lancashirebird

what we did in the uk was a chart of what costs what etc etc
we are a family of 5, so may differ from everyone else.............
i also stay at home, so there is always someone here

ok
Morgage and property tax - The same as uk apart from we had to pay the full bill and didnt get 12mths....ahhhhhhhhh
gas and electric - cheaper than the uk, way cheaper
phone, tv and internet - cheaper than uk
car and insurance, road tax and gas - we spend less here, but then OH isnt travelling miles to work anymore
cell phones - yeah more expensive (we knew this)
medical care - have to pay even for the kids, but then we knew this, luckily we are not a sick family yet, so time will tell on that one, but sons diabetic care is free and i get free meters and sticks, just watch for offers.

Food - i would say way cheaper, but then i cook more here and have the time to do the home stuff, also eating out costs us around 50bucks where in the uk it would cost us 50 quid....and we goto nice places here........

over all hubby has took a massive pay drop and so have i, we dont get benefits of any kind and no monthly cheques for the kids, but our lives are better, we feel better and wouldnt be anywhere else.
We have more in our pocket every month and more free time, for us as a family the best choice every.

But just to balance the mix here, missing family and close friends can be hard, i have been lucky to gain some awesome friends here, but when the @@@@@ hits the fan back in the uk, money really doesnt matter.
Make sure you discuss those options, money isnt everything

dboy

I'll take your word for it. I was guessing really. Point being that the pound has taken a beating and will make a lot of places (even spain I hear) seem expensive. Much the same with the loonie against the us buck. I can remember not too long ago when It was cheaper for yanks to nip over the border.

Cdnshaz

Where you living that you think hydro and gas and telephone are cheaper. I'm moving there instead of Ont!!

My hydro 10 yrs ago was more expensive then we pay here in UK now!! phone is also cheaper in UK, Bell Canada are theives!


After being in Canada for a while the exchange rate is not relevant...you are making canadian dollars and spending cdn dollars, so comparing £ to $ is the wrong way to see it.

If you are taking a large sum with you and buying a home or car or any large item, yes exchange rate will be relevant.
But once you have been there and living on your pay cheque alone, stop comparing £ and $

and it does depend on area and province...even tax laws are different

mandymoochops

I would always advise figure things on a like for like basis - cos what you save on one you will spend on another.

I may be wrong but I rarely read a post from anyone on here that is screaming at the top of their voice about how much better financially they are in Canada - due to the very fact that most people live to (or beyond!) their means.

Unless you are making a phenominal profit on your house and buying outright here - you will have about the same left at the end of each ppaycheck as you do in the UK

Alan2005

Doesn't matter too much to your point tho. It was around 2.00 back then and now the average for the last few months has been hovering around 1.75 (apart from the very recent spike). That 15% drop is very noticeable if you are comparing prices in GBP.

Edit: You beat me to it with your edit!

lancashirebird

Unless you have had a life change
We are better off, but we dont have the luxurys that we had in the uk...decided dont need it, so i suppose we cant live like for like in some ways

to the OP.......we paid 90quid a mth for our uk services, here we pay $110 tops (well apart from this month, but alot of uk calls on it )
gas and electric - way more cheaper, sorry we live in alberta, i pay $55 for gas (and im in credit) and electric which inc garbage collection, city stuff $80 in the uk i was paying 110quid amth, but then i lived in a large house which was mega old, here we are in a new build and even though i dont need heating on in the summer i still use the cool blower, esp at night

Soz to burst your bubble, but when we did costs for ontario they was more, but yep the tax is better here, but like anything.........location location.....lol

Plus food i buy in bulk and freeze, buy on coupons and buy when on offer, got taught of a very nice lady

Alan2005

Once you are here yes - tho before you come here the exchange risk is very real for some people. If you are selling and buying real estate then you have to worry about market risk as well - this can all be very stressful as small movement against you can make a big difference.

When I originally transferred my job to Vancouver (at my request), I took a pay cut, however now I earn quite a lot more (in GBP terms) due to the exchange rate. This did use to worry me as I worked for a UK company which would potentially see me as an expensive liability (I kind of work out here on my own). However, fortunately for me the corporate structure has changed recently and it no longer matters... phew! Anyway - the point of this rambling tale is that if you are earning GBP (and quite a few on here are) then the exchange rate is something you need to pay attention to.

dboy

My salary also looks impressive when converted to pounds. As a sergeant here I make a bit more than a chief inspector in the UK and with overtime more than a chief super. Other than bragging rights it does little else though. However, my next trip to blighty (next spring) will hopefully be the cheapest I've had in years - kind of nice for the shoes to be on the other foot for a change. I can remember when a 100 bucks was less then 40 pounds.

bodgerx

I'm confused. The majority of things in your list are more costly in Canada, you've taken big pay cuts and yet you say you have more spare money...

The more of these cost of living threads I read, the less sense it all makes. The general consensus seems to be "most things are more expensive in Canada" and yet most say they have more free cash. Is there some kind of voodoo economics going on there?

mandymoochops

I think its because people when they move make an effort to change the materialistic things around them that used to be important.

So now instead of buying stuff to fill that void you can hang out with friends around a firepit - go camping - quadding (ok so that means you need to buy a quad but what the hell!) In essence you make an effort to enjoy whats around you for free as opposed to having to have the biggest tv - the best car etc

(edited to add I haven't bought any new shoes for 6 months - I must be changing hehehehe)

bodgerx

Fair enough, I can understand that. But, I'm talking about just the basics here. We live fairly modestly here in the UK - no huge TV or car (didn't even have a mobile phone until last week and that's just a pay and go). Just comparing heating, electric, rent and food here - even with those I still draw the same conclusions.

Alan2005

It does seem like that doesn't it - from my own pov the cost of living I had in the UK is about the same as the one I have here - some things cheaper, some things more expensive. It kind of averages out - which is the bland and boring conclusion i've come to.

dbd33

Houses are cheap in Canada. People who moved at the peak of the housing boom in the UK made out like bandits but even people who came with nothing do relatively well because accomodation costs less.

dbd33

I'm afraid this is the post on this board with which I have most strongly disagreed (except for that corky fellow's view of brown people). I think people come for stuff, if they couldn't have a bigger house, more cars, lots of televisions they'd stay at home.

An anecdote. Today, in the liquor store a customer was struggling with the idea of chip and pin. The check out woman was a little harsh, "come on, people in Europe have worked this for a decade". When my turn came I said, "hey, people don't come here for the technology". "Why do they come?" the check out woman asked. "Outdoors" I said "ability to shoot things" (note that we're rural here, admitting to liking having stuff would be vulgar) "Algonquin, canoes, fishing" said the woman next in line. "But everything ethereal is better in Europe, art, architecture" said the check out lady. I scratched me head. Has the expats board bought the LCBO or does the expats board reflect the agony of everyone in Canada?

PMM

Hi


Thought I might throw my 2¢ in. I see expats postings that state that they miss the culture, the art, etc. I always ask, when did you last go to a west end play? The Tate? British Museum? St. Paul's? Stonehenge? The Tower? The usual reply for most, on a school trip! or haven't been years. I think it is the ability to go to some of the above, rather than the going to that emigrants think they miss.

Most people, have same here as they had at home, go to work Monday to Friday, bugger around on the weekend, maybe go for a drink/dinner and thats it. Everyone is paying their bills, Not spending every one of your weekends going to monuments, touring art galleries or hitting the lastest show at a Museum. At home you probably wouldn't cross the street to wander into a Museum, but once you are abroad, you visit the sights and "must sees" that you wouldn't bother with at home.