Hi new to the forum.

Another 'How long is a piece of string' question, not really asking for opinions, but would appreciate input from anyone who has experienced similar circumstances.

Will a Salary of $90,000.00 CAN (rising to $105,000.00 once P.Eng is gained after 12 months) support 2 Adults(missus is a housewife) and 3 kids under 12 in Edmonton?

I mean live comfortably and be able to afford nice days out with the kids, occasional meal out etc?? Not interested in a massive house or flash car.

We are heading out there to firm up my job offer mid April and I would really appreciate some input, thanks in case I need to squeeze for more $$$.

Yes, it's do-able. It's a decent enough salary - I don't know if it is a fair salary for your position, maybe other's will chip in.

I don't think you will feel loaded, but you should be able to live on more than baked beans.

How much of you monthly income will be eaten up with rental/mortgage payments? That will be the biggie. Groceries for a family of 5 will add up too.

You will need two cars - budget for running those, and insurance might sting for the first few years.

"Entertaining" three children with sports/kids activities will also need some careful budgeting too. Plan for further education if you can, if you are staying that long.

Send the Mrs out to work in due course.

Thanks for the reply Ann,

Are you saying that the $90k would be enough to live off or are we going to struggle for a year until it gets bumped up to $105k?
The company are offering relocation cost of circa $10,000.00 and providing a car for the first few months, we were thinking of renting somewhere furnished, which would set us back $2,000.00 per month minimum. I thought the offer seemed too good to be true to be honest when I worked it back into £'s (but I realised that comparison is pretty irrelevant), I guess they just cannot find the people with sufficient qualifications.

How expensive can food be? are we talking Marks & Spencers prices .

I dont think the Mrs has any desire to work whilst doing the lions share of the childcare, and I dont blame her!

I am concerned about her feeling isolated if she is not working (its a big problem now in the UK for her, because so many younger mothers have to work) so we would be looking for an area with plenty to do where she and the youngest can mix, any suggestions?

Cheers

I think as a couple without kids you'd be laughing - however the expensive bit will be their after school activities.

I've directed others to this group but if you are on FB take a look for British Expats in Edmonton, they are all very helpful and will be able to advise you.

General consensus is that SW Edmonton is a good area to live - your wife will meet lots of other stay at home mums at school, and if your kids participate in activities then she'll have friends to get involved with.

It's likely she'll need a vehicle too, so really you need to work out what your costs of living will be and see how much you have left at the end of it to work out if YOU think you'll have a good lifestyle.

I'd say it's doable but you won't be rolling in it.

It seems as though you'd have around $60k take home - so thats $5k a month, $2k on rent leaves $3k

Food $800
Bills / utlilites (couple of cell phones water gas electric cable home phone) $500
Insurance (house and 2 cars) $500 (thats being low as car insurance can be super expensive)
Gas for cars depends on how much you drive - but a tank a week for both would set you at around $600 a month for 2 mid size veicles

That only leaves $600 a month for luxuries - which doesn't go far !!!


Look at these http://britishexpats.com/forum/searc...archid=2840839

Mandy thank you for your very helpful post, I will join the FB page you mention, as part of my salary package there is also a 10% of salary profit share bonus, which I would never take account of for budgeting but would go some way toward a yearly one off luxury (holiday/new sofa).

I have considered leaving the kids on their Grandma's doorstep and doing a runner but Mrs lb77 not too keen on that idea.

In the UK I earn £42k (pretty much as much as I will ever earn in the UK) make ends meet, never seem to have anything left over for a Holiday/Christmas etc. and most importantly cannot afford a big enough house for us to live comfortably near York (where I work). So in my particular situation it sounds like I will be better off financially & be able to be nearer to home, so better for my family.

I am being told 12-16 weeks from written job offer to getting on the plane, (they have already brought someone in from the UK within this time frame) but reading some peoples storys on here it seems to take them much longer why?

This gives you a general idea of living costs for Edmonton, although it's not perfect it may help a bit.

http://www.numbeo.com/cost-of-living...ayCurrency=CAD

For food, just look at some of the flyers to get an idea - http://edmonton.flyerland.ca/ or Canadian Savings

To get an idea as to whether the salary is a fair one, you could check here:

http://www.workingincanada.gc.ca/con...s-eng.do?cid=1

You could also look at some of the jobs that are available for Edmonton that are similar - the above link will give you what is - and you will be able to compare salaries and, just as importantly, benefits.

Does the $10.000 relocation payment include your transportation costs, container shipment and hotel expenses, deposits on rental property, utilities etc? For 5 people that isn't going to go far.



Edit: Very few places are rented furnished in Canada, so factor in the cost of furnishings too.

The other point is you don't have to enrol the children in expensive activities the minute you arrive, or at all. Most people here enrol their children into the activities they can afford.

When were arrived, we had no jobs to speak of and, when I finally obtained one, I was earning $55,000 initially. My requalification period was likely to take 2 years, with the prospects of a very large increase in income when I did and progressive increases during. We had 3 children of similar ages to yours. We cut our cloth accordingly.

I would say the overall costs of living are similar either side of the Atlantic and, it would appear, you will have a greater income this side than you currently do.

Best of luck with whatever you decide.

Is your plan to work in Edmonton "just for a while" as a bit of an adventure or do you plan to make a permanent emigration?

Are you keeping a UK property etc?

Every decision is easier if you view it as "not forever".

It seems that you might be coming over on a temporary work permit and that the company have once applied for an LMO and been succesful, so would be going down that route - with you applying for your permits at the border. Check with the company if that is indeed what they are doing.

If so you should look into applying for pr as soon as you are allowed, to get the stability you need for your family.

Why will they need two cars? Edmonton has an extensive transit system. Two cars would be necessary for rural living and commuting into Edmonton, but not if they choose to live in the City.

We're a family with 3 children and we survive just fine with just the one car (in Ottawa).

Have you lived in Edmonton, with 3 kids under 12?

No. I live in a city that, in terms of area coverage is 4 times bigger than Edmonton. With 3 kids under 12. And we manage fine.

Why push the OP into getting a second car straight off the bat, without considering whether or not they'll actually need one?

Edmonton made No. 8 place in the Money Sense's Best places to live in Canada 2012. Interesting to see the average resident has nearly 30% of their pay cheque left after paying basic expenses - and that taxes are amongst the lowest in the country.

#8 Edmonton (67.4 pts.)

http://www.moneysense.ca/2012/03/20/...-to-live-2012/

http://list.moneysense.ca/rankings/b...aspx?profile=8

Not pushing just advising - my only knowledge tbh is of sis in law and she has 2 kids and one on the way - with hockey / gymnastic / soccer and whatever else her kids do - you'd be hard pressed to use the transit to a) get you there in time and b) to actually go past where you need them to go at the times you need it.

Think of the winters too - a 5 minute walk to school (if you are lucky enough to live that near one) in glorious sunshine is fantastic - not so much in minus 35 with 2 feet of snow on the ground.

By some North American standards, Calgary has great public transport. Those used to European public standards would be appalled by it.

I would not want to live in Calgary with 3 children under 12 and have to rely upon public transport to ferry them about. Ottawa may be very different to Edmonton, but then so is London, England.

I don't believe anyone is pushing anything. But I believe that those that live in the vicinity with young children are better placed to provide advice than those that don't. As the poster above has said, I would not want to be waiting for a bus in winter in Edmonton.