deise1980

Hi guys I'm just wondering if anyone has experienced co op housing( local authority housing) in Canada I'm looking to know the pros and cons of them ?
I'm shocked at the price of renting in Canada especially in Alberta so I'm considering co op as a much cheaper alt in the interim .
I do know there can be long waiting lists etc and min 12m contracts etc but the prices are he'll of a lot cheaper and some even include some of the Utilities.
I can't understand how Canadian families can manage on one income if its an average industrial wage lets say 40-50 k whereas in the UK or Ireland if one person was working a descent industrial wage you would manage no problem when renting not buying of course .Any info or experience with the above would be greatly appreciated .
Rgds
Deise1980

Piff Poff

I KNow they built some condo's in Red Deer for this type of housing a couple of years ago, not sure of the criteria for getting into them though. Have you tried googling low cost housing in the cities you are planning to be in? Other than that a lot of single people house share.

Almost Canadian

I can think of Calgary Housing in Calgary. There may be others. They provide low cost housing in Calgary. They have their own eligibility criteria. From what I know of their units, they are not somewhere I would wish to live.

dgagitw

Co-ops aren't the same as local authority housing, they're generally self governing entities. There's some in Toronto that seem quite decent. I have a couple of teacher friends that live in one in downtown and it's somewhere I'd be happy enough to live myself if I was looking for an apartment. There's a few sub-optimal tenants in their block but no real psychos or druggies from what I can see. This is the web site for the place:

http://www.hughgarner.com/

Dashie

That place does look good. The majority of co-ops are not set up like that though, or not around here anyway. They are geared up to help those financially unable to pay market rent. I would not want to live in any of the ones I have seen unless I had no choice.

To be honest, I'm not sure that coming here with a plan like that is really the best idea. What will you do while you're on a waiting list? Will you even get on a waiting list? You need to hit the ground here with enough money to support yourself/have a job lined up. If you work out that the job you can get isn't enough to support your family, maybe time to have another think?

deise1980

Thanks for the info guys ,it is indeed Calgary or the surrounding area preferably southern areas . Obviously we would all like to live in nice big flash houses but you also have to be realistic .
I have researched online and there are quiet a few housing estates/ apartment blocks run by private organisations in Calgary that look pretty nice equally as nice as some private rentals . I would just like to hear from anyone with first hand experience ?
Rgds
Deise1980

dgagitw

Yes, there seem to be plenty of horrible ones in Toronto too.

Agreed with that too, it doesn't make a whole lot of sense to predicate a move to a foreign country based on the immediate availability of subsidised housing. Having said that, are private sector rents really so high vs. the UK as to make a move economically unviable?

ExKiwilass

wow, co-ops are not like that here. I would live in one for sure.

deise1980

I have got a job offer from an employer ,but obviously the take home wage would only cover the rent ,Utilities ,Food with very little if anything left . I have wife and 3 kids so she will potentially be looking for evening work to give us some disposable income .

we live in Ireland which is in a very bad place at moment and heading down ,we would gladly live a similar lifestyle as we have here which isn't fantastic if it means our kids may have a better future as the future here in Ireland is very bleak ,with up to 800 people a week leaving the country . So hence the reason to look at more affordable housing .
Rgds
Deise1980

deise1980

Our main motivation for moving to Canada is a better future for our kids and if that makes us more financially better off then that's a bonus and would be great ,we certainly are not going to move if were going to be worse off than we currently are . I hope that clarifies some of the above points ? We are looking at the job offer as a stepping stone to getting established as a PR and then strive for better things .
Rgds
Deise1980

Almost Canadian

I used to act for such an organisation in Calgary, dealing with landlord/tenant issues before the Courts. I appreciate that I dealt with the "bad apples" and that the tenants that were not brought to my attention may be very nice people. Having said that, it would not be somewhere that I would choose to move around the world to live in, particularly if I had children.

ExKiwilass

Interesting....I get the impression coops in Vancouver/burnaby get a different type of tenant than ones in AB. I have friends who live in Co-ops and by and large it's all good people, some professionals, families etc.

Almost Canadian

This was in the Calgary Herald today: You can help every Calgarian find a home

ExKiwilass

Culturally, are Calgarians welcoming to co-ops and the like being built in their neighbourhoods? I've never forgotten that letter in St Albert against Habitat for Humanity. Oh wait that was Edmonton.

deise1980

Where do families with kids etc where both husband and wife are working 2 min wage jobs actually live then ? Because the houses I am referring to are around 1000-1200 a month still leaving prob another 200pm in utility bills that are not include in rent still to pay ??

The message i am starting to get here is that with a net income of around 3000 pm a family of 5 can't survive comfortably enough in Canada without luxuries like holidays ,2nd car etc ??
Rgds
Deise1980