Canadian ATSers Please Help Me!

First of all thanks for reading. I am a Brit looking to get out of this hell hole and Canada is numero uno on my list of destinations to settle in. In short I have applied for a job at one of Canada's biggest telecomunication companies and would be based in Toronto should I get the job! I just have a few questions if you wouldn't mind answering.

1) My French is quite poor, how important is it from a personal point of view and a professional point of view to be fluent in this language?

2) What is the current living costs of living in Toronto, what kind of a salary would one have to earn to live in relative comfort with a family of 4.

3) How expensive is housing?

4) Is the taxation system fair, is there any hidden suprises?

5) Healthcare and schooling, is it free if not is it expensive?


Thanks in advance.

reply to post by michael1983l


Hi Michael1983l

1) Not important. Most of us in Southern/South-Western Ontario can't speak french. If it's needed it should be stated in the job application.

2) Living costs are fairly high in Toronto, my best guess would be that $70 to $80 thousand be a bare minimum salary for someone who wants to support a family of 4. I really mean bare minimum.

3) Housing costs are ridiculous, but vary depending on which parts of the GTA (Greater Toronto Area) you want to live. In the city of Toronto, a small house won't likely cost less than $500 to $600 thousand. Your best bet is to live somewhere in a outlaying community and commute... but also remember that the GTA has the worst commute times in North America, even beating out Los Angeles lol

4) Income Taxes are also ridiculous when you start making over $60,000. Then there are property taxes, health taxes, pension deductions, and finally 13% sales taxes on almost everything you buy.

5) Most healthcare is free, except dental, medication costs, and there are other not-covered costs such as ambulance etc. A lot of employers have plans that cover the missing gaps though.
Elementary and High School is mostly free, except you may need to buy supplies etc depending on the school and the programs.
College and University is pretty expensive, but there are government loans and bursaries that can help if you are luck enough to qualify.

It sounds pretty bad, but the quality of life is actually pretty high. Low crime rate etc.

Good luck!

reply to post by michael1983l

I'm a Brit living on the west coast, so I'm not familiar with Toronto area.
We dont speak french here.
The job you seek, you may need to be fluent in french, you should enquire about this. If your job requires you to work in customer service, talking to all Canadians. I'm assuming they want employees who can speak english and french, that is if your job would involve speaking to customers.

When I make a call to a telecommunications or any given company on the east coast or toronto area , there is always a choice press 1 for english or choose french, however choosing english, I usually end up talking to a french person who speaks very poor english.
Hope this helps you understand the language issue.

Thank you that is very informative, I'm glad I asked because I thought I'd be ok on $65,000 but clearly not. We have family over the border in Ohio so would like to live in the southern GTA.

Originally posted by michael1983l
First of all thanks for reading. I am a Brit looking to get out of this hell hole and Canada is numero uno on my list of destinations to settle in. In short I have applied for a job at one of Canada's biggest telecomunication companies and would be based in Toronto should I get the job! I just have a few questions if you wouldn't mind answering.

My French is quite poor, how important is it from a personal point of view and a professional point of view to be fluent in this language?

What is the current living costs of living in Toronto, what kind of a salary would one have to earn to live in relative comfort with a family of 4.

3) How expensive is housing?

4) Is the taxation system fair, is there any hidden suprises?

5) Healthcare and schooling, is it free if not is it expensive?


Thanks in advance.

this province is a wreck my friend... but theres good places to start out.... I would suggest looking into hamilton... its not as nice as toronto but its very affordable for someone trying to get on their feet.

1) French is an asset... it will usually get you at least 3-4 dollars more in telecomunications

2) I was paying 900 for a 2 bedroom... the down town core is very expensive though.... like 1500 for a 1 bedroom shoebox... its worth it if you like the night life though... If you have a family and insist on living in TO i would look on the outskirts of town...

3) depends on what you want, and need... Houses are expensive to rent... but if you move to hamilton you can easily get a 3 bedroom house for under a grand... the same thing in TO will cost you upwards of 1500 a month... But again i was paying 860 for a 3 bedroom house... it was huge too... great for a family

Is the taxation system fair, is there any hidden suprises?

LMAO!!

You just wait... You're gonna love canada

but we always have something to bitch about...

5) yes at least we have great healthcare... schooling is free generally...(yay for taxes)

until you hit collage...

reply to post by michael1983l


The taxes and deductions on $65,000 would be near 30% or $20,000.

Your net income per month would be around $3500. Very easy to live on if you're single or as a couple, but with 2 hungry children it would be very tight. If your significant other was able to work too it would be doable.

Food per month for a family of 4 would be close to $600 I bet.
Rent would be close to $1500 for a 3 bedroom, but lower depending on where and less bedrooms.
A mortgage on a house would likely be no less than $1500 per month, but more likely to be $2000 not including the $2,000 to $4,000 per year property taxes.
Car, if leased would be a minimum of $300 plus a likely $150 to $200 for insurance.
Petrol, probably looking at anywhere between $300 and $400 per month (or more) depending on where you live and where you commute.

And that doesn't include all the little extras...

I'm glad that I was able to help though

reply to post by Akragon


For sure, Hamilton wouldn't be a bad place to start, or the Kitchener/Waterloo/Cambridge areas

Thanks for all your great replies, they really have helped a lot.

Originally posted by Gruffly
reply to post by Akragon

 

For sure, Hamilton wouldn't be a bad place to start, or the Kitchener/Waterloo/Cambridge areas

I've lived all over southern ontario... Stratford, burlington, mississauga, brampton, etobico,.. niagara now...

Hamilton was the best by far... you just have to be careful who you associate with, but that generally applies anywhere...

St.Kits is one of the more dangerous towns in canada... but again... depends on who you hang with.

Wow, it seems like all of BC is priced like Toronto. You cannot rent a 3 bedroom house for less than 1200 anywhere, and they are more commonly 1400-1600. Even small towns now due to some Conspiracy and robbing citizens of ownership.

Most people do not earn 65 000 year salaries either.

Food for a family of 6 is often 1000 a month if you like semi organic and have kids.