starchief

I see quite a few posts saying how Canada is much better in the UK due to the cheaper house prices...but I just don't see it. Sure, if you're coming from a high price area, such as London, rural Wiltshire or the high end of Edinburgh that may be the case. Likewise, if you're talking darkest Nova Scotia or the Yukon, sure, there is cheap.

But I just can't see it being the case for the majority of the UK. Places like Cardiff, Glasgow, Dundee, Manchester, Newcastle etc etc. For £120k (or a lot less), you can get a decent 2-3 bedroom house in a nice town/village outside of these cities. For £400-500 a month, you can rent often a 2 bedroomed flat in one of the nicer parts of town. I'm not talking the highest priced properties but certainly not the seediest part of town either. An average decent place.

That seems a hell of a lot cheaper than property in Calgary, Vancouver, Edmonton or Toronto. And, for most of us, these are the only options due to work. Really, there, for a house, you're talking a minimum CAD$250k or over CAD$1000 per month for a 2-bed apartment.

Naturally, there are still some real advantages to coming to Canada (I've lived in, and am a citizen of both the UK and Canada, and am having a real hard time deciding which to go to when returning from Africa) but accommodation costs don't seem to be one of them.

Aviator

There is no myth, it has just changed. It used to be the case some years ago, housing, even in Vancouver was cheaper, this was also when the FX was in the region of $2.25/$2.50. With the higher Canadian prices (immigrants coming here pushing up prices) the weakening £ and strengthening CDN$ have narrowed the gap considerably.

dboy

I find rent is generally a better deal here. 1000 a month generally includes principal bills (heat and hot water) and there are no councl taxes to tack on. that 400 - 500 quid could easily have another 100 - 150 quid to add on.

as for house prices, yes it's gotten worse and we have not had a correction as in other places. Although the average UK house is more comparable to a townhouse here.

NatsnSid

I hear what you are saying ........but!

We would never of been able to afford the house we have here in the UK. If I took my house to the UK and plonked it where I used to live, i'd be paying an extortionate amount of money - I'd hazard a guess at probably 500k! for its sqft and garden (my house isn't huge im not boasting... im just saying).

Hmmm.....my house at home was 960sqft and in pounds cost MORE than the 2000sqft home and garden that we can get here....thats were the difference is. My neighbours are a comfortable distance away and not attached to my house. (I wasn't one of the lucky ones to be minted on landing).

I guess if you are in the City you will pay big money - more rural areas there are better deals to be had.

Renting is always high for family houses - but there are options to rent suites that are good deals.

Good luck with your decisions - I think I prefer the Canadian house market - yes its alot of money but in comparision you are getting better value for money when buying. Renting -thats always a bummer.

N

bobbarker12345

canada seems to have a housing bubble right now.

Alan2005

Pretty much this. The glory days ended in 2006. The financial crisis that started in 2007 saw GBP start it's slide to where it is now, the, the UK property bubble peak and the Canadian one get worse.

You do get more house here for your money though and having a bigger house is a one of the main motivations for many expats. On the other hand a 50+ yo house in the UK will be decently built, one here will be a huge pile of crap that wants bulldozing (in my experience).

ann m

If you can sell up in the UK (and that is potentially the difficult part) AND bring a wad of cash with you, ie, over GBP200,000 then I think you can buy into a much nicer home type here than in the UK for the same money.

I came from Surrey in the UK - an admittedly expensive part of the country. We were able to sell at the height of the market there in early 2007 - but paid for our house here in Canada also at the height of the market. Both homes were about 2000 sq ft - but with what was left over from the UK sale, it enabled us to purchase something here mortgage-free. I am not smug - just lucky - right place at the right time. Other people will buy a much bigger home/space for the same mortgage they were paying in the UK, which is also a bonus in most people's eyes.

Prices in both locations have dipped - though I still don't think Surrey has dipped that much, nor do I think Calgary has dipped that much. Maybe more is to come in one or both locations?

If I were to sell up in Calgary now, I figure we might have lost at least $50k-$80 on the value of our home. If I were to return to Surrey, the prices may have dropped GBP20-40K. But I'd be back to a huge mortgage, or be halving my square footage. However, halving the amount of bathrooms to clean would be no bad thing.

If you have that wad of cash, I think you can instantly buy into a better sized home. You still have to have the income to live in it, heat it, and maintain it though.

If you have no wads of cash, then mortgages or rent can hang you in either country. After those costs, I think everything else evens out.

Alan2005

That amount of equity assumes that you'll have been on the ladder pre or early bubble in the UK. But yes, I think you are right.

snowshoveller

currently 300kCAD buys you a modest 3 bed in a nice part of Winnipeg. The same cash would buy something similar in many reasonable places in the UK (not london though). This would not have been the case 3-4 years ago. I'd say this was mainly due to the exchange rate, 1.60 versus 2.30 dollars for a pound makes a large difference when you are looking at this kind of money

interestingly I also noted this week that a 2003 jeep costs the same or more in manitoba than the UK currently.

ann m

Yes, it does - and we were.

I think if you are young, perhaps in your twenties and really haven't experienced the highs or lows of property markets in either country, then it's much of a muchness.

If you are in those (traditionally) young family in their 30's stages, then life and housing are horrendously expensive wherever you are living. I don't know many young families with spare cash in either country! And I think Canada, and Canadian homes, therefore call out to them.

Thoughts along the lines of "well, we'll still be a bit skint for a while, but in a much nicer larger home with beautiful scenery on the doorstep - so that's an improvement on my 3-bed semi in suburbs-ville, with vile teenagers on every corner".

Perhaps, at my stage in life (nearly mid 40's), I've seen housing rise and dip - it doesn't worry or alarm me - it'll do the same again at some unknown point.

The price of houses is only of crucial interest to anyone if they have to buy or sell. The decision to emigrate is usually a lifestyle choice where you purposefully put yourself into the position of having to worry about it.

If you decide not to emigrate and sit in your home for the next five years (in whatever country), the price on paper is of no relevance really - as long as you can afford it.

If you have to buy or sell for other reasons, then yes, the property market is of intense interest. But it is what it is, a favourite saying on this board.

So what if you paid $20k more for your home last month, than you could have got it next month? If you can afford it and/or the monthly payments, sit down and make a nice cup of tea in your "home", not your "investment".

dboy

the state of the pound is skewing things and the market has yet to dip here. As for cars, they hold their value better than the UK. It's a matter of perspecttive, may cost more but re-sale is better. New cars are a lot cheaper.

snowshoveller

I think you are spot on with that, it's the significant dip in UK prices compared with the exchange rate that no longer means you will defo find a large canadian house for the price of an ordinary uk one.

The car price thing says more about the UK demand for the newest car and the "must keep up with the jones' " attitude, as exactly the same pattern occurs (less depreciation)in mainland europe. I mentioned it only because newcomers looking to pick up cheap wheels, when they arrive, for 500 bucks are likely to be dissappointed

starchief

I'm not so sure that's true. If you're saying you can get a much nicer home in rural Alberta than rural Surrey, then maybe yes. But for the money you're talking about, you could buy some amazing property in beautiful areas of Yorkshire, Scotland, Wales, Norfolk etc etc.

For example, here (picked at random) is a 6 bedroom detached lodge with amazing views in a sought after area for £400,000
http://www.gspc.co.uk/property/166388/

I'm really talking average v. average - if you have £400,000 to splash out on a house, then it shouldn't be too much trouble to find a place. The average house in the West of Scotland sold for £120k. Here's a 3-bedroomed house in a little village outside Glasgow for only £90k
http://www.s1homes.com/Beith-propert...01184400.shtml

There just doesn't seem to be that equivalent (except a depreciating mobile home) in or just outside Calgary. I realise there was a time when property was cheaper but I still regularly read this on this forum as a reason to move. As I'm still trying to decide, it would seem to me that property prices favour a return to the UK (although it's far from the only factor to me). I just wouldn't want other people to be seduced by old news.

dboy

yes indeed. It is worth reminding those comtemplating a move here that costs are considerably higher than they were even a few years ago. Of course it comes down to each persons motives for moving, but i'd be cautious with the associated costs and the job market the way it is. If i were settled in the UK, decent house, good job etc, i;d think very carefully. Not intending to discourage anyone but think it's worth careful conisderation.

Dave+Jules

Still cheaper, here in darkest New Brunswick.

We sold a 3 bed semi (960sqft) in 2005 and brought a 2000sqft Cape Cod on an acre plot for half the price.