shannedy

Hey all,
My partner and I are looking into the possibility of moving over to BC, specifically around Chilliwack or Kelowna areas. We've both been considering options for leaving the UK for a while, and have recently deemed that this particular corner of Canada would be well suited to us. Admittedly, it would be a few years away as we have outstanding debts we'd be looking to clear first, as well as saving money, etc.
I have a few questions around employment opportunities and how people have found living costs and whatnot in these areas. Ideally we'd be looking at somewhere a little more rural in the long term, say the outskirts of Chilliwack (I was born in the Clyde Valley and he grew up on farmhouses in Fife), and would be aiming to be self employed in our respective fields - he is a metalsmith (specialising in knives), and I am a varied artist and author.
To begin with we'd be looking at employment to get on our feet over there. I had a look at the positions that are in demand and found that food service managers are on there. I am in a position where I could easily acquire training as a restaurant manager and gain a couple years experience before trying for the move. Does anyone have any feedback on the outlook of a position like this in the aforementioned areas? I also noticed that facility operation and maintenance management are in high demand, and was wondering if this would include the likes of warehouse management positions? These are both professional areas that we are currently working in, so it would be handy for the future if this was the case!
I am 23 years old, he is 32, and we are not married, if this has any relevance to our options. We are a couple of business-minded hippies quite happy to live on the cheap, and would ideally have a little land or decent sized garden where we could have a veggie patch, perhaps a couple of chickens, for purely personal use. Language wise, I am fluent in both English and Spanish, and I have a good handling of French - again, just in case this has any sway!
I also have a first cousin in Ontario, and I am unsure if he would be able to sponsor us as family or if that would apply to us looking at moving to BC. If he could, what would that entail for him?
A lot of questions, I know, but any help is appreciated!

christmasoompa

Hi, and welcome to BE.

Not a clue about employment for your fields I'm afraid, but cost of living used to be about the same as in the UK, recently though people are saying about 25% more than the UK to give you a rough idea. Lots of threads with relevant info on including what people pay each month, so a quick search would get you started.

Where did you see that?

But you live together? Sorry for the personal question, but to go on the same visa application, you'd need to prove you're common-law spouses i.e. have lived as husband and wife for a year or more.

He can't I'm afraid, unless you happen to be his only living relative?

For visa options, the IEC sounds like a good option for you if you go in the next few years (it's only for those aged 30 and under), you'd need a skilled job so that he could work as well though. If you wanted a more permanent visa, then have a look at the CIC website, start with the eligibility test to see if either of you would qualify for Permanent Residency without a job offer - https://www.canada.ca/en/immigration...nada-tool.html

HTH, best of luck.

shannedy

Hi there, thanks for the reply!
I'll have a further browse and see what more I can unearth in regards to cost of living. I have used an online calculator as well, but would like to find out more from people first hand in the area.
I found a list of skilled professions in demand at aptechvisa.com, as well as a page linked through the Welcome BC website that looked at prospective job openings until 2027 and had promising outlooks on management positions that I seem to have lost the link for.
We do live together. It will officially be a year as of August 2018, with paperwork (council tax and rental agreement) to confirm this period.
Using the link you left me there, it has come back saying there is a possibility to move there as a self-employed person (I am aware that there must also be proof of working as self employed for a period of time before the application date). It did also come back with the possibility of express entry as a skilled worker, however it seems I'd need to complete a language test and input which test it was that I'd completed before progressing further with this.
I'll have a look into the IEC as well and see how suited that may be, thank you!

christmasoompa

I'd ignore that completely. As well as an awful lot of errors on their website which doesn't lead me to have a lot of faith in them as immi consultants, that list is also just the NOC list, which covers thousands of occupations and doesn't mean they're in demand! It's just a way of getting your NOC code for all jobs.

Yep, you need to have worked in one of the eligible occupations for at least 2 years out of the previous 5. That may be an option for you as you don't want to go straight away (the downside for most with that program is that the processing times are so long).

You couldn't apply until you'd got your IELTS exam results, but for the purposes of just checking eligibility then you can assume maximum points for now as a native speaker. You don't need to take the exam just to see what you'd score and if you could apply so don't worry about that.

HTH, good luck.

Engineer_abroad

Just some food for thought on the living costs issue. There is <1% vacancy rate in rental stock in Kelowna and this is pushing up rental prices. There not at Vancouver levels yet but are slowly creeping up.

https://globalnews.ca/news/3886556/k...n-the-country/

scilly

......... and Chilliwack is becoming very much a suburb of Vancouver as house prices here drive those wanting to buy further and further out into the Valley. Many people are willing to drive 1 hr 15 minutes or so each way in order to get a house.

This of course means that house and land prices are now rising in Chilliwack and further east.

Hurlabrick

No idea of recent prices or 'commutability', but I always liked the town of Hope, some 15 miles east of Chilliwack IIRC. Where they filmed 'Rambo - First Blood' (I had the most disturbingand frankly frightening series of deja-vu's when I visited until I realised this!!!!)

Lychee

Chilliwack and Kelowna are very much suburban sprawl-y places. Think Milton Keynes with nicer landscapes. There are rural bits, but do rethink your definition of rural in Canada, especially BC. It's developed quite differently out here.

Given your interests and pursuits, you sound like you'd be better off on Salt Spring Island, or in places like Nelson, Powell River, Cumberland, or Roberts Creek.

Tamasin1

Hi we have just recently moved to Kamloops which is pretty near kelowna (Google it) just pm me if you want any information on our little town, also please listen to christmasompa and former lancaston what they say, they helped us soooo much, and I generaly don't think we would have made it out here if it wasn't for there advice and knowledge

scilly

Hope is about 150+ km (jut under 100 miles) east of Vancouver, a 2+ hour drive, depending on weather and travel conditions on Highway 1, large areas of which are susceptible to white out conditions in winter, plus landslides in wet weather ........... leading to closures of the highway. Then you reach the further outskirts of Metro Vancouver, and deal with traffic jams. There is another road, Highway 7, on the north side of the Fraser River, but that is slower.

That would be at least a 4 hour round trip if you were commuting to work in Metro


We used to do that drive a dozen times a year between April and early October and again around Christmas time, and I can can give you a detailed list of where traffic jams occur, and where landslides most often close the road or accidents most often happen.


Hope is a lovely small place, in the mountains, gets a lot of snow. Prices increasing slowly. The only problem with it is all the tourists who arrive by the bus load!

LondonSam

Haha can't believe someone likened Kelowna to Milton Keynes......... I'm from the UK and I live in Kelowna which is beautiful. I live 12 minutes from Downtown, on half an acre backing onto the lake with deer in my yard everyday and have had a bear on the front deck... not too many neighbors, not rural but not your typical Suburbia, definately not like MK, hahahaha its expensive here, no doubt about it, groceries, housing and utility bills are higher than UK, Car Insurance will also be a shock..... make sure you have any dental work done before you come - unless you have a job with coverage it will be expensive here....