Institute 2014-15 *
(Please note:  schools that do not have a rating on the Fraser Institute need a miniumum number of students (15) from the grades from which the data is drawn from and in some cases the available data is insufficient to properly rank the school getting them a rank of this N/A. Again rank isn't everything as there are many factors to consider and the score should be used in conjuction with having meetings with teachers, administrators, support staff, as well as your child and other parents to better the overall selection factor)

AREA PRICING FOR DIFFERENT HOME STYLES

Again you can find all styles of homes here, from bungalows, town-homes, semi-detached, detached and imperial homes that can only amaze with incredible sized lots. Take a trip down Watersedge Road and Bob O Link Road if you want to daydream and feel like you're in a Lotto 6/49 commercial. Yet the most common style of home in Clarkson is the older post war homes that come either as a split level, bungalow and detached.

Condo's from $200,000 and up
Split level, Bungalow, Semi-deteached and Detached anywhere from $370,000 - $730,000
Luxury Homes $1,000,000-$8,800,000 and up

TOP RESTAURANTS IN CLARKSON

Clarkson actually boast a few really great restaurants to meet all tastes. I myself have only been to the Pump but I have been meaning to try Mango Rain as I have heard great things as well. Here are a few that I'd recommend based on their reviews on  Yelp as of 01/01/2015. Well Known celebrity chef Massimo Capra is opening a restaurant here this year as well

Clarkson Mediterranean Bistro - 1731 Lakeshore Road West, Mississauga (905) 916-2283 - Yelp Review 4.5/5 (Mediterranean Cuisine)
The Clarkson Pump and Patio - 1744 Lakeshore Road West, Mississauga (905) 855-9354 - Yelp Review 4/5 (Pub Fare)
Mango Rain - 1714 Lakeshore Road West, Mississauga (905) 919-1374 - Yelp Review 4/5 (Indian Cuisine)

MY REAL ESTATE OPINION ON CLARKSON

In my professional opinion, Clarkson is a more affordable option than say, Port Credit. But it needs a little more polish as a community than Port Credit. There are many nice parks here and the community is in a transition to have a more urban/modernized feel.

Go Train access to get you into Toronto is a great option for this community with express trains getting you there in 25 minutes during the high traffic times as opposed to fighting the traffic on the Queen Elizabeth Way (QEW). The schools although not having the greatest of rankings are on their way up so that's a positive thing to look at as well.

There are definitely some affordable older homes here (around 50-60 years of age) that have great lots sizes and just need a bit of love. There are new townhomes built and and condos being erected close to the Go Train making it a very inviting area for the young professional to start out here. The more opulent homes near the conservation area and lakefront are just simply breath-taking but let's be realistic as most people con't afford a home of that magnitude, nor would want to.

Beautiful drives down Lakeshore can take you through some connecting communities with some of the same if not better wow factors such as Lorne Park, Port Credit, Lakeview and Mineola to name a few. My wife and I looked here when we first moved to the West end from Toronto and we ended up in Erin Mills area as we were not prepared at the time to buy a home and do any major renovations to it.

Final thoughts are that Clarkson is definitley a nice place to reside and if you're willing to do some work you, find get a gem in here, give it a bit of polish and make a dream home to stay in while the property value just continues to go up while the modernization of the area continues.