nerdherd

Oh, dunno - spent 2 weeks there in November 2009, and after having braced myself for two weeks of solid rain, got two weeks of bright sunshine

What gets me down the most in terms of weather in the uk, is the relentless greyness. I'd really much rather it rained, at least something's happening.

Same as with everything else though: each to their own. Some people can't stand the sun and anything over 20C.

Aviator

If we get an arctic high, with outflow winds in winter, it can be sunny and cold, with high winds in the valley for up to three weeks. If Pacific lows keep coming in, which they often do, no sun, just rain. When my OH moved over, it rained from end of Oct to March, almost non stop. We can get up to 6" in a day in some parts of the LM.

Right now we have a ridge holding on and have low to mid 30s, with a RH of 60%. Quite unbearable.

MarcP

Thanks I thought as much regarding Immigration reps

MarcP

So Vancouver is too expensive, has bad weather and is over populated. Please consider that I currently live in London. Any suggestions for better places to live in Canada, I was impressed by Toronto when I visited in 2000 however Vancouver seems like a better destination. You guys live there so you know best, any advice is really welcome, thanks for the posts...

I am considering learning French, would this be an advantage to my application to immigrate?
My partner is also considering studying to become a mid wife....

As you can see I am pretty desperate to leave the UK....

el_richo

London's great.

If you want to escape rainy weather, Vancouver is not for you. If you want to escape high population, Vancouver and Toronto are not for you. If you want to move somewhere cheaper, avoid Vancouver and Toronto.

I lived in London for years, it's just as expensive in Vancouver and the weather isn't that noticeably different other than it rains for longer periods here.

Try Nova Scotia.

As a rule, it's often you who makes you unhappy, not an entire country

nerdherd

How about you turn the question round: what are you actually looking for, rather than escaping from? So for starters:
- you say don't like the rain, but could you cope with the long, cold, snowy winters and hot humid summers if you lived in Alberta or Ontario for instance? If yes, then Calgary could be a good place for you and your family. Or could you stand the Vancouver winter rain knowing that you'll get a decent summer at the end of it: frequently 2 months of pretty much solid sunshine and 20C + temperatures? (as opposed to London which hasn't had a proper summer in 5 years and getting worse)
- what do you like to do in your spare time? Are you a culture crawl type person or an outdoors enthusiast? Do you enjoy good restaurants or are you not bothered?
- what kind of accommodation would you want to live in (and afford!), a flat/condo or do you absolutely need to live in a house? Would the suburbs do or does it have to be in a downtown area?
- what activities might your kids want to do?
- I don't believe you have told us what you do for a living? This would also have an impact. Say you are a teacher, then Nova Scotia may not be a good idea. Say you work in the oil industry or related, Alberta would be an obvious choice, etc...
- could you afford to take a recce trip with your partner after short listing potential areas?

Yes, Vancouver has a high population density, but personally I think London is/feels worse in that regard. Having said that I never actually lived in Vancouver long term, so the locals may disagree. Bear in mind that greater London has a population in excess of 8 million, greater/metro Vancouver has 2.2 million (just over 500,000 in Vancouver itself), so of course it's bound to feel different. But there are many things available in London than you wouldn't get in Vancouver or Toronto. And vice-versa.

As I said, it really depends on what you want out of life.

MarcP

Thanks NerdHead, your input is really really appreciated, thanks for taking the time to discuss my situation, I am astonished that someone has taken a genuine interest. Cheer and cheers again.

OK what am I looking for:

I am not very happy living in London at the moment, I find it stifling, overpopulated, overpriced and basically want to move somewhere.

Why choose Canada? Well plenty of space, good education for the kids, less populated and I guess you can if you look find a larger and cheaper property than in London. Please correct me on any of these points. I have visit Toronto before and was impressed with the cleanliness and general atmosphere, living standards.

I am not dum enough to think moving to Canada will be easy and the streets are paved with gold, however Canada seems like a good choice over Australia or New Zealand.

Now regarding your questions:

Rain I can live with, snow is fine I enjoy skiing, I ideally would like to move to somewhere near the coast, hence Vancouver as my first choice.
Rain and snow in exchange for a decent summer seems a fair compromise to me.

In my spare time I like a variety of activities, kids come first however I love cycling, mountain biking, diving, martial arts etc etc I also enjoy good restaurants however I would say the family are more outdoors enthusiast.

Accommodation, ideally a four bed house in a suburb, maybe this is a dream, my budget would be £250,000 - what you going to get in London for that - a flat or tiny house.

I currently work as a web designer however I have carpentry and glazing skills and would consider a college course if it meant my application to immigrate to Canada would be accepted. I may study French.

Another negative is I have criminal record, I am not an axe murder and the offence which was some 20 years ago. A long story short, 18 years old I got into a fight after pub closing time with mates and we all got charged, in light of today’s society the offence would be laughed at, not that I justify what happened, I was young and stupid.

What do I want out of life: To live by the coast, reasonable weather and a bit of space with a nice house, most importantly a good environment for the kids to grow up in. I guess what everyone wants.

I am currently researching a move to Vancouver, my date for departure is 2015...

Aviator

Pretty much the same as Vancouver, £250k won't go far in Vancouver.

el_richo

All sounds reasonable. Unfortunately $400k might buy you 1 bed apartment anywhere near downtown. For that budget you, for a 4 bed house with space, you'd probably be further from the coast than you are now.

You really do need to check out www.realtor.ca and look at what your budget can afford, and check out those areas. The areas will defitnitely be less populated, but it could be argued you'll not have the lifestyle you want for yourself and your family.

You say you hate the rain but wouldn't mind rain under certain circumstances. If rain or "miserable" weather has any impact on you, that's another reason Vancouver is not suitable. You have to experience a month of nearly solid rain to appreciate what i mean.

That said, Mountain/Road Biking, Skiiing, and general outdoors stuff like Kayaking, Paddle Boarding, Beach Volleball, Martial Arts (There's a world class Drysdale BJJ school here), are top notch and easily accessible IF you live in the right areas.

Personally, if you're so desperate, i'd stop looking at Vancouver and move my research over to Vancouver Island or Nova Scotia where your budget might stretch further. The only issue with that is finding work (i think Nova Scotia has 11% unemployment).

It looks like you may need a job offer and a successful LMO before you can move anyway so that could easily be a deciding factor on where you live.

Or you could move to Yorkshire.

MarcP

OK so its Vancouver Island or Nova Scotia, which is best? Hmmmmm

Former Lancastrian

I guess Regina is out of the running then.

el_richo

Both different in many ways.

Best way to find out is to find out where the work is, then head out to spend time there. Take a 2 week holiday. 1 week in Nova Scotia, and 1 week on Vancouver Island (with a few days in Vancouver proper).

Have you ever been to canada?

JonboyE

It's all relative isn't it? I like the weather here (though I live about 25 miles south of the City and it is noticeably drier). The city is quite densely populated but I drive through green fields to get anywhere. I lived in London for eight years and it felt much more densely populated than Vancouver. There is nothing like the sense of space and freedom there is here.

Expensive? Well, yes it is. But it is not necessarily unfordable if you can be flexible in housing type and location. Vancouverites live here, buy houses, raise families and so on.

Not really. It used to count for a few extra points on a federal skilled worker application but that is all being changed now. You don't need French in Vancouver.

Lots of hoops to jump through but worth doing IMO.



You are not wrong, though more applicable to other parts of Canada than Vancouver. A couple of years ago a client of mine sold a house in rural Saskatchewan. I saw the listing details. A nice well cared for 1,200 s f bungalow on a quarter acre lot. Price $35,000. There were probably less than 100 humans within a 20 mile radius.

Then Vancouver is perfect. In winter, when it rains at sea level it is usually snowing on the mountains.

Again, a pretty good fit.

Umm. Not a great budget for a single family (detatched) home. In fact, you will really struggle to find anything in the Metro area for that and anything near that you find will need some big compromises. A fixer upper or bad location. However, you can get a nice town home (has at least one party wall) in many parts of the Metro area for less.

This is obviously important. If you are office bound then this certainly limits where you can live to somewhere that is commutable (and therefore expensive). If you can work remotely then you can expand your horizons to the Island or the Sunshine Coast where coast, mountains, space and a largish family home is certainly achievable within your budget.

You need better advice than I can give but I understand that one offense of the non axe murdering type may be considered spent after ten years.

Easy? No. Possible? For sure.

Another piece of advice is don't assume that just because someone already lives in Canada their opinions are relevant and/or useful to you. We all see our world through our own lens of personal circumstance, expectations and prejudices. The Canada, even Vancouver, that some posters describe is so far removed from my experience that it might as well be in a galaxy far, far away. Now, obviously, I am right and they are wrong but I suspect they think it is the other way around.

nerdherd

But yeah, everyone's tastes, experiences and aspirations are different.

I always think of Vancouver as a Marmite city: people seem to either love it or hate it, no middle (although coming from me, the Marmite analogy is weird since I am one of a few who can actually take it or leave it).

el_richo

Agree with much of what JonboyE says.

But with limited information given, a budget of $400k for a nice house with space, on the coast, and an aversion to a rainy climate and higher population, it would be very difficult to find in Vancouver.

It is correct that when it rains a ton through winter, it snows on the mountains so great for snow sports. Unfortunately most people still have to live and commute at the lower levels so would certainly experience the higher % of rain than snow. Plus you need to factor in affordability. You'd need the income to support such a lifestyle and it's not cheap to get up even to the local mountains on a regular basis, especially with a family.

We moved from London and see Vancouver as a nice town on the water. It suits us, but so did London. That said, if our budget was similar to yours, i wouldn't choose to live here purely because it wouldn't afford me the lifestyle i want (be near the Ocean, regular and easy access to snowboarding, specific views, ability to walk to work, etc).

I see your next steps as:

1, Searching areas you want to live, find out availability for work, and income potential
2, Check out housing costs based on your budget and commute threshold against your wants (on the coast, spacious home, etc).
3, Research other costs such as activities (family skiing, mountain biking, Martial Arts, etc). Include cost of commuting to these.
4, Research the areas more thoroughly (visiting is best in my opinion). If visiting, sample winter as well as summer if at all possible.
5, Research educational costs
6, Research costs of car ownership
7, Research research research.