the_tones_guy

Hi Y'all,

So we are on the move, we just came back from a 2 week recce trip around Alberta and BC and we have decided that Kelowna is the place we want to settle after the Winter next year.

We are currently in Newfoundland and been here for 8 years and it's time to move on.

I am now looking at the logistics of living in Kelowna.

Amazingly, house prices are similar to NL, so that's cool, but I need to look at my utilities and bills in Kelowna etc... So I can see what things cost and put that in an approx monthly budget, so I know where we are with things.

Do you know how much (approx) the following things cost, per month, for a 3 bed house:

Electric
Gas
Town tax
TV/Internet/home phone

Are there any additional (unforeseen) costs you can think of, that I won't have budgeted in my current NL spreadsheet?

I assume things like car and house insurance will be similar to here in NL, as it's just insuring a $$$ value.

Last thing, in NL, we have MCP (Provincial healthcare plan), so you can go the Dr and hospital without cost etc... Does BC have it's own healthcare plan and is there a cost associated with that?

We have private plans which we pay too, it's just specifically the provincial plan I'm asking about.

Thanks for taking the time to read this and helping, if you can help.

Thanks

JonboyE

I can't speak much about Kelowna as I don't live there. For BC I can say that Hydro is considered cheaper than most of the rest of North America.

Basic auto insurance is run by a Crown Corporation (ICBC) and is not cheap. It is something like $1,500 a year but you can get a discount up to 40% if you can prove 8 years of at-fault accident free driving. You can buy comprehensive insurance from ICBC or private providers. Kelowna will likely be a little cheaper than the Lower Mainland but if you have a good driving record you should budget $120 - $150 a month.

The provincial health plan is MSP which I imagine will be like MCP. There are monthly premiums: Premiums - Province of British Columbia

the_tones_guy

This is really useful, thank you, so the MSP, will that cover everything (Dr's/Dentist/prescriptions/eye care), so I won't need additional medical insurance (I fear it does not)? MCP is completely free in NL.

withabix

Bring Cash...


As for these:

$150/month average over the year for Electric (cold winter/hot summer)
$100/month average over the year for Gas
Not sure of typical Property Tax in Kelowna but probably $3000/year
$200/month for typical TV/Internet/home phone package

would be good estimates I think. Depends if it's a 1970s BC Box or a 2010s new build in terms of gas and electricity and if its a 3 bedroom 1200sq ft or 2500sq ft etc....could vary wildly!

Car insurance: fully comp in BC for family sized car is typically $3000+ before discounts, which max out at about 40%/8 years.

House insurance: depends on what cover you want or need, but maybe $1500/year

House prices: They might appear similar, but it depends on where in town. Rutland wouldn't be a first choice...also some people don't like being 'over the bridge' in West Kelowna either.

JonboyE

MSP covers doctors visits, specialist referrals and in hospital treatment. It does not cover prescriptions, eyecare or dentistry. Many larger employers offer extended health care as a benefit, but not all. If your employer does not you can buy private cover or self-insure. IMO private cover is expensive so I self-insure.

not2old

checked some listings with local agents that put the property tax amounts in with the listing. Seems anything in the 1% of selling price would ballpark the property tax, some higher, some lower

FYI

Kelowna and area homes for sale

Aviator

Register with Pharmacare as well as MSP, this will cover prescriptions (most) when after your reach the deductible.

Auto insurance - ICBC is the only show in town for basic. Although I prefer ICBC for the add ons for a car or truck, I use the add ons from another insurer for a bike (ICBC is double). Max discount from ICBC is 43%. They also do loading if you have points or accidents. 10 years plu driving experience yields the lowest insurance rates.

Basic liability is $200k, add ons for $1m, 2, 3 or 5m

http://www.icbc.com/autoplan/costs/Documents/crs.pdf

not2old

Do seniors pay for prescriptions or eye exams in BC?

not2old

moving from another province to BC with say 8 years no claims, accidents or tickets, what rate or rate reduction would someone pay - could you give an example of the lowest possible down & dirty cost?... thanks

Right now in Ontario the two of us on one policy basic- basic insurance, third party liability only on a 13 yr old vehicle (pleasure use only) is approx $600/yr with one million liability (no fire & theft)

Aviator

An autoplan broker should be able to give an indication over the phone. I pay $1600 with full discount -43%. Eight years is -40% if you have a no claims history.

Basic is $200k liability. I would not drive with less than $5m, my kids have the same.

If you come to BC, expect a lot more than you presently pay.

My bike is $1500 for 6 months with 43% discount.

Stinkypup

Yep 'fraid so

tee1

Will you be working in Kelowna?
It can be difficult to find employment and wages are low. Just something to consider too

BristolUK

Not intending to hijack the thread. This might aid the discussion.

There appear to be a few mobile/manufactured homes for under $100k with decent "walk scores" and several condo/strata types for $120k to $160k with bloody brilliant walk scores (supposedly better than even we have here) and monthly fees around the $250.

The city of Kelowna website suggests property taxes of $1100 on assessed value of $170k. That's way less than here.

It's not hard to see monthly housing costs - taking into account (not much) heating as well - being less than we pay in snow central. Our equalised payments for power are $282 and property taxes are $200.

Initially I found a place and thought what's the catch. Then it dawned. You had a four week block. Time share. Nothing in the listing gave any indication of that until the reference to swapping your 4 weeks.

the_tones_guy

This is all really excellent and answers a lot of my questions, really thank you for getting involved.

Aviator

Depends on income and if they are on disability or not. Most do, some don't.