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pessacanada

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May 5, 2017
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The minimum cost for food ranging from 10-15 CAD per person and day is correct That is app. 3 CAD (2.5 USD) to 5 CAD (4 USD) per person and meal (that includes food and beverages, fruits and vegetables or any small treatment after the meal). And by comparing to US market you are doing the same mistake as anybody else to compare to their home pricing. Just for the clarification, pricing in Canada for food is more expensive. Your 500 USD per month would just by exchange rate convert to 700 CAD, but with increased pricing for lot of things you will be hitting 1000 CAD or more.
All that is calculated on cheap food.
Just saw your posts about Canadian life and how price is high. Would you mind if I ask you where you live in Canada? Province, City, Downtown or countryside ? I see you signature that shows you already landed.
Asking those because I have enough experience on living in Canada (lived already in Quebec, Montreal, Toronto cities and know the life very well) :)
 

ivancabrer

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Just saw your posts about Canadian life and how price is high. Would you mind if I ask you where you live in Canada? Province, City, Downtown or countryside ? I see you signature that shows you already landed.
Asking those because I have enough experience on living in Canada (lived already in Quebec, Montreal, Toronto cities and know the life very well) :)
International man of mistery. :D
 

vensak

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Jul 14, 2016
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Just saw your posts about Canadian life and how price is high. Would you mind if I ask you where you live in Canada? Province, City, Downtown or countryside ? I see you signature that shows you already landed.
Asking those because I have enough experience on living in Canada (lived already in Quebec, Montreal, Toronto cities and know the life very well) :)
Ontario, apartment (so no way to grow something except maybe some basil or sage), no GTA area but the city of the decent size.

What is a bit funny, that when I point out to count with costs of 330 to 500 CAD (depends on the life style and preferences) for basic home cooked food per person (babies might not need that much food, but theirs might be more expensive, plus there are different daily needs which are not counted for older children - like Pampers), then everybody jumps, that that is too much. And at the same time, they post article that is more or less proving the point. Statement like - how I reduced budget to 600 CAD per month (later revealed, that that is for 2 retired people) translates into 300 CAD per person and month.
Weekly menu, where half of the time you skip breakfast (hurray for coffee) and where some little things are missing (bacon and 1 egg but no bread;), another meal is replaced with salad. Leaving you with 1 normal meal. Yes that is ideal if you want to loose your weight to reach next bikini season, but maybe less ideal for the daily stress and mission impossible for any manual working person.

The original question was if he can live decently from such salary in Toronto together with wife and a child. And the answer is no.
But he can survive from it. Surviving equals no saving and equals long term problem when replacing things that cost a bit more
 

lino82

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Apr 12, 2017
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Ontario, apartment (so no way to grow something except maybe some basil or sage), no GTA area but the city of the decent size.

What is a bit funny, that when I point out to count with costs of 330 to 500 CAD (depends on the life style and preferences) for basic home cooked food per person (babies might not need that much food, but theirs might be more expensive, plus there are different daily needs which are not counted for older children - like Pampers), then everybody jumps, that that is too much. And at the same time, they post article that is more or less proving the point. Statement like - how I reduced budget to 600 CAD per month (later revealed, that that is for 2 retired people) translates into 300 CAD per person and month.
Weekly menu, where half of the time you skip breakfast (hurray for coffee) and where some little things are missing (bacon and 1 egg but no bread;), another meal is replaced with salad. Leaving you with 1 normal meal. Yes that is ideal if you want to loose your weight to reach next bikini season, but maybe less ideal for the daily stress and mission impossible for any manual working person.

The original question was if he can live decently from such salary in Toronto together with wife and a child. And the answer is no.
But he can survive from it. Surviving equals no saving and equals long term problem when replacing things that cost a bit more
:)....have to believe things about ur first hand experiences & the budget plans
---
another perspective,
about eating on such a budget plan....from my experience..
--
I used to eat normal & used to enjoy my food well that it took me to 104kgs in 2013 Dec....
thereafter I decided to eat only things when I was really hungry & only what was necessary...to cut short,an year later I was 40kilos lower & ran a half marathon (for first time in my life) & timed better than some navy personnel who ran along with me...
what I realised in the process is that man can live on one fifth of what he usually consumes...but we all are conditioned from birth on supplying food at regular intervals...on survival mode man needs so little and everything starts becoming so tasty once you choose to eat when you are really really hungry and only the necessary amount...man's eating habit changed only with organised farming & social living...for those years men lived as a hunter gatherers, we ate when we found something,just the way over half of the world in some poor African & Asian countries still eat...eating and drinking may be once a day or once in couple of days...eating whatever they get
---
I give that much importance only to food though I surely enjoy a nice dinner with family and friends...but I don't think cost of food will ever beat me or my family ever,anywhere :rolleyes:...
---
and the ease I'm feeling once I slipped into the change feels so much better than the happiness some rich food could get me...
I'll munch on tasty food at times ...but that's not of greatest importance...
I find coffee without cream and sugar / green tea as good as with cream or sugar...I find an oatmeal with not much of tasties added as good as a rich Biriyani...

I'll be sad if a pair of sneakers costed more and they started charging for running on the streets / cycling in the open :(
---
I'm just sharing my perspective...no way trying to tell my thoughts are correct...I find it better than before...
-----
 

Lala1234

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Aug 24, 2017
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:)....have to believe things about ur first hand experiences & the budget plans
---
another perspective,
about eating on such a budget plan....from my experience..
--
I used to eat normal & used to enjoy my food well that it took me to 104kgs in 2013 Dec....
thereafter I decided to eat only things when I was really hungry & only what was necessary...to cut short,an year later I was 40kilos lower & ran a half marathon (for first time in my life) & timed better than some navy personnel who ran along with me...
what I realised in the process is that man can live on one fifth of what he usually consumes...but we all are conditioned from birth on supplying food at regular intervals...on survival mode man needs so little and everything starts becoming so tasty once you choose to eat when you are really really hungry and only the necessary amount...man's eating habit changed only with organised farming & social living...for those years men lived as a hunter gatherers, we ate when we found something,just the way over half of the world in some poor African & Asian countries still eat...eating and drinking may be once a day or once in couple of days...eating whatever they get
---
I give that much importance only to food though I surely enjoy a nice dinner with family and friends...but I don't think cost of food will ever beat me or my family ever,anywhere :rolleyes:...
---
and the ease I'm feeling once I slipped into the change feels so much better than the happiness some rich food could get me...
I'll munch on tasty food at times ...but that's not of greatest importance...
I find coffee without cream and sugar / green tea as good as with cream or sugar...I find an oatmeal with not much of tasties added as good as a rich Biriyani...

I'll be sad if a pair of sneakers costed more and they started charging for running on the streets / cycling in the open :(
---
I'm just sharing my perspective...no way trying to tell my thoughts are correct...I find it better than before...
-----
Buddy did you try intermittent fasting to loose weight?
 

lino82

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Apr 12, 2017
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Buddy did you try intermittent fasting to loose weight?
I don't know...I just went crazy about it ...just imagine u are stuck with only 3 kilos of vegetables a pound of bread and 3kilos of fruits and 250 grams nuts for a week...drink lots of water and try to push urself to the limit to stretch it for at least 4-5 days with such a stock ...may be some onions & salad leaves & few lemons and a teaspoon of salt & two table spoons of olive oil and a some lettuce leaves...
----
Ppl here try water fasting...if you are healthy, u could go a whole week only on water..but u need absolute rest ....it will detoxify ur body and slowly u should get back to a controlled diet gradually..
---
these are unscientific and i suggest u consult before attempting...and keep ur dear ones updated about what u are doing if (u do)
--
I was like I was stranded on an island with limited supply and I could stretch...
whenever body tried to test me, I held on by just making another salad and an apple and told my body that the craving for carbs was of no use...
---
I pushed it even harder and later coupled it with cycling ...on a day I remembering cycling about 40kms and eating only an orange the whole day
---
It is risky to try...so test your body and then push it...but stay away from carbs ...and sugar and direct fat like oil butter cheese ...
Include fibre & proteins...if you are obese,one or two weeks u can start ff this way and thereafter u could eat couple of egg whites as well each day...boiled
---
risky,though it worked for me and I intend to supply my body only with what i decide and not what it craves..
----
 

trumprefugee

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Jun 6, 2017
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The minimum cost for food ranging from 10-15 CAD per person and day is correct That is app. 3 CAD (2.5 USD) to 5 CAD (4 USD) per person and meal (that includes food and beverages, fruits and vegetables or any small treatment after the meal). And by comparing to US market you are doing the same mistake as anybody else to compare to their home pricing. Just for the clarification, pricing in Canada for food is more expensive. Your 500 USD per month would just by exchange rate convert to 700 CAD, but with increased pricing for lot of things you will be hitting 1000 CAD or more.
All that is calculated on cheap food.
I found this Statistics Canada website that shows Average household food expenditure for 2014 and 2015.
http://statcan.gc.ca/tables-tableaux/sum-som/l01/cst01/famil132a-eng.htm
If you look only at the Food purchased from stores line which excludes restaurant meals for 2015, it is
Canada overall 6,126 = $510.50/month
Ontario 5,658 = $471.50/month

When you are on a budget, restaurant meals are a luxury, not a necessity. Add in money saving tips such as the ones described in the link @lino82 shared, I still think it's very possible for a family of 3 to eat well on $500/month.

Another Canadian sharing ways to save on groceries:
http://www.mymoneycoach.ca/saving-money/saving-on-groceries

When I did my initial rough guess of $500/month for food, I was assuming that 1 Canadian dollar buys about as much in Canada as 1 US dollar buys about as much in the US. That seems to be a fair and conservative assumption. This site comparing cost of living between Canada and the US says that overall, in most areas, prices are higher in the US than in Canada, including for groceries:
https://www.numbeo.com/cost-of-living/compare_countries_result.jsp?country1=Canada&country2=United+States
Groceries Prices in United States are 4.01% higher than in Canada

And yes, the OP @jojee2k6 was asking if a $55k/year salary + benefits would be enough to maintain a good life standard. However, he also said the job is a postdoc fellowship, i.e., entry level for a PhD. This is significant, because it means that his future earnings will be significantly higher than $55k. If he were asking about a $55k/year offer for a senior software developer position, for example, I would say that is way too little and he needs to negotiate and turn down the offer if the company won't budge. We all have different definitions of "good", but I think being able to afford decent housing and reliable transportation, eat enough nutritious food, and get needed healthcare, is enough to qualify as "good," even if you have to be frugal. Not luxurious, but that wasn't the question. With a PhD and this postdoc fellowship, the OP could be on his way to earning enough in the future to live a luxurious lifestyle.

Also keep in mind that if he will be only working person in his family, his take home pay should be higher than the $42k calculated for a single person. I do not know the details of calculating Canadian personal income tax, but I know you can get some tax credits for your spouse if your spouse is not working or has very low income, and there are additional credits for children. i.e., take home pay for a single person making $55k is going to be lower than take home pay for a family making $55k.
 

Rise and shine

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I have a gut feel that there is gonna be a draw today followed by another two on 15th sep & 29th...hope we get a eid surpise from cic today...and if we do get a draw , scores shld be around 429/430
I like you....
Remember the quote : When you want something, all the universe conspires in helping you to achieve it.
And for us now it is that ITA...
 

trumprefugee

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Jun 6, 2017
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07-01-2018
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24-06-2017
Med's Done....
05-01-2018
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09-03-2018
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02-04-2018
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That was really insightful, am grateful for shedding your insights on this subject.
With respect to acknowledging the offer made, I was under the notion that you had to rush up and accept the offered job quotation without an argument. I realize my perception was wrong. You are right, "we shouldn't sound desperate" to which I was completely blinded. :oops:

What about your take on 2281,2282? which is my present area.
Sorry, I am not familiar with the job market in those NOC codes, but a quick NOC code lookup gives the following titles:
2281 Computer network technicians
2282 User support technicians

A quick search on glassdoor for "computer network technician" and "user support technician" in Toronto gives the following:
National Avg $51,887
Min Max
$47k $58k
https://www.glassdoor.ca/Salaries/toronto-computer-network-technician-salary-SRCH_IL.0,7_IM976_KO8,35.htm
only a few statistics found here, but you can refine the search for a different location or slightly different title:
https://www.glassdoor.ca/Salaries/toronto-user-support-technician-salary-SRCH_IL.0,7_IM976_KO8,31.htm
 
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