What’s it like up there? Thinking about moving out of country in the later future.
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Depends on where you live.
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How about your area? Or the more populated/popular areas?
I live on the Wet Coast in a fairly small city of 70, 000 on the ocean. It’s beautiful during the summer and rainy, dark and miserable during the winter.
However, I was brought up in the Northern part of the province, in a city of 35, 000, where it it gets pretty cold in the winter. Coldest I remember was something like -50 C with wind chill. Walking in it was not pleasant, no matter how many layers you wore, but the sun reflecting off the snow and ice was breathtaking.
Canada, as the second largest country in the world, has pretty much every kind of environment you can think of. We have beautiful mountains, and deserts, and rainforests, and flat plains, and arctic tundra, If you like living in cities, ours are pretty clean, with much lower crime rates than most American ones (our population is nowhere near as big and handguns are not as easy to obtain here) and better air. We have a thriving movie industry, and our biggest cities, like Vancouver and Toronto, and Montreal, are international hubs.
We have our problems too though. Homelessness and drug addiction being our biggest, but we also have racism and a smattering of religious bigotry as well. We have had cults, and gangs, and terrorism pop up over the years. Politics doesn’t divide us as much as it does our neighbour to the south though, and most folks are pretty accepting of differences.
Is there anything in particular you are looking for in a new “home?”
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I giggled a little bit, because that is the exact same question I ask people when I tour them at my job.
You kinda sold me actually. I like that.
I guess you could say I am compatible with most environments, I would like something rainy (I’m a rain lover lol), but I am unopposed to sunlight and clear skies as long as I’m not being torched by it like here in AZ.
I have lived in some “sketchy” areas (nothing crazy though, more like just bordering the bad areas) and I’m not terribly picky either. I’m looking for change, but to also not really be apart of America anymore due to what it’s become you know?
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You would probably do well on the Wet Coast then.
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I’m definitely going to do research into it!
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I have lived just outside Toronto (Brampton), spent most of my life in Montreal and have considered moving to the East and West Coast of the country. If you are willing to learn to speak French, Montreal is a great city - especially in the summer. I felt incredibly comfortable in Toronto and Brampton. It can be a bit overwhelming because it is so big. Plenty of jobs, though. You can achieve a lot financially out there. However, the cost of home ownership can be daunting. The East Coast is gorgeous, home ownership is easier to achieve, pace is slower, not certain about jobs, though. Personally, I am getting myself set to move to the West Coast within the next couple of years. I want to be in the warmest Canadian environment possible as I get older.
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@Mimi_Maxwell and @DarkestKnight that is great point actually, for West Coast how is the cost of living and the ease of financial achievement?
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So ive lived in Toronto, Canada all my life. The main issues with Canada nowadays is the cost of living. The average home here goes for close to a million dollars, with the average rental for a one bedroom matchbox apartment is like $2000/month. In terms of jobs, its doing better than a lot of countries right now, but id say its probably going to be a step down from America in terms of pay and ease of finding a new job. Our currency at one point was at par with the US dollar, now we only get 80 cents on the dollar. As has been said, we get a wide variety of weather depending on where you’re at. Here in Toronto, the summers can get quite hot, and the winters can get quite cold. Very polarized. I think out on the west coast, they get a lot of rain, and it doesn’t get quite as cold.
One of the things that I was always envious of America for was the fact that you have so many first tier cities to choose from that are livable. For us, outside of Vancouver, Toronto, Montreal and perhaps Calgary…aint much else left in the running if you’re a cosmopolitan, big city type. Oh and did i mention alcohol here is expensive? Yeah. Well, at least weed is legal throughout the whole country, so we do have that
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That is one thing I have noticed through my surface level research. So if I do move forward I will have to watch where I choose to live.
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I have had some very close friends who moved to the West Coast and have lived there for the better part of their adult lives. They have done well for themselves, but that has been about a lot of hard work for both of them. I know they each had roommates forever and never felt that they could live on their own. They both have homes now - one a townhouse in North Van and the other a house in Surrey. Vancouver is one of the most expensive places to own a home on the planet. Farther out of the city, the cost of living may be cheaper, but you may then be sacrificing cheap home prices/rent for employment opportunities (not to mention the headache of a commute). I guess it depends on what you are looking for. Personally, I feel I can do well for myself anywhere without having to struggle - one part having a job that is high demand and one part magical practice.
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Definitely a lot to consider. Perhaps finding a spot in between all of that might be a good starting point, but I’m also talking distant future, so we will also have to see how things are like in 2-4 years.
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