TheWorldIsMyOyster

Hi everyone, we're a long way from actually moving yet as we're having difficulty sourcing required documents due to coronavirus restrictions but we qualify for Express Entry and it looks like the best province for us jobwise is BC.

Which areas should we avoid and which one should we consider?

1. We're a young family with one child. Might go for a second one if I ever forget the nightmare of a sensitive pregnancy the first time round.

2. We're partial to somewhat rural areas and would prefer to avoid living in the big cities but also not be too far that we need a day just to get from our house to that city, if needed or wanted.

3. We'd love to stay somewhere that has a good blend of migrants and locals? I've had experience with the whole come from away attitude and whilst I can roll with it so to speak if I have to, it would be my preference not to have to do so in the first place.

4. Housing price. OMG lol if I could afford Ladner, I'd stay there but I don't necessarily want half of our salary to go to a mortgage. Lol Is that a dream? Should we start looking at other provinces? We'd really love to live in a detached house with a garden and I know that housing is expensive in BC.

5. We can roll with any type of weather too.

What else should we be considering?

TIA.

rivingtonpike

Will what you do for a living have an impact on where you can live? We’re on Vancouver Island, but I have (had) to travel a fair amount which internationally adds another leg to most journeys.

Danny B

What's your house budget, and where will you be working?

TheWorldIsMyOyster

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Thank you for your replies.

My husband is a plumber and I've checked Jobbank and the plumber jobs available are so spread out, we don't even know which to apply for. Obviously it all depends on where he ends up getting the job but are there any particular ones we should be avoiding, especially with a young child?

I work remotely so I can take myself out of the equation entirely.

As for budget, I'm so cheap that I'm ready to rent a mobile home somewhere until we're fully established before buying a proper house. Lol But I know I'll regret that.

Am I whispering in the wind to want something under $2k?

Hurlabrick

I am sure you can get plumbing jobs just about anywhere in Canada! It does not have to be major and expensive cities like Toronto and Vancouver.

I am only really familiar with Ontario, but loads of nice smaller cities surrounded by open field and farms (more reasonable house prices) in ON like London, Kingston, Sarnia, Kitchener / Waterloo, Cambridge, Guelph, Hamilton, St Catharines, Barrie, Brantford etc.

TheWorldIsMyOyster

Thank you for your reply.

We were hoping to go to a province where it's not compulsory to have a Red Seal and just take the Provincial Trade Certification, get a job and then work towards the Red Seal. From what I can tell, the only provinces where a Red Seal endorsement isn't necessary would be one of these: Newfoundland and Labrador, Manitoba, British Columbia, the Yukon, the Northwest Territories and Nunavut.

Quite frankly, we love our rural and remote areas that we even considered the Yukon and (don't tell the husband, NT lol).

However, we thought we'd better be a bit more logical than that and of the provinces in the list, British Columbia and Manitoba have the most jobs. At least, with more jobs, if he doesn't get in one, he's got a 100 more or so he could apply for. The problem with Manitoba is that you need to be a resident before you can challenge the trade certification exam. A chicken-and-egg scenario that one (unless you also qualify for the MPNP).

So, we're left with BC, which I didn't want to consider at first because housing is sooo expensive. But if that's where we have a greater chance of securing a job for my husband, we're gonna have to go there. Tbh, I could see us settling in BC too, it's just the cost of housing that's giving me pause.

Happy to be corrected though. I know I've made a few assumptions here.

Pulaski

I was thinking the same thing - in any country, the closer you live to a major population center, and areas with higher population density, the more of your income ends up going to fund the high cost of land, both directly, because your home costs more, and indirectly because everything else you buy has a higher cost because the retailer has higher cost-of-premises overheads. So while you might be paid less if your're in a smaller town it is likely that your cost of living will fall faster than your income compared to living in a large city. I left New York in 2002, giving up a relatively low cost 1 bed apartment rented for $1,600/mth, and swapped it for a 4 bed home in North Carolina on 1½acres for $1,400 on a 15 year mortgage!

TheWorldIsMyOyster

Thank you for your reply. We'd actually prefer not to be too close to a major city - can't see us getting any house with a garden in one of those. Any recommendations in BC? I keep seeing Surrey popping up in real estate sites but it seems to be a dubious area. I even saw a page saying it's one of the more dangerous areas of British Columbia.

I may have chanced it once a long time ago but now I have a family to consider...

Pulaski

If I was moving to Canada and had a job that I could do "anywhere" I wouldn't be looking at BC as it has a reputation as a high cost state. ..... Similar to California in the US, there are lower cost areas within the state, but California is an expensive place to live, and I understand that BC is similar - beautiful and a great place to live, but expensive.

TheWorldIsMyOyster

*sigh*

I know. But it's also the easiest way we could get the coveted CoQ. And we just want to get there asap.

I suppose, unless we get it and then go to another province where he can take the Red Seal but I reckon he won't be able to work there immediately?

Lol where would you go as a plumber?

I suppose this is the downside of being flexible - so many options to choose from!

Danny B

$2k a month rent, or $2k a month mortgage payment?

I live in Kamloops, you can still just about buy a detached home here for $400k which would be about $2k a month mortgage with $20k down.

Not sure it ticks all your boxes though. have you thought about Abbotsford or Chilliwack?

TheWorldIsMyOyster

Thank you very much for your reply.

To be honest, we haven't looked at much of BC as we've just finished looking at provinces. But the plan is to rest for the first year at least until we know the lay of the land and are certain we want to buy there.

Thank you for the suggestions. I'll take a look at those three.

Siouxie

It's not compulsary to undergo the Red Seal Endorsement exam - it's an endorsement on the Certificate of Qualification... it just allows you to work in ANY Province.

Ontario: https://www.collegeoftrades.ca/trade-assessment
Alberta: https://tradesecrets.alberta.ca/expe...ience-program/
Manitoba:https://www.gov.mb.ca/wd/apprentices...lumber.html#tq
https://www.gov.mb.ca/wd/apprentices...ngingexam.html
Saskatchewan: https://saskapprenticeship.ca/intern...ation-process/

TheWorldIsMyOyster

Thank you very much for your reply.

I keep tripping over the compulsary thing, don't I. Lol

However, according to the NS page:



For Manitoba, we'd need to already be resident before my husband can sit the test.

Alberta requires both written and practical exams whereas BC only requires a closed book multiple question test. Of course, it doesn't necessarily mean that it's any easier but it does remove one more step to getting the CoQ.

Saskatoon also has more steps before we get the approval to challenge the exam and I'm not sure id it's like Manitoba, where you have to be a resident. I saw a thread here that basically stated that you need to be a resident to challenge their exam (it's a different trade but I reckon, they'll have the same requirements).

I've not really researched Ontario but just glanced at it now and it looks to have the same process as Saskatoon. I figured if the process is not simple and it's also expensive anyway (from what I was told but that's probably the big cities), might as well go with BC.

missyuae

Hi there, have you looked at Vancouver Island? The capital of B.C., Victoria, is located on the Southern tip of the Island, and while expensive, there are cities and towns nearby that are far less expensive. The second-largest city is Nanaimo, a 90-minute drive from Victoria. Both cities have ferry service to the mainland (Vancouver). There are smaller communities outside Nanaimo as well, which are more rural (Cedar is one). Between Victoria and Nanaimo there are several smaller towns and communities, including Mill Bay (small but beautiful community), Duncan (Maple Bay is a particularly beautiful area), and Ladysmith. North of Nanaimo there’s Lantzville, Qualicum (tends to be an older demographic, but beautiful area), Parksville, Comox, Courtenay (latter two close to Mt Washington if you ski). Port Alberni is another town you might consider. Beautiful lakes and hiking trails. All of these (with the exception of Qualicum, I think) are considerably less expensive than Victoria, which is far less expensive than Vancouver and its suburbs.

Communities on the outskirts of Victoria that are less expensive include Sooke (45-60 minute drive), which is a beautiful spot on the sea, lovely people, laidback lifestyle, more rural. Langford is a 20-40 minute drive, depending on traffic etc. It’s an up-and-coming area that’s exploding with new housing developments, so think newer (bigger) builds, huge shopping and sport complexes. If you lived there you’d ideally want to work there so you could avoid the commute into town. Best of luck!