What do walk scores mean to you?

A “walk score” is one of those products of recent years that we knew nothing about back when I was a lad. If you didn’t have a car and weren’t on a transit line, you walked. These days, walk scores can be an important marketing tool for new housing developers and real estate agents, depending on their intended demographic.

A walk score close to 100 instantly conveys to potential buyers that just about all the most desirable amenities — restaurants, grocery stores, libraries and the other niceties of urban life — are close at hand.

Something in the middle might be in the suburbs; close to zero, and you might be awoken by a rooster each morning. A high walk score lets people know it’s possible to live local, and hopefully to support the businesses in your community.

Whatever you’re looking for, walk scores have become valuable indicators of what’s around you. Naturally, the closer you live to the downtown core, the higher your neighbourhood’s walk score is likely to be.

Last year, the Seattle-based research firm Walk Score (which offers scores for addresses in the US, Canada and Australia) declared Toronto Canada’s second-most pedestrian-friendly city, behind only Vancouver, with overall scores of 71.4 and 78.0, respectively.

Within Toronto, they said, the Bay Street corridor, Church-Yonge corridor and Kensington Market had the highest neighbourhood scores. (The company also offers transit scores, in which Toronto scored the highest, at 78.1, over Montreal’s 77.4.)

Walking matters — it’s been proven to directly correlate to better health, more cost-efficient living and a lighter environmental impact, for an overall better quality of life.

But a great walk score doesn’t necessarily mean you’ll actually walk. “What would get me walking more is more hours in the day,” says Lisa M., who adds that while her Uxbridge surroundings may be in “the trail capital of Canada,” she can’t use them to get to work or get her kids to school. “They’re too far away and there’s no public transit to get me where I need to go.”

Mel C. got up and moving when she got a Fitbit for Christmas, and promises to try the trails when the weather gets a little better, but agrees that she still can’t walk much owing to her location. “And I have no idea what a walk score is,” she answered when I asked. “Me neither,” says Lisa, “and I don’t care.”

Clearly, these are not the folks at whom central, urban condos are geared. Kevin C. is though, and he easily rhymes off his favourite downtown walking circuit. “From Yonge and Bloor down through the village, down further to Queen, along Queen to Spadina, Spadina to Dundas, and from there to Kensington Market,” he says. “Then a loop back through to Yonge and Bloor via Chinatown.”

Walk scores just can’t measure what really matters to most of the people I talked to about them recently. That falls more to personal preference. While some like woods and trees, others, like Kevin, are drawn to the vibrancy of city streets. “I love the chaos and the people and the traffic, and the pageantry of the neighbourhoods and the buildings in them,” he says.

“I’m the opposite,” Mel says. “Give me quiet streets. The main thing I think I dislike about walking is if I’m walking with a purpose (to get exercise), most people in my town know me, so I’m always hoping I won’t run into anyone who wants to stop and chat. Headphones help, and pace, but still …”

Carol likes the unique combination a paved city trail offers. “I love paved and maintained walking trails,” she says. “It gets you off the streets and into a more natural and peaceful setting. And they all interconnect from one end of the city to the other. On the other hand, it’s fun to be jostled around on the sidewalks along Queen West with all the quirky stores. Perhaps it depends on the day and the mood.”

Shawn M. agrees. “My favourite places are the stretches with a lot of interesting small businesses,” he says. “College Street, Leslieville, the Danforth, etc.” Gea loves busy city streets too, and says she finds walking boring otherwise.

Edward N., a long-time resident of the downtown core, puts the St. Lawrence neighbourhood and those nearby at the top of his list. “The St. Lawrence Market, Corktown and the Distillery District for urban vibrancy and the mix of old and new,” he says. “But I’ve grown to appreciate my new ‘hood of Birch Cliff for its leafy, quiet streets and the top of the Bluffs feel to that part of the Waterfront Trail that wanders through the neighbourhood leading to Rosetta McClain Gardens and a path down to the secluded Scarborough Coast.”

Others have different priorities. “When I think of walking, I always think of what’s good for my dog,” says Janet B. “For him, I prefer to get off the streets and onto the trails.” She likes the trails in Altona Forest near her Pickering home, but envies those she’s experienced in Oakville. “I also love being downtown but dodging pedestrians is a pain,” she says.

Could dog scores be the next walk scores? Rover.com crunched some numbers and came up with what they say are the most dog-friendly cities in the US; Vallejo/Fairfield/Napa, Calif., scored a perfect 100, with Boston a point behind at 99. Boston also gets very high walk scores, perhaps the perfect canine-loving combo.

While clearly there’s no one-size-fits-all when it comes to walking, if you’re in the real estate market these days, it pays to pay attention. If you’re selling, you might even consider how a high (or low) walk score might influence your decorating decisions when staging.

A high walk score likely means you’re safe with more contemporary furnishings, while a low one might be telling you to stick to traditional style. Knowing your walk score can even help you and your agent fix a listing price or how much to pay, offering some insight not just into current but also into future value.

It might be too cold for some to walk much now, but spring will come and with it the seasonal frenzy of buying and selling homes. Arm yourself with whatever useful information you can, and that includes an understanding of what a walk score could mean to you.