Originally Posted by Abby2012 (Post 11159415)

If he can move, he would be located in Toronto (TD Towers!). I am not a lover of big cities, although I loved Toronto.. are there some smaller residential areas that would be a short train/subway journey away.

Originally Posted by Abby2012 (Post 11159424)

We are after preferably detached, min 3 beds, garden, close to at least some shops.. Budget of about £180k (300k Canadian dollars ish).

Originally Posted by Abby2012 (Post 11159437)

Ah thanks! We picked up a Camper van in Whitby, ON so I'm slightly familiar with it (And I love Whitby in the UK too!)

Being near water might not be possible..its not the most important thing really. A nice residential area would trump water views.

x

Originally Posted by Dulciusexasperis (Post 11164223)

Someone mentioned the Beach area of Toronto. I used to live there and laughed when it was mentioned. Here is a 3 bedroom in the Beach.

Originally Posted by Dulciusexasperis (Post 11165267)

What house 'listed' dbd33? The one I linked is in the Beach.

Originally Posted by Dulciusexasperis (Post 11165267)

What house 'listed' dbd33? The one I linked is in the Beach. Of course the question of just where 'the Beach' is nowadays is an amusing one. I still laugh when I see a real estate ad saying a house is in the 'upper Beaches' and the house is up near Danforth!.

I lived in the Beach neighbourhood on and off since the 70s. Back then the boundaries were pretty simple. Anything west of the Hunt Club, east of Woodbine and south of Kingston Road was in the Beach. For real old time residents (1960s or earlier) it really only included anything south of Queen St. Nowadays they seem to have stretched those boundaries a whole lot farther.

I recall very well the big flap when the city changed the street signs in 1985.
http://www.blogto.com/city/2014/03/t...r_the_beaches/

That was back in the days of the 'yuppies' moving into the area. I still recall the joke back then about the 'definition of a beaches woman'. In her 30s; works in the media; has a dog.'

Funnily enough, on my last visit to the area (last year) I did notice just how many dogs there seemed to be on Queen St. Perhaps the definition had some merit in it. I honestly can't recall ever seeing so many people walking a dog down the street anywhere compared to how many I saw that day. Put it this way, there were enough that I noticed.

I bought my last house in the Beach around 1988 and sold in 1997. It cost $450k and I sold for $600k. I recently saw what I would say is an equivalent house one street over listed at $1.7 mil.

Originally Posted by Dulciusexasperis (Post 11166486)

LOL, OK dbd33, you're going back to 1960s borders. Woodbine to Victoria Park and south of Queen only. Fair enough.

I think you would have a hard time convincing someone who lives on Blantyre, Courcellete or Fallingbrook that they don't live in the Beach though.

You would be wrong in that guess Tirytory. It would have increased in value (97-2013) from $600k to that comparable $1.7 mil which is about a 180% increase. But who is to say you could not have put the $600k in some other house somewhere else and made as much or more in profit? From 1997 to 2008, you could get those kind of increases in house prices in a lot of places and I did.

Originally Posted by Dulciusexasperis (Post 11166486)

LOL, OK dbd33, you're going back to 1960s borders. Woodbine to Victoria Park and south of Queen only. Fair enough.

I think you would have a hard time convincing someone who lives on Blantyre, Courcellete or Fallingbrook that they don't live in the Beach though.

You would be wrong in that guess Tirytory. It would have increased in value (97-2013) from $600k to that comparable $1.7 mil which is about a 180% increase. But who is to say you could not have put the $600k in some other house somewhere else and made as much or more in profit? From 1997 to 2008, you could get those kind of increases in house prices in a lot of places and I did.

Originally Posted by Abby2012 (Post 11159424)

I'd love to be close to water which is why Collingwood and Niagara on the lake appealed.

Originally Posted by dbd33 (Post 11159444)

magnumpty lives out there somewhere, I expect he'll be along with suggestions.

Originally Posted by Dulciusexasperis (Post 11168336)

Some of you seem to have some weird ideas. What is 'pretentious' about what I wrote Tirytory? Please give a clear explanation of just what it is you find pretentious. Because I sure as heck can't see it in what I wrote.

In other words, what I am saying to you is put up or shut up. All you do is make comments without any substantiation.

Originally Posted by Dulciusexasperis (Post 11169675)

Huh, funny what you consider 'extravagant' or 'ostentatious' Tirytory. I mentioned numbers that any Beach resident would consider normal and not in the least extravagant or ostentatious.

I can see now where you get the 'pretentious' remark. It's based on your base line in terms of property values, incomes, etc. All that means is there is a difference in our base lines. It doesn't make what I said from my point of view pretentious in any way.

Originally Posted by Dulciusexasperis (Post 11169926)

Fair point dbd33. Cultural norms do indeed differ and I have noticed several in terms of money in different countries.

For example, someone in Canada would not ask you what salary you earn. But a discussion of average house prices is not personal if you see the difference. If on the other hand you were in Greece and told an acquaintance you had just bought a new house, they might well ask, 'how much did you pay.' Straight out, no embarassment, no intent other than simple curiousity.

From my observations as a Canadian (though born a Brit I left at age 7 so for all intents and purposes, I am Canadian) Brits have several cultural quirks I have noticed (I did later in life live there for 6.5 years). One being the subject of money which you note. It's even less acceptable to talk about it than in Canada as you describe.

Another is that there seems to be a dislike of seeing anyone do better for themselves than someone else. In N. America we admire a self-made person. In the UK, when someone moves to a nicer house or buys a nicer car, the neighbours seem to have to try and put that person down. 'Oh, it's probably leased not owned', etc.

Even my British born and raised wife agrees with me on this point. When I lived in the UK I drove a small classic sports car. In Canada, when you drive say a 1965 Mustang down the road, people will beep their horn and give you a thumbs up etc. to indicate their admiration of the car. It's not about the money the car is worth or that you can afford to drive it, it's about admiring the car in and of itself.

In the UK, that never happened to me in 6.5 years accept at a Classic car Meet. Instead I and my wife actually noticed people purposely looking away many times, rather than even letting you see they noticed the car.

So it would seem they saw driving that car as either a: pretentious or b. did not want to acknowledge someone might be doing better than themself financially.

For me it was just a fun car to drive. I do recall one guy in a pub asking me why I drove that car and before I could answer the person sitting on the other side of him answering for me. 'Because he can'.

The funny thing is that no doubt someone like Tirytory will read this and again see me being pretentious in talking about driving a classic car. The car was worth $10,000. Not all classic cars cost $100k. So hardly 'ostentatious'. Now if it was a Bently or a Rolls, that might be what I would call ostentatious.

Originally Posted by Dulciusexasperis (Post 11169926)

Fair point dbd33. Cultural norms do indeed differ and I have noticed several in terms of money in different countries.

For example, someone in Canada would not ask you what salary you earn. But a discussion of average house prices is not personal if you see the difference. If on the other hand you were in Greece and told an acquaintance you had just bought a new house, they might well ask, 'how much did you pay.' Straight out, no embarassment, no intent other than simple curiousity.

From my observations as a Canadian (though born a Brit I left at age 7 so for all intents and purposes, I am Canadian) Brits have several cultural quirks I have noticed (I did later in life live there for 6.5 years). One being the subject of money which you note. It's even less acceptable to talk about it than in Canada as you describe.



Another is that there seems to be a dislike of seeing anyone do better for themselves than someone else. In N. America we admire a self-made person. In the UK, when someone moves to a nicer house or buys a nicer car, the neighbours seem to have to try and put that person down. 'Oh, it's probably leased not owned', etc.

Even my British born and raised wife agrees with me on this point. When I lived in the UK I drove a small classic sports car. In Canada, when you drive say a 1965 Mustang down the road, people will beep their horn and give you a thumbs up etc. to indicate their admiration of the car. It's not about the money the car is worth or that you can afford to drive it, it's about admiring the car in and of itself.

In the UK, that never happened to me in 6.5 years accept at a Classic car Meet. Instead I and my wife actually noticed people purposely looking away many times, rather than even letting you see they noticed the car.

So it would seem they saw driving that car as either a: pretentious or b. did not want to acknowledge someone might be doing better than themself financially.

For me it was just a fun car to drive. I do recall one guy in a pub asking me why I drove that car and before I could answer the person sitting on the other side of him answering for me. 'Because he can'.

The funny thing is that no doubt someone like Tirytory will read this and again see me being pretentious in talking about driving a classic car. The car was worth $10,000. Not all classic cars cost $100k. So hardly 'ostentatious'. Now if it was a Bently or a Rolls, that might be what I would call ostentatious.

Originally Posted by bats (Post 11169952)

I would use the words smug, condescending, and irritating to describe you. Even in a post questioning your concept of money and worth you manage to tell us that you owned a Mustang. You miss the point about British people and money, it isn't that we resent the rich having money, we really don't care. What does irritate is people such as yourself going on about their houses, pensions, and cars.

Originally Posted by dbd33 (Post 11169727)

It's not about the absolute numbers. It's about what you know and what you seem to value.

You know your numbers. You know your net worth, you know the value of your pension, you remember what price you paid and received for houses. That's not unusual in Canadians, previously there was a poster OceanMDX who knew his numbers, and one who'd retired to Beaver Valley who remembered what age he was when he retired and what his net worth had been at the beginning and end of that day. The latter, alas, for all his tens of thousands of dollars, lacked a memorable poster name.

I think it's unusual for British people to know their numbers. Pretentious isn't the word I would use but I think there is a cultural difference here, I think British people who are not poor find money boring and discussion of money rather vulgar. The poor, of course, have no option but to think constantly of their cash flow.

Canadians, I think, see having money as an important achievement. I don't think we do.

Originally Posted by Dulciusexasperis (Post 11169926)

For example, someone in Canada would not ask you what salary you earn. But a discussion of average house prices is not personal if you see the difference. If on the other hand you were in Greece and told an acquaintance you had just bought a new house, they might well ask, 'how much did you pay.' Straight out, no embarassment, no intent other than simple curiousity.

From my observations as a Canadian (though born a Brit I left at age 7 so for all intents and purposes, I am Canadian) Brits have several cultural quirks I have noticed (I did later in life live there for 6.5 years). One being the subject of money which you note. It's even less acceptable to talk about it than in Canada as you describe.

Another is that there seems to be a dislike of seeing anyone do better for themselves than someone else. In N. America we admire a self-made person. In the UK, when someone moves to a nicer house or buys a nicer car, the neighbours seem to have to try and put that person down. 'Oh, it's probably leased not owned', etc.

Originally Posted by Dulciusexasperis (Post 11170261)

Hilarious.

Bats, where did you read that I owned a Mustang? In fact the car I was talking about was a Triumph. A Mustang is not a sports car.

I don't think I missed the point about Brits not wanting to talk about money at all. It's that you DO care and it irritates you to hear people go on about houses, cars and pensions. If you truly didn't care, why would you have any reason to comment? Not logical.

Tirytory, I described your baseline as being different from mine. YOU read in to it that meant, "as if I might look up to you and I'm jealous, and that makes me prickly." What YOU read in to something is down to YOU, not down to what I wrote.

As for displays of wealth, how does owning an average looking 3 bedroom house in a nice Toronto neighbourhood add up to a 'display of wealth'? Are you trying to suggest that someone who can afford to buy such a house shouldn't buy it because it costs more than a basement condo apartment and therefore buying the house is a 'display of wealth'?

Here's a fairly typical 3 bedroom house in the Beach area.
http://beta.realtor.ca/propertyDetai...rtyId=14139090
Everyone who lives in the area is not a Millionaire. Just average upper middle class income level. By your reckoning every one of them is 'displaying their wealth'. I'd guess most would be surprised to hear that. Most probably just think they live in a decent family home.

It doesn't make them a better person if they live there but it doesn't make YOU a better person if you don't live their either. Not logical. That is my answer to that one.

"Honestly I don't get my husbands interest in cars, as long as it gets you from A to B who cares...."

Your husband has my sympathy.

Originally Posted by Dulciusexasperis (Post 11170261)

Hilarious.

Bats, where did you read that I owned a Mustang? In fact the car I was talking about was a Triumph. A Mustang is not a sports car.

My bad, you mentioned Mustangs and it stuck in my head. I thought you must have an unusual car for people to turn away, obviously they were suitably unimpressed by a Triumph. Seriously you think people would be jealous of Triumph?

I don't think I missed the point about Brits not wanting to talk about money at all. It's that you DO care and it irritates you to hear people go on about houses, cars and pensions. If you truly didn't care, why would you have any reason to comment? Not logical.

It's not the money talk that bothers, it's boasting that bothers and you do a lot of it.

Tirytory, I described your baseline as being different from mine. YOU read in to it that meant, "as if I might look up to you and I'm jealous, and that makes me prickly." What YOU read in to something is down to YOU, not down to what I wrote.

As for displays of wealth, how does owning an average looking 3 bedroom house in a nice Toronto neighbourhood add up to a 'display of wealth'? Are you trying to suggest that someone who can afford to buy such a house shouldn't buy it because it costs more than a basement condo apartment and therefore buying the house is a 'display of wealth'?

Here's a fairly typical 3 bedroom house in the Beach area.
http://beta.realtor.ca/propertyDetai...rtyId=14139090
Everyone who lives in the area is not a Millionaire. Just average upper middle class income level. By your reckoning every one of them is 'displaying their wealth'. I'd guess most would be surprised to hear that. Most probably just think they live in a decent family home.

There you go again with your boasty values "Average upper middle class', 'decent family home'

It doesn't make them a better person if they live there but it doesn't make YOU a better person if you don't live their either. Not logical. That is my answer to that one.

"Honestly I don't get my husbands interest in cars, as long as it gets you from A to B who cares...."

Your husband has my sympathy.

Originally Posted by Dulciusexasperis (Post 11170323)

Interesting Rich but probably explainable. I think I know why. It has more to do with the 'circle' of people you are talking about.

There is no doubt there is a sub-group of people who will act in that way in N. America (Canada and the USA are the same in this regard).

A case of the exception proving the rule. The 'average' person in Canada would not ask how much you earn or how much you sold a business for.

Ah, I just noticed you show you are in Sun Peaks, BC. If that is the case my intuition is even stronger as to why.

Originally Posted by bats (Post 11170371)

My bad, you mentioned Mustangs and it stuck in my head. I thought you must have an unusual car for people to turn away, obviously they were suitably unimpressed by a Triumph. Seriously you think people would be jealous of Triumph?

Originally Posted by dbd33 (Post 11170560)

I'd be mildly impressed if it was a Triumph Italia.

Originally Posted by bats (Post 11170596)

I think it was a Triumph Herald

Originally Posted by Abby2012 (Post 11170175)

Thanks for the suggestions...and the rest! lol

Will have a look into all of these :)

Originally Posted by R I C H (Post 11170392)

What's your explanation?

What's your definition of an 'average' Canadian person?