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Canadians - please advise!

GliderPoss

GliderPoss

Ideal_Rock
Premium
Joined
Sep 25, 2008
Messages
2,940
Hi All, :wavey:
My husband and I are considering moving to Canada. Apparently it’s very welcoming of Aussies with plenty of career opportunities and a lower cost of living compared to Australia. We are currently in the UAE but not really loving it long term.

Can anyone suggest some small cities with populations of around 20K - 100K people? We enjoy all four seasons and want to live somewhere pretty with a good outdoor lifestyle. My husband will be in real estate and I’m hoping to work in a creative field. We want a sense of community! Hoping to buy a block of rural land and build our dream cabin. (We don’t speak French....)

Canada is so huge we don’t even know where to start looking!? Can anyone suggest a few places to investigate? :read:

Thanks so much.
 
My husband sponsored a guy and his wife on a work Visa from Ontario a number of years ago and the guy loved it here by the wife missed her family and friends and the climate and they ended up going home after a few years.

Most places are much colder there than here and while housing might cost less in more remote places in Canada than here, the price of some things like food is cheaper where it is easier to access, but it can be more in some colder more remote areas, and their wages in general are lower than here. It is true overall the cost of living is cheaper than here particularly somewhere like Sydney.
 
We don’t mind the cold! We both come from New England area so it often snows in winter, very cold overnight. I do loathe the heat hence why the UAE isn’t my favourite place so far...
 
Check out Paris and Ayr Ontario. Weather is fairly moderate, houses affordable, and they are close to the tech area in Waterloo so opportunities for work as a realtor.
 
Ahhhh Armidale - cold in winter hot in summer. We used to live in Tamworth that is where we employed the Canadians, they still thought it was hot there......
 
I live in the GTA. We used to live in Vancouver. I'd choose the Vancouver area, but it's impossible now due to housing costs. We have family that have property in Kamloops. I guess a lot depends on your idea of affordable.
 
If you loathe the heat kelowna might not be the best bet, it does get 4 seasons, but can/will hit +40C during the summer! The northern Okanagan is beautiful and maybe better weather. Vernon, kamloops. Even Cranbrook might be a good fit, but its on the smaller side.

The vancouver area is good for real estate and creatives, though you'd want to be a suberb city that would be smaller. Maybe Chilliwack?

Anywhere on vancouver island is also stunning. Nanaimo on the larger end, Campbell River on the smaller. Lots of outdoorsey types there.

I believe St Albert (outside edmonton) was named #1 city to live in Canada.
 
Thanks everyone! Some great options to scope out. :read:

Arkieb1 - yes Armidale has perfect weather to me, Tamworth is much hotter in summer (and totally bogan :whistle:)
 
I haven't lived in Tamworth for 15+ years it's changed a lot it used to be quite genteel once upon a time but it has transformed both in good and bad ways. I grew up out past Dubbo so if you haven't been out in wild Western NSW, past DubVegas in some of those tiny isolated rural communities, you haven't seen how much more bogan it can really get :) having said that most of the little towns have a certain character all their own....

If you like Armidale weather you will love Canada!!!
 
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Hotpozzum - Have you made any progress in your decision?

I have to admit, I always say I want to move to Canada, but the truth of the matter is that practically speaking, I have no idea how we would accomplish that. I've actually never moved far from home, and I have extended family that is dependent upon me here, and a job that is steady and mostly good. I have no idea if I could do the same type of work in Canada. I have no idea where my husband would find a comparable job - data analytics type work.

I guess you just make a list and hit issues one by one???
 
Loves Vintage said:
Hotpozzum - Have you made any progress in your decision?

I have to admit, I always say I want to move to Canada, but the truth of the matter is that practically speaking, I have no idea how we would accomplish that. I've actually never moved far from home, and I have extended family that is dependent upon me here, and a job that is steady and mostly good. I have no idea if I could do the same type of work in Canada. I have no idea where my husband would find a comparable job - data analytics type work.

I guess you just make a list and hit issues one by one???
Click to expand...



Hottest field in my town and I suspect all over Canada, Government has started a new department Digital. Skies the limit.
 
canuk-gal said:
Hottest field in my town and I suspect all over Canada, Government has started a new department Digital. Skies the limit.
Click to expand...

Interesting! Thanks, CG. I'll push him to look into it.
 
Yeah, I work in technology. Data analytics is hot right now and has been for a few years. The newest buzz is around AI & blockchain.
 
Loves Vintage said:
Hotpozzum - Have you made any progress in your decision?

I have to admit, I always say I want to move to Canada, but the truth of the matter is that practically speaking, I have no idea how we would accomplish that. I've actually never moved far from home, and I have extended family that is dependent upon me here, and a job that is steady and mostly good. I have no idea if I could do the same type of work in Canada. I have no idea where my husband would find a comparable job - data analytics type work.

I guess you just make a list and hit issues one by one???
Click to expand...

No decisions yet, really our timeline is 12-18months. Busy saving our pennies here! I’m confident we can both get work, we are just overwhelmed with the location possibilities! Canada seems enormous (even to an Aussie :shock:) and I honestly don’t want to live somewhere crappy due to work....
 
I guess it depends on the weather? Will you be staying permanently? Will you be buying a house? A lot of places will seem crappy until you get a grip on the weather situation and real estate costs. West Coast will be best weather, East Coast will be worst. GTA is middle ground IMO. Hot humid summers and winters aren't terrible comparatively. YMMV, lol. I lived in the north as well, and that was hell on earth IMO.
 
I'd maybe suggest doing some research on the different provinces, and deciding from there. With BC you get warmer weather and possibly mountains depending on where you live - the Okanagan Valley has vineyards and large hills, the Fraser River Valley has large hills, Vancouver is closer to the Rockies, and Vancouver Island will have no mountains but will have access to the ocean. The climate is temperate, but you'll get lots of rain around Vancouver, and grey days in the Okanagan in the winter. Property costs are very high no matter where you go in BC though, and agricultural land rules are tricky to navigate if you want to buy rural.

Alberta also offers access to mountains if you live near Calgary. Edmonton (the other large city) is more flat. The climate is colder in the winter, but in Calgary at least there are often Chinooks in the winter that can warm things up. Summers can be a bit cooler too due to the mountains, with evenings often having a bit of a chill.

If you prefer farm land, things flatten out from rolling hills east of Calgary and turn into big sky country in the prairies (Saskatchewan and Manitoba). The winters are very cold in the prairies, but the summers are beautiful. Manitoba has two large inland lakes and thousands of smaller lakes, so cottage country is plentiful. Land tends to be less expensive as is cost of living in the prairies compared to either coast.

Ontario offers lots of smaller cities in addition to large ones. Around the greater Toronto area are lots of commuter communities that are within an hour or two's drive of Toronto. Climate is much milder in Southern Ontario than say around the Ottawa area, and it's lots of farmland with rolling hills. Around Ottawa is beautiful, but the winters are a bit more challenging. Quebec is probably out given that neither of you speak French.

Atlantic Canada is also beautiful. Jobs are a little more difficult, but not impossible. The winters see a LOT of snow and can be quite cold. The Atlantic is much colder than the Pacific, so it's much colder than BC. But there is a lot of history and many smaller towns/cities outside of the main centers.

Most jobs will be in the cities though. Vancouver, Victoria, Kelowna, Abbotsford/Chilliwack in BC, Edmonton and Calgary in Alberta (Calgary is having a hard time right now though due to oil prices being low, so many are out of work and jobs are hard to find; property values are still sky high too), Regina and Saskatoon in Saskatchewan (of the two Saskatoon is nicer, IMO), Winnipeg in Manitoba, although Brandon would be closer to the population size that you might like, and in Ontario you'd have Ottawa, Toronto (which is huge and expensive), Markam, Brampton, London, Sarnia, Guelph, Kitchener/Waterloo, Huntsville, Hamilton, Windsor, St. Caterines, and many more small commuter towns. In Atlantic Canada the main centers are Halifax/Dartmouth, Syndney, St. John, Moncton, Fredericton, and St. John's. Halifax is the largest city I believe.
 
Thanks so much, that is extremely helpful!!! :wavey:
 
There are lots of Aussies in Kelowna just as a FYI, as the Big White ski hill is owned and operated by one and they hire a lot of students for the season. But Canada as a whole is pretty welcoming of our fellow commonwealthers. French is probably needed in Ottawa and surrounding area, and much less needed the further west you go. Most government jobs in Ontario will likely require it though. Not so much in the Atlantic and western provinces.
 
HI:

cmd gives good advice! I've only ever lived in Western Canada--so if you need specifics about that locale give a shout. (pretty large and broad area....)

cheers--Sharon
 
I’ve lived all over (military family) and have family in 3 provinces now. Canada is almost as varied as the US in terms of different places having different climates and cultures, so it’s worth doing some research and going from there. We’re more liberal than the US as a whole, but rural areas and some provinces tend to be more conservative than urban centers and other provinces. Cost of living varies widely too. And health care and education are both provincial, not federal, so there are differences there as well. All things to think about.
 
I wouldn't write off Quebec necessarily. You don't have to know French. How shall I put this. In Montreal, you definitely don't need it. Everyone speaks English. In Quebec City, everyone will speak French first, then answer you in English. Either way, your French will never be "good enough" for native speakers, lol. I know of people who have vacation properties in Quebec. If you can work from home at all, it wouldn't matter so much where you choose.

I would probably only recommend West Coast, Calgary and Toronto and their surrounding areas. I would rule out Winnipeg completely. You will want to die if you move directly to a place like that. :knockout: Same goes for the East Coast, plus it has a high cost of living and high sales tax.
 
lyra said:
I wouldn't write off Quebec necessarily. You don't have to know French. How shall I put this. In Montreal, you definitely don't need it. Everyone speaks English. In Quebec City, everyone will speak French first, then answer you in English. Either way, your French will never be "good enough" for native speakers, lol. I know of people who have vacation properties in Quebec. If you can work from home at all, it wouldn't matter so much where you choose.

I would probably only recommend West Coast, Calgary and Toronto and their surrounding areas. I would rule out Winnipeg completely. You will want to die if you move directly to a place like that. :knockout: Same goes for the East Coast, plus it has a high cost of living and high sales tax.
Click to expand...

You know, people love to slag Winnipeg. But I really don’t know what would make someone want to die if they moved to “a place like that.” The friendly people? The low cost of living? The stable economy? The Royal Winnipeg Ballet, the thriving arts and food culture, the farmers markets, the hundreds of lakes and affordable cottage country within a few hour’s drive? The worlds longest skating path with architecturally designed warming huts or the Museum of Human Rights? The beautiful elm trees that line many of the streets in the older neighborhoods and the old Victorian homes? The largest Francophone population outside of Quebec? The multiple cultural festivals throughout the year? Or maybe the heritage buildings in the Exchange District, and the film industry that takes advantage of that? It is cold in the winter, but so are most places in Canada in the winter except for the west coast and Southern Ontario. There are sections of the city that have some social problems, but so do most large centres (Vancouver, Toronto, and Calgary included). I can say this having lived in most large cities in Canada at one point of my life or other.

Calgary, Toronto (and the GTA) and Vancouver are the largest and best known centres outside of Canada (and they each have things about them that are really appealing), but they are also the most crowded, expensive, and congested with traffic. And Calgary is in crisis right now with unemployment combined with sky high housing prices (houses in Calgary are about twice as much as similar houses in other cities - for now at least - with the exception of Toronto and Vancouver, and some of the more desirable areas in central BC). The oil crash left thousands out of jobs with mortgages they can’t carry, and people are losing their homes right now. Not a great place to be a realtor right now. Maybe when oil prices bounce back, but that’s not looking like it’s going to happen any time soon. There’s also some argument that Toronto and Vancouver might be in a housing bubble too, but that’s been said for years, with nothing much changing, so I don’t know about that.

The problem for the OP with Quebec is that if they want to work in real estate, it’s not practical to do that and not speak French. So while it’s true that Montreal has a large Anglophone population (and most Montreallers who are Francophone speak English) and many people in Quebec City speak English, too (mainly because of tourism), they are unlikely to want to hire a realtor who doesn’t speak French (preferably Quebecquois). Plus, once you get outside the cities, many Quebecers don’t speak English (much like most Anglophones outside of the Ottawa area don’t speak French). And the OP is looking to live in a small city, which would mean being outside of Montreal. Plus sales tax in Quebec is the same as in Atlantic Canada (15%, compared to 12-13% in most of the rest of Canada; Alberta is 5%, but the price of everything is higher, so I’m not convinced it saves all that much).

Everywhere has pros and cons. I think it’s why the OP should do some research rather than going on opinions that may or may not weigh the same things that they do.
 
HI:

People are still working on Calgary--but yes we have been hard hit. The "oil" patch is a large sector employer--and it is piking up. But it won't be like it once was. More consultants this time 'round. And no, housing prices have not dropped.

There is a lot of IT work here and data analytics--in every industry. People are reinventing themselves professionally.

Edmonton has many policy adviser positions available on their government website. In fact the Government of Canada website is rife with them. And supply chain management.

And I agree about French. And most Government jobs are bilingual "imperative" in Ottawa and Quebec.

Who is a "realtor" looking for work?

cheers--Sharon
 
I grew up near Winnipeg and visited often. My nephew lives there, and a niece. It's a great place in the summer, beautiful. I stand by my opinion of it being hell in the winter. I grew up in the north in virtually the same weather. I'm used to 8 month long winters. I would advise against it until one has actual winter experience. I honestly don't know anyone who loves living there. My nephew does it because he is well paid there. My niece is trying to move. YMMV. I'm very familiar with Winnipeg.
 
But most of the rest of Canada has those types of winters too, including Atlantic Canada, Quebec, a good chunk of Ontario (GTA/Southern Ontario being the only exception), Saskatchewan, and Alberta. Not sure if you've ever spent a winter in Fredericton, Halifax, Ottawa, Montreal, Quebec City, or Calgary, but I have, and honestly they're not much different than Winnipeg. In fact, Calgary often gets snow earlier and loses it later, and while it will occasionally get a Chinook, the flip side is that they get freak snow storms in July sometimes too.

So, if you're looking for a less cold climate, Southern Ontario and BC are pretty much the only options. But I'm assuming the OP is aware that winters in Canada are cold.

Sharon, I thought the OP said that her husband would be wanting to find work as a realtor. Maybe I was wrong?
 
Well, I suppose there are also people who want a true northern experience. I mean, people live in Alaska, right? I had relatives far north of Winnipeg. It was basically tundra, lol.

For "creative" I think Toronto more than any other city. My daughter is in "creative". She will get sent to Montreal and New York for her job sometimes. But that is right downtown Toronto too. Honestly don't know about the real estate field these days. I think it can be feast or famine. My BIL was a real estate agent on the West Coast 20 years ago and made a killing. Now we have Vancouver and Toronto in these insane housing bubbles. Hard call.
 
lyra said:
I grew up near Winnipeg and visited often. My nephew lives there, and a niece. It's a great place in the summer, beautiful. I stand by my opinion of it being hell in the winter. I grew up in the north in virtually the same weather. I'm used to 8 month long winters. I would advise against it until one has actual winter experience. I honestly don't know anyone who loves living there. My nephew does it because he is well paid there. My niece is trying to move. YMMV. I'm very familiar with Winnipeg.
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I do! =)2 I grew up in Saskatchewan and moved to Winnipeg 15 years ago. Saskatchewan will always be my home and has my heart but I can honestly say I love Winnipeg. cmd2014 is always so eloquent and her post (#23) expressed it perfectly. It's a good thing we all don't want to live in the same place or it would be very crowded :lol:.
 
My husband and I are moving to Canada next year (his spousal visa finally came through) so I'm following this thread with interest. I'm Canadian but have spent much of my childhood and all of my adult life outside of Canada (first the UK/US then Asia). I am freaking out just a tiny bit since there is so much information to absorb all at once and it's a little overwhelming (from the daily mundane things such as learning that the electricity bill is actually called 'hydro' in BC, to figuring out how to file taxes in Canada, not to mention having to start again in terms of jobs and social & professional networks...).
 
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