sheli0508

Hi everyone,

We are lookinng to get some ball park figures for monthly expenditure in NS.

(I have used the search facility but the only thread that looked like it fit the bill ended without any figures being provided)

We are a family of 5, hopefully coming out with a small or hopefully no mortgage. Ideally wanting to live on the North shore - job dependant.....

Just really looking to get a feel for what we will be spending on a month by month basis. This will hopefully help us when we come out in October for our reccie when speaking to potential employers.

Ideally we want to rely on 1 salary (I'm more than happy to work around the kids but need to be there for them out of school hours and during holidays)......

Any advice, information gratefully received... I have been pestering Dhyan (Paradisefound) quite a bit so I thought I'd better start using the forum for what it's intending for...

thank you all in advance,

Shelley

mooseday

For general daily costs look on the websites for:

Sobeys ( look for e-flyers )
Canadian Tire
Presidents Choice
FutureShop
Zellers
Walmart ( Canada - actually sell the same stuff as Asda )
Home Depot ( Canada )
Sears ( more you Debenhams prices )
Eastlink.ca ( Internet / Cable / Phone )

Other prices:

Heating oil - $190 per month on plan
Cellphone - $40 to $70
Cable / Internet - $100 - $130
House Tax ( $2000 )
Electricity - $130 to $160

Some give you some pointers ... with no mortgage house insurance is less too - prices really vary as will car insurance. You will also have the equivilent of water rates too, varies on where you are.

For car insurace, shop around - SOME will take your no claims from the UK into consideration IF YOU ASK.

A lease on a Civic LX - $400+ per month.

To be honest, family of 4 gets though about $1000+ per month, sure I could do better

Paul Wildy

Good question. I would stick my neck out and argue that the number one reason why brits move to Nova Scotia and then go back again is because they underestimate the cost of living here and move to an area where they cant find a job that pays enough to meet the true cost of living. So be carefull. Especially on the North Shore - there isnt a lot of work up there and they jobs that there are dont pay especially well.

I should also point out (in case you werent aware) that as I understand it Paradisefound is the partner of Ontheboatout - a BE member who trained as a realtor and was trying to get everyone to move to the north shore so he could sell them a house. So be a bit carefull there too.

Estimating cost of living is always a tough one because peoples outgoings are so different. But although wages vary from region to region in NS, living costs generally dont once you exclude mortgage costs. So without a mortgage "average" living costs might look something like this (and I'm open to comments on my calculations)

Property taxes (based on a $250k house) = $3,500/year
Heating costs (assuming oil central heating) = $4,000/year
Electricity = $2000/year
Phone/CableTV/Internet = $1,200/year
Cellphone = $800/year
Groceries (for family of 5) = $10,000/year
Gas (Petrol) for 2 cars = $4,500/year
Insurance for 2 cars = $2,500/year
House insurance = $1,500/year
Clothes, household goods, general spending = $3,000
Eating out occassionally = $1,500/year
Kids sports and activities = $1,500/year

The above adds up to around $36k per year. You could scrimp and scrape but I dont think you would get it down much below that.

What about holidays? If youre happy to go camping each summer and leave it at that then you wont really need to budget any extra but if you want a foreign holiday (and when everyone else seems to be going to Mexico in March break you will probably want to too) then add on at least $4,000 for a family of 5.

Do you want your kids to go to college? If sou you probably want to pay into a fund for that (an RESP) so add on $6k total per year for 3 kids.

Do you need to save for retirement? If so maybe add on another $5k per year.

So with the "extras" you are looking at about $50k/year after tax that you need to earn. So on a single salary one of you would need to earn about $70k before tax.

Paradisefound

[QUOTE=NSpaul;6667384]Good question. I would stick my neck out and argue that the number one reason why brits move to Nova Scotia and then go back again is because they underestimate the cost of living here and move to an area where they cant find a job that pays enough to meet the true cost of living. So be careful. Especially on the North Shore - there isnt a lot of work up there and they jobs that there are dont pay especially well.

I should also point out (in case you werent aware) that as I understand it Paradisefound is the partner of Ontheboatout - a BE member who trained as a realtor and was trying to get everyone to move to the north shore so he could sell them a house. So be a bit carefull there too. (Quote)



That's rubbish he was a member of this site long before he became a Realtor to promote the NSNP CI stream.Which was not mentioned previously. We got here without the help of this site. He dislikes this site because of comments like this. On first mentioning that he was now a Realtor and viperous remarks appeared. Must be remnants of what BE think of Estate Agents in the UK, but they do a very different job here in Canada.

Trying to get people to the North Shore to sell them a property. Wrong take a look at his listings, how many could afford them??? He and I were promoting it for being a beautiful location to live and work, having noticed every time NS was mentioned very few areas other than Halifax were being discussed. CBC will be promoting it for us when there programme goes out in the fall.

I personally would say the cost of living is the same here and many Brits living on the North Shore for years now would agree, although maybe we are getting out of date with not being back there in a while and hearing how expensive everthing is whenever you chat to friends back there.

BristolUK

On the other hand I could tell you about a family of four who have been managing on just under $22k a year, mortgage free.

Prescription costs have been a problem this year. An extra $5k would make a big difference. But then so would a move to Nova Scotia where our prescription costs would be a fifth of what New Brunswick wants us to pay.

Simon Legree

In general I would agree with these observations. The north shore is delightful but if you need to earn a living it might not be the best choice. There aren't any job opportunities to speak of. Medical care is, or should be, also a consideration. If by the North Shore you are referring to the coast betwen Tatamagoughe and say Caribou or even Pictou, it is mainly a seasonal situation with summer homes. It's a lovely place to visit, and I have been doing so for almost 40 years, but not a place to seek job opportunities. They simply are not there.

Paradisefound

When it comes to medical care I had private ins in the Uk and find the service much better here, especially when I have 2 hospitals on my doorstep and a new doctor to the area. http://www.cehha.nshealth.ca/Lillian%20Fraser/index.cfm
http://www.cha.nshealth.ca/ourhospit...al/default.htm
There is also a new Hospital being built in Truro.
There are many people that live and work here and others that commute to other parts of the 3 counties.
The North Shore from Amherst Shore to Pictou (Sunrise Trail) does have a combination of all year round residents, summer residents and tourists. Therefore there is an increase in population in the summer, but also in the winter in my area with the Ski resort being 20 mins away.

sheli0508

Thanks everyone,

at least it gives us something to work on - although I don't think he'll be earning anywhere near 70k a year.... maybe jointly when the children are a little bit older we may be closer to the mark.... looks like we are going to have to bring the tents with us ...... LOL!!

With reference to Dhyan, I have found her extremely supportive. Yes she did tell us about the CI scheme - we want to be there sooner rather than later - but she knows our situation. We aren't loaded, will probably only be bringing about 80k with us and we have to go where Mitchell can get a job.... at no point have I found her pushing herself or her husband. She's recommended a motel for our reccie when she could have recommended one of their cottages. I'm a big believer in trust until given a reason not to....

we need sites like these, and those of you lucky buggers that are over there, to help guide us 'newbies' through. I genuinely appreciate anyone who gives their time and support, I hope I am in the fortunate position of being able to do the same in a couple of years time.... in the meantime if anyone can get my other half a job and then a twp..... well I'mm be smiling all the way to halifax......

Seriously though, thanks everyone and if you have anymore info advice....chuck it our way.

Shelley

Tangram

I disagree.... they just charge more.

snowboardboy

Sorry to Hijack this thread but I seen something about housing tax. Does this need to be paid while renting?

Tom

Paul Wildy

Please dont think I am saying there is any reason to be suspicious of Dhyan - I was just saying to be careful as what I've found is that when someone has a vested interest in a specific area there is sometimes a tendency to exaggerate its employment opportunities, standard of healthcare, etc.

Not everyone in NS earns $70k or more each - in fact jobs paying that level arent plentiful even in Halifax let alone in rural areas. Thats why the majority of families in NS are generally dual-income families.

I do know people who are trying to survive on much less than that (say below $55k total family income) have found it very hard to make ends meet so if your OH isnt expecting to earn over that level you would probably need a job (at least part-time) too.

If you dont mind me asking, what does he do? Perhaps I can suggest an area that has suitable employers nearby...

val50

usually the landlord incorporates it into the rental so it's not something you have to pay on top of the rent

going back to the OP's question, I would agree with NSPaul's figures, they are more or less what we pay in Halifax.
As to healthcare, we've had some terrible experiences since we've been in NS, mainly due to old and out dated equipment at the hospitals.
There are long waiting lists in Halifax (up to 18 months for some appointments) and last year it was suggested people here fly to Toronto for treatment (if they could afford it). There is a shortage of medical professionals in the province, so even if new facilities are being built, they still have problems finding the staff for them.

Also, if you find that both of you have to work, don't forget to add in the high cost of child care here and the relative low amount of holiday entitelment you get. We know of some people where the women are working 2 part time jobs just to make ends meet.
I don't think people realise how many local people are living on or below the poverty line here in NS.

snowboardboy

Excellent thank you val I had a horrible thought that I would be taxed like am am just now on council tax!

Tom

Paul Wildy

The main reason the landlord paus the property tax and not the tenant is that here the Municipality (Council) have the right to sell your house at auction if you have unpaid property taxes to recover what you owe! Therefore few landlords would wish to trust their tenants to pay the property taxes for them!

snowboardboy

That is a steep punishment for an unpaid tax! Fully understand why they dont pass it on now.