Dining table, offices, and laptop couches were fine for a month or two. Five years later, a lot of Toronto homeowners are still working from home at least a couple of days a week, and a real home office is no longer a luxury; it is how you stay focused and sane.
This guide walks you through how to turn a spare bedroom, den, or flex room into a proper home office that feels professional on video calls, works with Toronto building rules, and still fits the rest of your life.
Why a Dedicated Home Office Still Matters in 2025
Even as more people commute again, a significant share of Canadians still work part of the week from home. That means home offices are not a temporary trend; they are a permanent part of how many Toronto houses and condos function.
A dedicated home office or flex room can:
- Cut distractions compared to working at the kitchen island.
- Give you a door you can close for calls and focused work.
- Keep monitors, cables, and paperwork from taking over shared spaces.
- Add resale appeal for future buyers who also work hybrid.
For many JG Contracting clients, the goal is not a giant executive office. It is a quiet, ergonomically sound workspace carved out of the square footage they already have.
Step 1: Choose the Right Room and Layout
Start by deciding where the office should live. Common candidates are:
- A small bedroom that rarely hosts guests.
- A finished basement room with good ceiling height.
- A den or enclosed dining room that can be repurposed.
- A flex space created during an addition or attic dormer project.
When you are comparing options, think about four things:
1. Noise and privacy
- Avoid walls shared with a kids room, living room TV, or busy kitchen if you take a lot of calls.
- Rooms on the street side of a Toronto semi may hear more traffic and streetcar noise than rear rooms.
- If you share walls with a neighbour, you may want that office away from the loudest side.
2. Natural light and glare
- A window beside or in front of you is better than behind you, so you are not a silhouette on video calls.
- North and east-facing rooms often give softer light that is easier on screens.
- Plan where the monitor will sit before you commit to the layout.
3. Doors, circulation, and sightlines
- Make sure the door does not open directly into a busy sightline from the front hall.
- Check that there is space to add a solid core door and proper weatherstripping if you need more sound control.
- Think about how you will route cables so you are not tripping every time you enter.
4. Flex use
If the office also needs to act as a guest room or hobby space, that should shape the layout from day one. This is where built-ins, wall beds, or well-planned closet storage can turn one room into a true flex zone instead of a cluttered catch-all.
Power, Data, and Ventilation: Make It Feel Like a Real Workspace
A proper home office is more than a desk and a lamp. Electrical, data, and air quality all have to keep up with how you work.
Outlets and circuits
Most spare bedrooms in older Toronto homes were wired for a lamp and maybe a clock radio, not a workstation full of electronics.
Plan for:
- Enough receptacles so you are not living off power bars.
- At least two separate circuits if you have multiple monitors, a laser printer, or extra equipment.
- Properly positioned outlets at desk height when walls are open during a renovation.
New circuits and rewiring should always be done by a licensed electrician and inspected. If you are planning a broader renovation, JG Contracting can coordinate outlet counts and locations with your lighting and layout so everything is in the right place before drywall goes up.
Wired and wireless internet
Wi Fi is great until everyone in the house jumps on a video call at the same time.
During a renovation we often:
- Run one or two Cat6 drops to the main desk location so your primary computer and docking station can be hard-wired.
- Plan for either an access point in or near the office or a clean cable path back to where your router lives.
- Route low-voltage lines carefully so they are not bundled tightly with power cables.
If you are opening walls for other reasons, this is the time to put those cables in, not later.
Comfort, heating, and ventilation
You will not use a home office that is stuffy in summer and freezing in winter.
- Check how many heat runs and returns the room has and whether they are blocked by furniture.
- In basements, consider how the office ties into dehumidification so papers and gear do not get musty.
- If you are adding a lot of equipment, you may want an extra supply or a ductless unit to keep the room comfortable.
Sound Control That Actually Helps On Calls
Noise is one of the biggest complaints we hear from homeowners who are trying to work from home in a busy household.
You do not have to rebuild the whole house to get a noticeable improvement, but a few targeted upgrades go a long way:
Upgrade the door and seals
- Swap hollow core doors for solid core where possible.
- Add weatherstripping or acoustic seals around the jamb.
- Use an automatic door bottom or a simple sweep to close the gap at the floor.
Think about the loudest surfaces
- If the downstairs sound is the problem, treat the office floor with a dense underlay and quiet flooring.
- If voices travel between two side-by-side rooms, a double layer of drywall with acoustic sealant on the shared wall can help.
- Soft finishes, rugs, drapes, and filled bookshelves can reduce echo on your own calls.
Coordinate with larger soundproofing work
If you are already tackling broader soundproofing in a semi or rowhouse, it makes sense to align your home office plan with that work so you get consistent results across walls, ceilings, and floors.
Lighting and Camera Friendly Design
Good office lighting is about more than picking a fixture you like. It has to work on camera, at the keyboard, and in your eyes over an eight-hour day.
Layer your lighting
Aim for three layers:
- Ambient light from a ceiling fixture or track that evenly fills the room.
- Task lighting at the desk, such as an adjustable LED desk lamp that can be angled away from the screen.
- Accent lighting like a floor lamp or wall wash that adds depth behind you on camera.
Avoid glare and harsh shadows
- Do not place a single bare bulb directly overhead where it will cast deep shadows on your face.
- Use diffusers, shades, or indirect fixtures that bounce off the ceiling.
- Keep screen surfaces perpendicular to windows when possible.
Think about brightness and colour
For most home offices, moderate brightness and a neutral white colour are easiest on the eyes and cameras.
- Aim for a soft but bright overall level rather than one super intense desk lamp.
- Choose warm to neutral white bulbs (around the 3000 to 4000 K range) that do not make skin tones look odd.
Storage, Built-Ins, and Flex Function
The best home offices stay tidy because they were designed with storage from day one.
Options we often recommend in Toronto homes include:
- Shallow built-in shelving flanking a window or desk.
- Closed base cabinets with doors or drawers for paper, printers, and gear.
- A closet reworked with a mix of hanging, shelves, and deep drawers.
If the room also serves as a guest room or playroom, consider:
- A wall bed or sofa bed that can be closed during the workday.
- Sliding or pocket doors to free up floor space.
- A small secondary surface for a partner or child to work at without invading the main desk.
During design, we also look at how trim, paint colours, and flooring tie into nearby rooms so the office feels like part of the same home, not a bolt-on.
When Do You Need Permits For a Home Office In Toronto
Turning a bedroom into an office is often mostly cosmetic, but some projects do trigger building permits or inspections.
In general, you should expect permits when you:
- Add or remove interior walls to change room sizes or open up space.
- Create new window openings or enlarge existing ones.
- Move plumbing or add a new bathroom as part of a larger suite.
- Do structural work, such as cutting new openings in load-bearing walls.
Purely cosmetic changes like paint, flooring, and trim typically do not require a building permit. Electrical work beyond swapping fixtures is reviewed by the Electrical Safety Authority, and major changes should be handled by a licensed electrician.
If your home office is part of a bigger project, such as a basement finishing job, a second-storey addition, or a legal secondary suite, permit requirements become more complex. That is when it pays to have a contractor who already lives in Toronto permit territory and can coordinate drawings, engineering, and inspections.
How JG Contracting Helps Toronto Homeowners Build Better Home Offices
A good home office is a small project with a big impact. JG Contracting typically supports Toronto homeowners with:
- Planning and layout
We start by understanding how you work, how many people use the space, and how it fits around the rest of the household. - Outlets, lighting, and data planning
We coordinate with licensed electricians to make sure outlets, switches, and low-voltage wiring are where you need them, not just where they happen to fit. - Sound, doors, and finishes
From solid core doors and better seals to flooring choices and wall assemblies, we help you get a quieter room within a realistic budget. - Storage and built-ins
We design practical built-in storage and millwork that makes the office look intentional and keeps clutter out of sight. - Permits and inspections when needed
For projects that do require permits, we help coordinate drawings, applications, and inspections so you are not guessing at the rules.
If you are tired of taking calls from the dining table, a well-planned home office or flex room conversion can quickly become the most useful room in your Toronto home.
Related Reading on Our Site
- Guides
- Project posts
Ready to stop working from the dining table and give your home office the same care as the rest of your renovation?
JG Contracting can help you plan and build a quiet, comfortable, code-conscious home office or flex room that fits your Toronto home and the way you actually work.
Contact us today to book a consultation and start planning a home office you will actually want to spend time in.
📞 Call us at: 437-259-9632
✉️ Email us at: jgcontractingyyz@gmail.com
🌐 Website: https://jgcontractingyyz.com
