Lparker1989

Hello my husband is looking at work in Vancouver I've been doing research and have found it's very expensive to live there.

I currently dont work as I have young children so would only be living on his wage which would be around the $90,000 to $95,0000mark. He doesnt mind commuting which areas would be best to look at for a family to have a comfortable life on that kind of wage.

Also does any one know of any websites to look at for renting.

Dorothy

On 45-50 k you'll struggle anywhere in Lower Mainland BC.

christmasoompa

Lparker1989

hi sorry I got the wage wrong i have edited we are looking at about 90 to 95k cad also we both have working Visas but plan on getting citizen ship once we move there

Lparker1989

hi sorry I made a mistake with the wage it's about 90 to 95k cad have edhailed my post

raindropsandroses

Crikey, I think you'll struggle anywhere in BC on those wages. We're shortly moving to BC from Canada's east coast, and there's no way we would even consider it without wages which were a lot, lot higher. Could you negotiate a higher salary? Or a location in a cheaper part of BC?

We live very frugally by choice, and most of the hobbies and things we enjoy are free, but moving to then struggle would just be miserable. Kids activities are not cheap either, those costs really add up.

You can live on that salary, you can make most things work if you're prepared to make enough sacrifices, but moving for a lower quality of life ends up being pretty depressing, and just how much are you prepared to sacrifice?

I think its so much tougher when you have kids, as if it was just you and your husband you could live in a bedsit and eat packet noodles, but when you have kids how Mich are you prepared for them to have to give up?

When we became parents we said that never again would we move unless it was for a considerably higher quality of life, unless it was dire straits there was no other option of course.

I'm not being judgemental, I'm just saying think about how much you'll have to sacrifice, and what your kids will have to sacrifice, and decide if its really worth it. If not, have a think about other ways to make it work, a different province perhaps? People always joke that BC stands for bring cash!

raindropsandroses

Do you have PR? You have to reside in Canada for several years before you can become citizens, I forget the exact time requirements, and can't link as I'm on my phone. I don't think its too arduous to go from PR to citizen, not usually anyway!

Former Lancastrian

Are these working visas on the IEC or just a TWP? After that you would need to apply for PR status which will take time and then must have lived in Canada for 3 years as a PR before applying for citizenship which also takes time so looking at up to 5 years before becoming a citizen.

No way in hell would I move to Vancouver for even $100,000 salary unless this was after tax.

R I C H

Granted property in the Lower Mainland/Vancouver is expensive, but outside of those areas, I've never understood the attitude/assumption that BC is more expensive than anywhere else.

$90k is considerably above average household median income last reported for BC ($70k), and above that for Vancouver ($79,930).

raindropsandroses

Median income doesn't correlate to having enough money to have a decent quality of life though, or perhaps more to the point the qualify of life someone moving to Canada wants or expects.
When you have lived in Canada for a while I think its much easier to anticipate the kind of life various salaries will buy you around Canada, and so there isn't as much difference in expectation vs reality.

Something a lot of immigrants we know struggle with is that often their salary just isn't enough for the kind of life they envisaged living in Canada. Hobbies, rec, leisure etc are not cheap, and with kids the costs soar.

Housing costs are generally much higher in the West than say the Maritimes, and housing is a big chunk of income. Yes salaries are higher in general in the West, but not always enough to make a difference.

​​​​The cost of living is high in Canada, how expensive groceries were vs Europe really took us by surprise when we moved.

Perhaps if the OP described the kind of life they were hoping to lead in BC it would be easier to advise, as some lifestyles are more conducive to lower wages than others. Having kids in Canada is a bit of a money pit though!!

Lparker1989

I dont think bc will be feasible where ever we end up we wouldn't want to live in a city would prefer the suburbs. And until I am able to work to contribute dont think it would work in that area specific. We have 2 children 3 year old and a 6 month old . So would want to do activity with those, we like to eat out at least once a week. We are from the UK but live in the middle east so we are used to high cost of living. We dont drink. Our preferred area to live would be Alberta area but not much work is coming up there for construction.

raindropsandroses

Do you have permanent residency OP? What line of construction work is your husband in?

raindropsandroses

Also, what is it about Vancouver and/or Alberta which has made you decide on them? It might help us us advise if we know

christmasoompa

OK, so wage is better, although still not the kind of salary where you'll be living an extravagant life for the 4 of you on it. Exactly what kind of working visas do you have - IEC's, or employer specific work permits? As said above, you can't apply for citizenship once you move there, that's at least 4-5 years down the line. But you may be able to apply for Permanent Residency if you wanted to stay longer term, depending on the kind of visa you are on, the job etc.

cheeky_monkey

Average house prices for Edmonton is $320k...Vancouver is $1.1m