Originally Posted by Snowy560

I miss internet shopping in the UK. The choice is nowhere near as good here. I don't know what it's like in Australia.

I absolutely loved Toronto but I was only there for a few days. I'm a big city person (London) and wanted to move there! However, we'd just bought a house in BC so I think I'll have to be content with visiting now and again (too old for another major upheaval and there's the (ageing) cat to think of!). As I mentioned, I also enjoyed Ottawa. And my 15 year old mentioned she liked it more than Toronto (which surprised me).

I think you're just trying to make your mind up. Fair enough: It's a big move. But I don't think the prices are really the issue. You know you'll adjust to those if you choose to jump.

S

Originally Posted by evets

I feel for you Dasalcedo, from what I understand the job market for IT in Adelaide is not great, and after spending months on the whirlpool forum lots of people thinking about relocating to Melbourne or Sydney. Believe it is the same for the Gold Coast, Brisbane and Perth(now the mining boom is over).
The job market in Melbourne is very tough and competitive at the moment, so many companies offshored now due to the high costs of labour here.

For me, my decision is not based on a dislike of living in Australia but based on having a job and using that time to upskill as found now in a very niche role, which there is not much demand for. I could stay and hope for the best, but the lack of responses to job applications and roles that I could/can apply for is not promising. If the worst came to the worst, I would have to move back to the UK.

Comparing the job market of Toronto and GTA, there are way more varied roles available in comparison to Melbourne.

Good luck with your decision and hope your wife passes her test.

BTW where are you originally from since it sounds like you a neither from Australia or Canada.

Originally Posted by dasalcedo

I'm from Colombia, and that is why it makes sense for me to make the moving to Canada since I will be much closer to my family, besides, my brother is in Toronto.

Online shopping is definitively a thousand times better here in Australia than Canada. I was quite disappointed in that regards. Same can said about banking, I was surprised the amount of fees banks in Canada charge for everything. But hey you can't have it all can you?

Originally Posted by Budgie1

I am an Australian who moved to Canada 9 years ago, now in my early forties and a dual citizen.

In my personal situation my cost of living has been waaaay lower in Canada, largely driven by lower taxes and mortgage rates. Big ticket items like cars can also be cheaper but utilities and property taxes definitely higher.

But in all honesty if I was in your situation I would go to where the best long-term employment and retirement prospects are regardless of the cost of living. A gainfully employed immigrant is a happy one generally so having a solid job offer in hand is a huge plus.

Canada does consistently rank higher than Oz in world retirement rankings, again personally I will be far better-off financially in Canada than Oz in retirement but YMMV and can't say dealing with the cold weather is appealing as you get older either.

As far as starting another pension goes, Canada and Oz have some sort of reciprocal state pension agreement so you may not be starting completely from scratch on that front.

Good luck with your decision!

Originally Posted by evets

Hi All,

Cross posting, originally posted in Moving back to the UK forum, suggested to reposted here.

Ok firstly probably not the correct forum to post to too, but could not see anything applicable and thought this forum would have enough traffic!

Thought I would pose this question to you guys, you all have been very helpful to date and some more than likely been in a similar position themselves. My friends and family while supportive, are not in much of a position to assist as they have not been in this position so can offer limited help.

Recently had the option to relocate or take redundancy. The offer in Toronto, well Mississauga, is just under 90k.
Healthcare, pension, mobile, etc are also included.

I am trying to work out the pro's and con's of staying in Oz or relocating. I am not overly happy in my team/role of late, number of reasons and the main reason to agreeing to relocate is having a job, in my mid 40's and age discrimination is pretty tough world wide these days. Also realised my current skill set is a little specialised and may/is hampering me. Need to spend a little time upskilling. The job market here is a little hit and and more miss at the moment, with many companies offshoring. Checking out the number of positions available that I can/could apply for in Melbourne does not offer me hope. Stalking one of the local web sites, also does not give me much confidence with a number of people complaining about the job market.

I could take the option to relocate to Sydney from Melbourne, but the salaries on offer do not work out to moving to one of most expensive cities in the world. Kind of like moving from Toronto to Vancouver on a similar salary.
One of my friend's has recently done this(Melbourne to Sydney) and was shocked how much rental properties are for what you get.

From what I can gather about Toronto/GTA, the general/overall cost of living expenses are more expensive than sites like numbeo make out. Looking at products in Ikea and general electrical gear, pricing does not appear to make up the difference in salary compared for some things, odd example ie a cast iron frying pan listed in Ikea AU is listed at the same price in Ikea CA, some electrical items I have checked out, tablets, mobile phones also vary wildly in price and sometimes more expensive in Canada.
Grocery shopping seems to be hit and miss, would like to think overall cheaper in Toronto but need to investigate this further. Initial comparisons are odd as due to the larger packaging on offer in Canada. Talking to friends and colleagues from Toronto all assure me general cost of living far cheaper than Oz.
Also products made abroad seem to be priced higher even though they are made closer to Canada than Australia.
Car insurance more expensive and unsure how long it would take to come down to an acceptable level.
Taxation from chatting to colleagues is also one of there bug bears.

Taxes on housing seems to be quite excessive and varies depending on the suburb you live in. Also maintenance fees for Condos vary wildly
Healthcare in Australia is rated very highly but you do need to take out private cover or are penalised by extra taxation, which is not a factor in Canada. From what I can gather healthcare in Canada is good, but is not great and can be a nightmare if you need a major issue dealt with ie time consuming to the point of death might occur before an operation.
Prescription's also seem to be a bug bear.

But the job market in Toronto does appear to be lot stronger than Melbourne, looking at the the number of positions advertised, even based on the internal roles advertised in my company.

How do you feel about retirement in Canada?

I am not trying to be negative, just trying to weigh up my options as it is a big move and would be tied to my company for around 3 - 5 years, working visa and then potential sponsored PR, unless I go the route of paying for PR myself.

Originally Posted by laddo73

Hi, I'll get shot for this I'm sure but whatever... I live in the Ottawa area, I spent a little time in the GTA area. I was hugely unimpressed with GTA. Expensive, built up, busy roads, crime.... all the reasons I guess people leave the UK. I may go back to the UK yet but if I had the choice between the North of England or GTA then I'd choose England without hesitation. Thats just me......

Originally Posted by evets

Good post
Melbourne also expensive, not just in housing but cost of living. Not so built up, but that is changing very quickly as the number of new low rise apartment blocks being built. Rush hour is also very busy but outside of that generally quiet. Around the area I live, I regularly see electronic signs warning people keep things out of side in your car. Think all these things are signs of all major cities today.

Question, what would be your reasons for moving back to the UK?
It also has crossed my mind about the UK.

Originally Posted by laddo73

There are more work opportunities in the UK (population density I guess), things made me laugh until I cried in the UK (I find the humour is a tad bland here). The history and culture or mix of cultures (going out for a meal around here consists of chicken wings, burger or pizza) and the variety of things to do for kids and adults. I've had this discussion many times, a Canadian will tell you that they have everything, the great lakes, the Rockies but really they have to fly for hours or drive for hours to get to it. Ottawa no more has the Rockies than we have the Alps or the Mediterranean in fact definitely less so.

Having said that, if you're an Aussie I would imagine that there are similarities between Aus and Canada. I have a friend who recently moved to Aus and I have several Aussie friends that live here in Canada. When we talk / skype I do get the feeling that there are similarities. It might be that the things that I like about europe may frustrate the hell out of you! There is a sense of remoteness that you get in Canada that you will never find in Europe. More cars on the roads, more crime, more expensive cost of living. I believe however that there is a richness to life in Europe that has nothing to do about £$