Obitim

Evening all,

So we're on the road to moving to Canada (sans work permit confirmation but working on that) and we're looking round for a place to live in Winnipeg.

We maybe in luck and are able to get into university accommodation but if not then we may have to find somewhere to live instead, which is no biggy, we're going to airbnb initially but had a few questions for local Winnipeggers if they'll answer?

How did you guys get resolve the issues with stuff like referees and proving credit and all that?

Also, initially I won't have a job but am hoping to change that in January, has anyone else been in the same position and what did you say to future landlords?

I know there is a wiki on this sort of info but I wanted to see if anyone who;d moved to Winnipeg had run into any specific issues?

I may have some more questions but that's it for now...


Thanks in advance!

Vulcanoid

Kijiji. "Hi, we're lovely, this is why we're perfect for the house, we don't have jobs here's a bank statement to prove we can pay".

Obitim

We've been recommended Kijiji, so we'll keep an eye on that!

That does sound pretty easy tho! Did it work out??

DeeMB

Are you working at the university? U of M or U of W? It's usually who you know round here. My first house was through a friend of a friend and the same with my current house. This one came about whilst watching hockey!

Obitim

Hi Dee!

My wife is going to be a student there, and I'm just along for the ride!

At the moment I've got no work lined up, once I (hopefully) get approval for my WP (got an application outstanding since July!) then I'll start contacting employers and try and feel the lay of the land.

We know a few people in Winnipeg from a previous visit so they may help, we're just gonna try and get somewhere initially if the uni accommodation falls through...

LonelyCloud

Check to see if your bank has branches in Canada, if they do, open a foreign account through them. Generally, they will transfer at least some of your credit history as well.

Obitim

We don;t at the moment, but we are looking at HSBC as we know they've got branches in Winnipeg, and had read on here that they were a good starting point due to being International?

LonelyCloud

I'm with HSBC and when I looked at using them for another international move, It said in their T&Cs that you had to be a customer for a minimum of 3 months. It's not an issue for me, but something you may want to check

Obitim

Ah, thank you!

I'll take a look as we've been with First Direct for 5 years, so that may work...

DeeMB

Look at the banks that do packages for newcomers. Also check out the credit unions like Steinbach Credit Union. They were brilliant to us and we got credit cards, car loan and a great savings rate.

DeeMB

Is your wife at the U of M?

Obitim

Cheers Dee! That'll be really useful!

She's going to be studying at U of W

Obitim

Good news for us!

We've been offered 2 bed flat through the university housing! So we'll have somewhere to live till August!