Well it has been 1 year since we landed and it has been a crazy year....not everything went to plan, lots of stressful months but I can report that it all finally fell into place.

Our biggest issues was me finding work in my field, it took 7 months and lots of interviews. I had no issues with getting contact from companies, I just didn't find a company that moved quickly on the recruitment front. In the end the first interview I had came through with an offer (some 6 months later)....and it was a very very good offer. It was a bit like buses as I had three offers within the same week. I have been with the company nearly 5 months and all is going well.

The whole lack of work has taken a massive hit on our savings and it was something we had not planned...so it will take time to recover.

We have made some great friends and they have been fantastic. They really helped us through the difficult periods.

We have settled into the area nicely and are really enjoying the location, a good mixture of local shops and a few bars. We have easy access to the NCC land to walk the dog. I hope we can afford to take in some skiing this season.

I was thinking of writing what we would have done differently but to be honest I dont think I can. Whilst not finding work quickly was not on the plan, I think I had my eyes opened a little....so I am putting it down to a good lesson.

Cheers

JB

Hey JB.

Congrats on making it through the year.

Sounds like a good positive mental attitude is what you need to be successfull.

How does your estimated monthly spending figure compare to actual?

Are you renting or did you buy?

I've been looking into the "rent to buy" option, which looks ideal, but more expensive than just renting.

Thanks.

We rented but would like to buy once we some savings.

We lived on a budget of $3000 and are actual spend was about $2800 with the rent being the majority. The way I describe it is we have the House Of Kijiji and the Fridge Of Costco.

Regards

JB

That sounds pretty good.

I plan to buy a cheap truck and search Kijiji for cheap or free furniature.

Maybe I'm just a cheap Scottish git, but I'm a big believer in recycling houshold items.

Although I'd like a new bed at least, lol.

So you reckon budgeting on $5000 per month for a family of four is a wee bit over estimating?

To be honest, 'no'.....it was just the two of us and the dog. Having kids in the mix your expenditure will be more.

Kijiji is great, we are still in contact with a couple we brought something from. Another couple we brought some sofas from were brilliant, they heard we were new and gave us a TV with the sofas. They explained they were moving to a new house....I joked that if they were selling the big TV let me know...a week later I picked up a nice 50" TV and they threw in a brand new free standing lamp.


Where are you planning on moving to?

Hmmm, so more like 5 to 6 a month then with two young teens and a dog, lol.

I know what you mean about making friends with people you buy stuff from.

I can just imagine our house-warming party...

"That's Jim and beth, we bought our dinning table from them, oh, and there's ian, he sold us a really nice garden set" lol etc etc.

We are planning on moving to Hamilton/Burlington, but anywhere in the surrounding areas of Toronto are potentials.

I will warn you we have found vets bills to be expensive here and they always wants to do blood work at $170 a pop. They have a big thing here about heart worm, that requires a blood test before they will then provide the equivalent of Frontline.

Out of curiousity how much of your £3k budget was rent and car payment (if any)?

Glad to hear your year has gone well despite a few set-backs. I must say I am reassured that it's not just me that has had problems getting back into my field over here. Not to sound naive (ok, I'm going to sound very naive) but it has been much harder than I thought to even get to the interview stage for work I consider myself experienced for. Still not there yet but it's great to hear that people do get through it eventually, just have to keep trying.

It has definitely taught me how to make the most of savings and coupon everything...and being unemployed I have the time to get tips from the ridiculously addictive show "Extreme Couponers" Lol.

Congrats guys and hope things continue to run smoothly for you

No worries, rent for a detached three bed is $1595, included all applicances. The car insurance, 2003 volvo XC70 was $220 initially but after 6 months we got it to $110.

JB

Many congrats JB.

I hear you on the speed of companies over here. Hubby had 3 interviews lined up for our arrival in June 2010. He had phone interviews for all 3. 2 called back to say they would get back to him with a date for a face to face... and we are still waiting!!

Thankfully hubby got a job with another company within 2 weeks of settling here - and loves the company and the people... so I guess it was meant to be.

I don't think you can ever imagine life over here until you experience it. Costs tend to vary from month to month (Hydro is bi-monthly, making some months more expensive than others.)

Kijiji, garage sales and thrift stores were our friends when we first arrived... I agree; I can't bear to see waste either. We are still renting, and so I do not want to spend good money on things that I may not be able to use once we get our own place.

I will keep my fingers crossed that you do manage to get out on the slopes this year... and congrats again on your first 12 months..

many thanks

most helpful, thats a tight budget but shows how little you really need to spend when pushed