segaste

Yep, house share definitely. I looked on Craigslist a while back and $450 a month seems like the norm.

Hart

In which area of Canada was this?

Hart

Just been looking through the Craigslist in the Vancouver area and I've noticed that at the very least 9/10 insist on only females wanted lol. That's no good for us blokes..

There are some shoddy posts, if you want to sell a room then why do half of them fail to add pictures? I'd also like to know who else lives there, something about them to gauge how well I'd likely get on with them, but alas none seem to include such information

It's going to have to be a finding accommodation once in Canada job isn't it?

BritishExpatriate

I don't know because some hostels cost as little as £9 per night. I've also read about some hostels where you can work in the hostel for 15 hours per week and you get free keep. The advantage being that in a hostel you're not bound by a contract and meet more people but with the downside being that you're sharing a dorm so have less privacy.

I'm not actually planning on moving from Montreal but I think if the hostel I stay in for the initial 9 nights is good (I've never stayed in a hostel before) then I might just stay a few weeks longer in hostels... A couple of bad experiences from uni mean that I'd appreciate not risking being stuck with less than desirable housemates or being tied into a contract...

Hart

If what you are saying about the prices is true then hostels suddenly become a very attractive option. I was expecting something in to $35-45 range.

BritishExpatriate

Well I didn't make it up! Type "Montreal" and "hostel" into Google & you'll see!

PMM

Hi


Mea Culpa, Mea Culpa. From reading the instruction manual for CEC, it appears if you have skilled work for 1 year, no matter what the work permit type, other than On Campus or Off Campus, then your work is eligible for CEC.

christmasoompa

Thanks for clarifying PMM. Can always rely on you to give us the definitive answer.

KuroKuro

I've been in hostels before, though some of them were lovely... Some of them, not so much. I would personally not even consider staying in a nice one for longer than a week if possible; I can only imagine the horror stories of one as cheap as £9! Bathroom facilities are always questionable, and there's security issues of things like mobile phones/MP3 players/etc. I wouldn't enjoy having to lock my phone up in a locker every night rather than keeping it beside me to use the alarm or check messages first thing in the morning (because you will have to in order to avoid it being pilfered!).

I'd love to hear your experiences with this. Maybe Canadian hostels are a lot better than European ones. I'd take uni halls with annoying (but familiar) people than the daily pot luck of hostels any day!

ro616

I spent a long time looking for accommodation on craigslist in Vancouver. I agree the quality of a lot of ads are pretty rubbish. One thing I did notice is that there are a lot of temporary sub-letting ads (you can filter for this) that allow you to take an apartment for a short time (from a week to a few months) whilst the occupants go travelling. This could be a good option if you don't want to commit to a year-long tenancy and it would be a lot easier once you're out there to find a flatshare that suits.

I've got a nice looking apartment for 3 months that I'm sharing with a friend which costs $1100 per month ($550 each) including bills - that seems about par for the course for vancouver.

Dandaman1

Hey guys, I have a quick question:

I'm currently on the IEC programme and have a permit which expires in June. I am not currently in Canada, and won't be re-entering until May. Can I enter under my new 2013 permit (when/if I get it), or do I have to enter under the old one and flagpole when it expires? What happens here?

Any advice would be greatly appreciated!

Also, does anyone have any clue as to when the 2013 applications start?

Former Lancastrian

You can enter under the new permit/LOI if you get it. You can of course enter under the old one but would need to flagpole to get the new one activated.
Keep watching the IEC website for activation dates
http://www.canadainternational.gc.ca...ex.aspx?view=d

sydc

I just found this which appears to confirm UK IEC visas will be extended to two years.

christmasoompa

Nice thought, but that website is full of inaccurate advice (and it's not actually what Mr Kenney said), so I'd take it with a pinch of salt! Hopefully we'll find out soon for sure though.

Hart

An increase in duration to 2 years and a decrease in duration of work experience required for residency down to 1 year.

I'm sorry, that is too good to be true