andy.hatton

Hi

I have a job offer in Toronto Inter compnay transfer) and visiting for three weeks in October to check out that everything will be ok. I am looking for advice:

Immediate - I am looking for furnished rented accommodation (min 3 bedrooms) from 9 october to 30 october in a location that would give me a feel for what living in Toronto (suburbs) would be like. i am bringing the family over for the third week and do not want to stay in a hotel which is what the company has offered.

Not so immediate - i have three kids (16 boy, 9 and 3 girls) and would like some advice on which areas are best to look at when chossing somewhere to live permenantley. Want to be close to good schools for the kids and other family amenities. I have been told that Oakville is where all the brits gravitate to. What are the good areas baering in mind i will have to commute to downtown Toronto for my work?

The company will be paying for a relocation consultant but would like to hear from anyone on what are the key issues that cause them most problems if I do not do something about it now?

Auld Yin

I think you are going to find it nigh impossible to find the accommodation you desire at this juncture. I would suggest you look for a couple of hotel suites with facilities in say, the Oakville area. BTW, all Brits do not gravitate to Oakville although it is a good place to live with commuter train access to downtown Toronto (about 45 minutes plus time to station). It is fairly expensive from a housing standpoint being one of the highest income areas in Ontario. It has good schools and family facilities and about two hours drive from the US border.
Other areas to consider are Mississauga, Richmond Hill, Aurora, Thornhill, Pickering and Ajax/Whitby. All are within an hour's commute by train. There are very nice areas within Toronto's boundaries but as is usual with areas closer to the city, house prices rise.

andy.hatton

Many thanks Auld Yin.

Looks like it may have to be a couple of hotel suites.

Will bear in mind your location recommnedations when driving around looking for areas to live.

Hopefully i will be in the 'higher income brackets' once i have finalised my salary.

Bill_S

In that case, don't overlook Rosedale, Moore Park, Forest Hill

dbd33

None of those are really suburbs, of course. The OP seems to crave a commute.

petemaz

We live in Whitby - easy commute on "Go" train to Toronto. House prices are
cheaper to the East of Toronto too! Schools are great - We have been here three years and the children (15 year old boy, 11 and 9 year old girls) love it here too - wouldn't want to move back.....
We stayed at the Residence Inn (2 bed room suite) when we moved here. Stayed there for 3 weeks and it was plenty big enough for us all.

Good luck - hope your trip goes well.

SAW 04

it'll be interesting to see how long the craving lasts!

dbd33

Indeed. Perhaps a sensible course would be to rent for a while in the west end before deciding to live there. Some people can happily deal with the Gardiner/Lakeshore dilemma every day, some cannot.

John_B

I live in Oakville (well actually it's Bronte). I'm sure Brits are all over the place in the GTA, but Oakville certainly has their fair share of them. You will often hear a British accent in Home Depot etc., and we've met quite a few since living here. There a few pubs too where you can find lots of Brits.

The commute is actually about 35 minutes as it runs express from Oakville. I do this commute to downtown everyday and it's a nice commute.

I'm quite biased, but Oakville is fantastic place to live. It can be quite expensive, but it does have more reasonable parts.

The facilities for the kids are excellent here.

We're on the lake, close to the escarpment, lots of parks, easy access to Niagara, the US border and Toronto. Downtown Oakville has loads of nice restaurants, bars, coffee shops and boutiques etc.

This might help: http://www.oakvilletourism.ca/aboutoakville.htm

Bleepedy Bloops

Here's my advice, keep them away from Toronto. This city stifles the imagination and makes kids spoiled rotten and turns them self-entitled unimaginitive twats.

Novocastrian

Hear, hear.

How long have you lived there by the way?

Bleepedy Bloops

I've been here since 1988, originally from London ON.

Novocastrian

It's just that I was wondering if you have kids or were speaking from personal experience.

Bleepedy Bloops

No kids, but I moved here when I was still young and I noticed that I and many of my friends all became self-absorbed assholes, so, yes, I'm speaking from personal experience.

Novocastrian

Thought so. I'm glad that you survived the plague.