Looking to retire in Canada

a reply to: MinangATS

Thanks for the information. I'll check that out.

I've lived all across the country. Weather is not an issue, unless you're on the west coast and then you don't get winter..... without driving. What do you want to do? Skate? Galleries? Poutine?

a reply to: intrepid

My hubby and I like to walk. We enjoy shopping and art galleries. My hubby likes to fish. We're looking at somewhere near one of the Great Lakes. I have a friend who lives in Guelph.

a reply to: ChiefD

OK. Not Guelph though. It's inundated by college kids 9 months of the year. It's busy. Fishing is everywhere here so also not an issue. Great fishing on the west coast but if you want winter, it's not the place. Great fishing on the east coast and if you want winter you will get plenty. Stay away from Saskatchewan. For some reason it's our Detroit. That said....

Ottawa(nations's capital). Eastern Quebec is amazing. If you like to party, Halifax. If you'd like something similar... Winnipeg. It's about what? 200 miles from you?

a reply to: intrepid

Good to know. My friend who lives in Guelph is a college professor.

I don't want that much winter. I had no idea about Saskatchewan. Yeah, Winnipeg isn't too far from where I live.

I didn't read all of the posts so I apologize in advance if this has already been suggested.

Have you looked at Kanata Ontario? It's just outside Ottawa and the area is very clean, it's a big city with that "small town" sorta feel. It's also a well planned city when it comes to development so everything is nicely spaced out. I'll probably be sent out east or west with work but if I was able to retire here, Kanata would be my first choice. But as of right now, lol, I going somewhere warm where winter has never been seen.

a reply to: ChiefD

I've lived in two out of three of those city's but have traveled to all of them.

Toronto can be very expensive if you want to live in the city, but there are many nice places on the outskirts which can be reasonably priced.

Vancouver is similar to Toronto I'd assume, they all have their downtown core which is the most expensive area.

Most importantly I find Regina to not be a nice city, and certainly not one I would retire to.

Calgary I hear is having problems with gangs, and when I lived in Regina (2 years ago) they were beginning to have gang problems as well.

originally posted by: ChiefD
a reply to: Akragon

Thanks, I'll google Muskoka. Oh, I almost forgot, maybe Ottowa. I don't think I spelled that correctly. They are pretty far north though. I like the winters, but I think that would be a bit much. I had forgotten that Niagara is close too.

Now more things to research.

I grew up in Muskoka, which is not a town, but a municipality of three towns, and a handful of villages surrounding. It is the go to destination for those living in Toronto to get away from it all. Beautiful place to retire, I'll give it that. If you want to know more about that area feel free to ask.

a reply to: ChiefD
I live a stones throw from Regina. I grew up there. If you don't mind living in a smaller town, you can wind up saving a lot of money as housing prices are stupid right now. $250,000 for a 900 square foot in the bad part of the city. Unless you are planning on renting, although prices get pretty cheap out of town as well.

a reply to: intrepid
Our Detroit? lol It's looking good to me! Alberta will be Detroit soon with oil prices the way they are. I would never move back there.

There are many many beautiful cities in Canada.

You just need to have a close look at the economy, cost of living, and cultural entertainment of each to determine what would be most suitable for you and hubby.

My personal opinion on the cities you mentioned:

Toronto - very busy city entertainment and culture-wise, weather is unpredictable, crime is an issue, cost of living is very high. Plenty of fishing.

Calgary - growth rate is off the charts which brings many problems, a lack of rent control there means your landlord can up your rent as much as they want and as often as they want, very high cost of living, weather can range from mild to extreme. The only good thing about Calgary is the fact that it's next door to Banff National Park. Not much for fishing.

Vancouver - gorgeous city surrounded by beautiful ocean and mountains, cost of living is extremely high, crime rate is high due to many homeless/vagrants travelling there to live on the streets because of the nice weather. Plenty of fishing.

Regina - small city, not much by way of entertainment, cost of living is quite reasonable, crime rate is high due to the surrounding poverty, not very clean, weather is extreme ranging from hot dry summers to arctic freezing winters. Not much for fishing in the immediate area but plenty of fishing farther north of the city.



To be honest, when it comes to cost of living (particularly if you plan on being a renter), you're much better off living just outside of any city in the nearby surrounding towns. Keep in mind that Canadian cities are no where near as large as US cities so travel from a surrounding suburban town to downtown city life would only be a 15-30 minute drive at most.



Hope that info helps... good luck in your search !

a reply to: ChiefD

If you want to own a home in Vancouver expect to spend 1million and up. There are cheaper homes, there Really also far more expensive homes. It gets cheaper the further from the city you live but British Columbia's beauty is unmatched in Canada.

Toronto is huge, expect similar housing costs. With out the mountains or one of the world's great rain forests.

That being said I live in Vancouver, and I have family in Calgary as well as Toronto. I would never move from here. Not for a PowerBall win worth of cash.

Thank you all so much for your replies and advice! I really appreciate it. There is much for me to check out and research. Where I live right now is a small town of 6200 people. It's next door to a larger city of about 70,000. So it has the best of both worlds. It's close to many things, but has the wonderful small town friendly spirit. When I go for walks, any time of the year, people I don't know will say hi. That never happened before I moved to this small town.

So I'd probably look at living in a smaller town/city near a bigger one if I moved to Canada. With the political situation here, my husband and I are very concerned that things would go downhill quickly if trump is elected president. That's the main impetus for us leaving the country. I love my country, but I'm very scared for the future.

There will be more planning and soul searching. My own family doesn't even know about this. My parents will be crushed. They are getting up there in years, and as long as they are alive, I probably won't be able to move. So this whole thing may be just a pipe dream. But thanks for all the nice replies and advice. You all embody what I hear about Canadians being some of the nicest people on the planet.

a reply to: ChiefD

Niagara is wine country by the way... Best on the planet

IF that's your thing...

originally posted by: Akragon
a reply to: ChiefD

Niagara is wine country by the way... Best on the planet

IF that's your thing...

If you like that lake effect snow.

a reply to: Akragon

Okanogan Valley is wine country in BC. World renowned.


www.winebc.com...