Well we have arrived in Vancouver, and currently staying in Collingwood, (the Kitsilano area). The overwhelming sense of looking for a place to live and coming to terms with the rental prices, looking for the areas with good schools, etc etc does not allow me to see the beauty of the place as yet.
This journey raises so many questions as the optimism I had has now withered.
Does anyone know of any good realtors (who rent properties)for the above mentioned area or the Coquitlam area? or any known websites which advertise rentals?

I find the internet does not give much information on realtors, and when I send requests or call, they don't call back!

Thanks all.

Hi Vash,

Collingwood - are you SURE you're in Kits? Collingwood is in East Van, nowhere near Kits.

Realtors don't rent homes in Vancouver - that's probably why you're not getting a call back. You need to check craigslist (go to the Vancouver section) for rentals. That's what most people use.

Any reason why Coquitlam? It's pretty far from Collingwood. Most areas have good schools. My advice (FWIW) is to find an area you like in terms of commute, amenities, etc, and the schools will most likely be fine.

Blimey! Not wishing to be rude at all - but you're asking these questions now!??? When you've already arrived??? We were researching these issues 2 years before we came to Canada! Are you staying in an hotel or a rented place?

I'm afraid we live on Vancouver Island so not close enough to help with specifics, but I wish you luck and please keep us up to date with your progress.....

Collingwood? That's nowhere near Kitsilano. Unless there's another one i don't know about. Don't you mean East Vancouver?

Check out http://vancouver.en.craigslist.ca/apa/ or http://www.padmapper.com/search/apar...bia/vancouver/

If your other half is working downtown, you might want to be closer than Coquitlam. It's not the best area for sure. What's your budget?

Edit to add: Most schools will be as good as each other so just find an area you like and that has a good commute.

This thread could get interesting
Kijiji, craigslist, free copy of the rental news and local newspaper ads might also help.

sorry, its collingwood street in the Kitsilano district. We did research long before (2 years) but for the Toronto area, as that's where my husband was supposed to be working, in the last month before we moved, they announced that the post was being relocated to Vancouver.
We're staying with a friend for now,

Ah.

That makes sense.

Aaaah that's in Dunbar isn't it? It's a nice area.

Check out the links i put in my previous post and search for Kitsilano, or Dunbar, Shaughnnessy, Faiview, Granville, etc.

Or just drive around and see an area you like, or get your friends to give advice.

Are you looking for a house or Apartment? How many children do you have? What's your budget?

Pop down to Jericho beach, Spanish Banks beach, Locarno beach, or Kits beach while you mull things over. Enjoy the sand, sea, city, and mountain views with a nice ice cream or picnic.

Congratulations on your new journey.

As for schools, I wouldn't worry, they're all the same as each other. Canadian schools do mediocrity brilliantly.

By the way, you mention Coquitlam. Have you been there yet? I can tell you, it's certainly no Kitsilano/Dunbar/West Point Grey, that's for sure.

understatement

Well Im glad to hear that BC has its own shitholes so the BE members who dont live in BC can feel better about where we live.
If you want a recommendation then Mr Harper states Calgary is the number 1 city in Canada. Perhaps we should all move there

Coquitlam has a few nice little pockets, but in my view the majority is loaded with strip malls and lots of traffic. Commuting downtown (assuming that's where the work will be) would be a pain, in my view.

There are many more nicer and efficient areas.

Mr Harper is MP for Calgary SouthWest... He's hardly likely to say otherwise is he now

Very true but when he said it the other day it seemed to irk other MPs and citizens of Canada. Perhaps he should have said I represent one of the best cities in Canada but Im betting they would have bitched at that stating he didnt mention by name what the other best cities were