Ha.
[rant]
5-6 months of freezing cold, then in our "summer" its not even that hot anymore. Too windy and that brings the temp down quite a bit. Haven't had as many humid/hot "ahhhhhh I love the pool today" days as we used to.

Used to be "cold winters, hot summers", now its a big gray mesh. The winters are not as bad as they "used to be" (but they're still bloody cold compared to every single other country in the world except Russia; this last one was particularly shitty) whilst the summers are not as hot as they used to be.
[/rant]
Anyways, I was just in montreal for a short visit, I really enjoyed it. The only place in Canada that has remotely reminded me of home. Lots of little shops, nice people, that European feel to it... It was great! But French will be a must there i'm afraid. As a tourist you're fine, I walked in everywhere not speaking a word of French, didn't even try, went straight to English, and everyone was more than willing to accommodate. The rumours that they want to be stubborn and not speak English simply weren't true for me. But I can't speak for others.

Don't think Fredericton...we have horrid weather...it's weather on steroids...it's boiling hot, freezing cold or bloody pelting with rain...a truly miserable place climatically. That being said....affordable, really nice housing, as we have awful employment levels

I came here for many reasons, none of them the weather, but I wouldn't vote again to come here by choice...Canada: Yes. Fredericton: No

Whats wrong with minus 40C in February and plus 37C in July Is that too extreme?

I'm confused, where's 'home'? I thought you were Canadian?

I think Halifax ticks all your boxes, it's a great little city providing you can find a job

Tis for me!

Just an example of Halifax housing, walking distance to downtown

00049916, 1544 VERNON ST, HALIFAX, Nova Scotia  B3H3M7

Thank you everyone for their input. Its certainly given me a lot more options to look at! Some like Halifax, Edmonton, St John's which I hadn't even considered. I've also taken on iaink's comments so not just restricted my search to the east coast.
Here is my summary....I'm sure you guys will put me right.

OUT
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Montreal/Quebec - Ok as a tourist, but would need fluent French to live there.
Winnipeg, Regina and Saskatoon,Edmonton - Too cold?

POSSIBLY
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Calgary - Cold, yet sunny. This maybe a bit controversial, but it seems (based on my very brief research) modern e.g. a lack of older houses?
Ottawa - No one has mentioned it? Is it a possibility?

IN
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Toronto - Expensive to live? Milder climate.
Vancouver - Wet, expensive to live?

Quick question about mosquito's are they everywhere in Canada (here I'm talking cities here - I'd expect them by a rural lake)?

Jobs, Anywhere especially good for software jobs at the moment?

I think mosquitos are pretty much everywhere but definitely much less of a problem in the cities than they are in the rural areas.

Not sure on the jobs, I would think any city has probably got a pretty decent I.T. sector, obviously though the bigger the city the more opportunities there'll be. Check out some job sites, see what's about.

No idea, not my field, but isn't the answer to that question the single most important factor that will cause you to live in a particular place?

As a wise man once observed: "You can't eat scenery".

The poster, a very young poster on this board, has parents and/or grandparents who are from Malta and he has been there twice on summer holidays. He believes that is his 'home' and he is being held captive in an upper middle class pergury in canadian suburbia.

He reminds me of an italian/canadian friend of mine in toronto whose father moved to canada at age 16 with literally one suitcase. He always talked fondly of his 'home' in italy. When he retired at age 65 he moved back 'home' and within 6 months was back in canada as 'home' wasn't what he remembered.

Agree

Can't say with Calgary.

Ottawa - spent 7 months there on a project with work in 2008. I really like the city. I went for a visit with my husband in December 2012 as well. It's really pretty - lots of stone buildings, almost has a bit more of a 'european' feel too it - more interesting and more pretty architecture than a lot of other cities. Modern, but doesn't feel as modern. Population I believe is about 500k, so it's a good size. Has a good bus system, lots of touristy stuff since it's the capital, the canal is gorgeous - very pretty and quaint. I don't think cost of living is too bad there either, particularly if you're in the surrounding suburbs (Kanata, etc). I know quite a few who are from Ottawa or who are currently living in Ottawa, and very much like it. As you might imagine, buckets of public sector jobs, which may or may not be a bad thing. It's about a 2.5h drive to Montreal, and a 5 hour drive to Toronto, so certainly striking distance for both. Has a reasonably-sized airport. Unlikely you'll get many direct flights, particularly for overseas, but if you aren't fussed about a connection, then you're set. Worth a visit and worth considering. Very nice summers, definitely winters a bit on the colder side. Probably not too much different to Toronto in terms of temperature, but certainly more snow. (Which is a plus in my book, I'd personally have the snow AND the temperatures, at least the snow makes it interesting and fun. The cold is just, well, cold.)

Vancouver is very expensive to live, but not sure about the areas surrounding Vancouver. You'll need to ask the local Vancouverites about that.

Toronto - yes, living right in Toronto is going to be expensive, no question about that at all. However, there are some very nice suburbs around Toronto that are more affordable - Ajax, Whitby, Richmond Hill, Markham, Pickering, Brampton, MIssissauga, Oakville, Burlington, Milton... there's a bucket to pick from, all are about a 30 minute drive from Toronto without traffic. I'm in Oakville, so can speak for the west side a bit. Driving into Toronto just about any time is a bit of a nightmare - but you could say the same about driving into London. Transit if you're along the Lakeshore corridor (Aldershot through to Oshawa) is fine, as trains are every 30 minutes, but for any of the communities that are north of there, the trains tend to be maybe 4-6 trains into Toronto in the morning rush hour, and 4-6 trains coming back out in the evening rush hour (which, btw, is 4-6pm).

There are mosquitos everywhere and they f*ing suck.

Software jobs - Kitchener/Waterloo is the equivalent of Silicon Valley around here. Just about all the major software players have their offices out there. It's about a 1.5h drive into Toronto from there - a nice area, actually, and a few other towns nearby that are also nice. All certainly more affordable than the GTA. Toronto will have a good selection of jobs as well, I'd imagine.

Hope that helps a bit!

Halifax is a great city. Historical, some great festivals and a lively and friendly nightlife.
Its not huge though, it feels more like a large town to me.

Property is affordable although some of it is really expensive.
Nova Scotia has a great property website: Nova Scotia Real Estate and MLS Listings - ViewPoint.ca

There are IT jobs here, theres a big IT company:
Information technology and business process outsourcing | CGI IT services

There are also companies like IMP Group that have an IT solutions division that always seem to be hiring:
IMP Group - IMP Group

That's just two that come to mind, take a look on careerbeacon.

Its a laid back place generally. We have cold winters and hot summers, beautiful warm Falls and sucky ugly Spring. Its not as cold as NB. We do get some fog but its a maritime environment.
Beaches are stunning.

Flights out of here are expensive. There are more options with Air Transat and Canadian Affair but only May to end October, other than that its Air Canada back to the UK or someone else via the US or another Canadian City. WestJet are opening more European routes, right now they fly into Dublin but that's seasonal too.

Ah, I see. I knew he was a Maltese citizen, but didn't realise that was 'home' after only a few visits.

If historical architecture and/or older houses are important to you, then I'd respectfully suggest that you forget North America and look elsewhere!