Opinions on best cities to settle in?

[katester]

Hey guys! The hubs and I have been trying to figure out what cities are the best to settle in. We were planning on Ontario, just because its closer and less expensive to move to. He was in London for a while and it was too busy for him/us. Anyone have experience in Barrie, Hamlton, Kitchener? Our next choice would be the beautiful BC most likely Vancouver Island since he has family there. We have also considered Alberta too. Calgary and Edmonton are the only places my husband is familiar with. He is currently in the Army Reserves so he can move anywhere we chose..as long as we can both find jobs there and at least one of the jobs offers extended health care. Any way.... any tips on living expenses to the job market and names of cities/ suburbs to look into would be a big help!

 

[rhcohen2014]

I'll be in ottawa. it's a great city, beautiful, family oriented, stable economy, and of course lots of government! montreal is 2 hours away, and toronto i think is 5.

 

[mikeymyke]

I live in Edmonton, and even though it might not be as exciting as Vancouver or Toronto, I think it's one of the better cities to live in. Higher than average salaries, unemployment rate consistently one of the lowest in the nation, house prices are way cheaper than nearby Calgary or Fort McMurray, certainly even more cheaper than Vancouver or Toronto. Only pay 5% sales tax instead of 13%. Cheapest gas prices in the country. Canada's largest shopping mall.

Downsides are, considered "boring" compared to other notable cities, horrible drivers, winters are pretty cold, and the city does a poor job of fixing potholes.

I work as an electrician, and being a skilled tradesmen, it definitely pays to live in Alberta, in general. The salaries are way higher, and its very easy to find a job due to the skills shortage in this province, and because the houses are relatively affordable in Edmonton, my high salary combined with lower cost of living and low sales tax, makes it very enjoyable for me to live here as I feel I take home more money for myself instead of giving to the govt. I gotta say though, paying 13% compared to 5% for everyday stuff you buy at the store, really sucks.

You see in the news all the time, year after year, "Alberta leads Canada in job growth", "Alberta top destination for new residents", etc. There's a reason why, and I invite you and your spouse to see it.

 

[my-son-my-world]

Was living in Kitchener for a year, it was not that busy, lots of immigrants, nice city to live in. Since I have a toddler, I really love the Early years center there. We move here in Brantford, a very small town and loving it.

 

[CMLR]

We are on Vancouver Island about an hour north of Victoria. The jobs are less on the island than what I see and hear on the mainland even in BC. However if you get a ways out of Victoria housing is cheaper and you get a more country type feel without having to go too far for it. I guess it depends on what you are looking for. I come from a city of about 40,000 with cities of 100,00-500,000 within less than an hour drive so for me it has been hard to adjust since we live more rural than I am use to. Many of the people I have come to know talk about Edmonton and seem to be glad they are here now, not only for the weather but in general. Again it really depends on what you and your husband prefer whether city life or a country feel. Good luck in making your choice.

 

[katester]

Thank you guys for your input. All those cities sounds fabulous!

Once I land, how long do I have before I need to know where we are going? I know that upon landing I need to list a Canadian address for my PR card to be mailed to, but what if we don't have a place yet? Should I wait until we do to actually land? My husband residential address is in BC but because of the military he has been all over Canada for the last year. He has only been back to BC for a few weeks this entire year. In your opinion should I wait to land until we have picked where to settle? If my card is mailed to his BC address his family will just forward it on to me, so I'm not worried about that. But rather what I am worried about is the Provincial Health care... once I land does the clock start ticking or does it not start until I am actually living in Canada? For example if I land now, in August and come back to my home in the US to pack and move to Canada and don;t move in until September, when does the 3 month waiting period begin?

I am not trying to cheat the system or anything, I am just curious how to make this as simple as possible if we chose to move 3,000 miles away from NY

 

[JessNess]

I agree with Mikeymike, Calgary or Edmonton is the best option. BC is probably the worst option for employment opportunity. I am from California and I like to compare BC to California… it's an amazing place to live, great weather, etc, but the job market stinks. Move to Calgary or Edmonton for a few years, bust your butt working hard in one of the MANYYYY high paying jobs (yes they are in ultra abundance), then move to the coast and enjoy Vancouver

Just my two cents...

 

[lellen]

Man after reading all this I feel like moving to Edmonton and becoming rich! Seriously.

I live in Ottawa and the main problem: if you don't speak french it's very very very hard to find a job.

 

[jo-macral]

Man after reading all this I feel like moving to Edmonton and becoming rich! Seriously.

I live in Ottawa and the main problem: if you don't speak french it's very very very hard to find a job.

Edmonton is not too bad, but you should seriously consider Calgary instead as it is a far more 'sane' city (road-wise) and better winters. We will be heading to Vancouver, but if we had to choose an alternative, it would certainly be Calgary.

 

[JRPW]

Born and raised Edmontonian. Edmonton was a great place to grow up. However, I do agree that it can be a bit boring. After graduating from the University of Alberta, I moved to Japan and worked as a translator. The wife and I moved back to Edmonton in December. The wife likes Edmonton, but finds the city too small for her tastes. In fact, she calls Edmonton the 田舎(inaka), or countryside. I started looking for work just over a month ago. I have had a reply to almost every resume I sent out. The wife and I are planning to stay in Edmonton for a while, maybe a year, with a possible move to Calgary.

 

[missmatalini]

I live in Edmonton, and even though it might not be as exciting as Vancouver or Toronto, I think it's one of the better cities to live in. Higher than average salaries, unemployment rate consistently one of the lowest in the nation, house prices are way cheaper than nearby Calgary or Fort McMurray, certainly even more cheaper than Vancouver or Toronto. Only pay 5% sales tax instead of 13%. Cheapest gas prices in the country. Canada's largest shopping mall.

Downsides are, considered "boring" compared to other notable cities, horrible drivers, winters are pretty cold, and the city does a poor job of fixing potholes.

I work as an electrician, and being a skilled tradesmen, it definitely pays to live in Alberta, in general. The salaries are way higher, and its very easy to find a job due to the skills shortage in this province, and because the houses are relatively affordable in Edmonton, my high salary combined with lower cost of living and low sales tax, makes it very enjoyable for me to live here as I feel I take home more money for myself instead of giving to the govt. I gotta say though, paying 13% compared to 5% for everyday stuff you buy at the store, really sucks.

You see in the news all the time, year after year, "Alberta leads Canada in job growth", "Alberta top destination for new residents", etc. There's a reason why, and I invite you and your spouse to see it.

My Husband and I are going to be moving to Edmonton after PR is granted . . . he's going to be an electrician!

 

[Ponga]

I agree with Mikeymike, Calgary or Edmonton is the best option. BC is probably the worst option for employment opportunity. I am from California and I like to compare BC to California... it's an amazing place to live, great weather, etc, but the job market stinks. Move to Calgary or Edmonton for a few years, bust your butt working hard in one of the MANYYYY high paying jobs (yes they are in ultra abundance), then move to the coast and enjoy Vancouver

Just my two cents...

I'm very fortunate that I work remotely, so I couldn't image being anywhere but B.C., since it really is the California of Canada...`dude' (and `dudettes'). 8)

 

[JessNess]

I'm very fortunate that I work remotely, so I couldn't image being anywhere but B.C., since it really is the California of Canada...`dude' (and `dudettes'). 8)

Yeah you're fortunate I lived in CA my whole life and even with a bachelors degree in science from one of the top schools in the US, there's NO JOBS! California also has the second highest state income tax in the USA and some of the highest cost of living and sales taxes in the US too

I came to Calgary and had companies throwing themselves at me for starting salaries THREE TIMES higher than they are for my field in Cali!!! The hubby and I both agreed that we will save and work hard, then bail to Vancouver in the future