Hi there,
I would really appreciate it if someone can give me advice about living and working around Victoria BC. My husband and I plus three children 18,16 &12 plus dog and ferret!! Are hoping to emigrate next summer to Victoria. I’m a nurse and have more or less secured a job, my husband is an insurance training manager here in UK.. he hasn’t really begun his job search.. how is the job market in Victoria? We would love some ideas on neighbourhoods within 20mins from Victoria.
We also want to rent a house before we buy, can anyone suggest a decent realtor…. There’s so much to consider ( are we doing the right thing etc) it would be great if anyone could give any advise. Thanks Jenny

Hi Jenny,
We are not experts on Victoria, despite having relatives there. But Sue and I are realtors who run a relocation business. We have excellent partners in Victoria and would be pleased to put you in touch. In case you haven't heard of us, and because you have teenagers, I thought you might like to check out the diaries that our teenagers wrote about their experiences moving to Canada.
http://www.relocation2bc.com/teendiaries.htm
If you have a look at that and send us an email we'll happily help you with the move.

Warmly,

Frank

Hi Jenny
We live in Victoria BC and love it here. I am Canadian and my husband is British from London. My husband is in Education and it took him 6 months to find employment when he landed here May 2006.
Most areas are within 20 minutes of downtown Victoria it is really one large city which is broken up into municipalities such as Oak Bay, Sannich, Vic West ect but it is really all one area the rents here are high up over $1000 for 3+ bedrooms.

My suggestion would be look for the school you want and register your kids in first Victoria and area has three school districts depending on where you live School district 61 ( the victoria school district is the largest) and has the rule that because your coming from out of town you can register in any school without living in the catchment area so that when you move here your kids can settle and not have worry about having to relocate schools if you rent or buy outside of their school catchment area.
good luck on your move to Victoria

Let me know if I can give you any other information.

Island Girl

Hi Island Girl, I hope you don't mind butting in on this thread, but we're thinking of moving to the Victoria area, even up as far as Nanimo or comox. We have 2 kids 13 and 11 and would love to here your thoughts on island life. I suppose we're looking for similar to what we have here in the UK rural life pop 6k, but 30 mins away from a city of 440k with all the shops etc you might need but with hill and lochs.
regards

Hi Tartan Flyer

Island life is nice it is a beautiful place to live. If you are looking for a small town that is within easy driving distance to a larger city then I would suggest something like Duncan or the Cowichan valley which are close to Victoria or to Nanaimo. Lots of people live up Duncan and Cowichan area and commute to Victoria for work nice in the summer but not always great in the winter as it can snow up on the Malahat summit. My dad lives up island in-between Campbell River and Courtenay both are very nice small communities have all the shops however not sure what the employment is like up island.

I would suggest that you might want to look into Sooke which is 30 minutes outside of Victoria and a nice small community has its own school district and shops it also has direct bus routes between Sooke and Victoria which give you easy access to all that the city has to offer, movies, theater, opera, sports, work. I personally like Victoria better than Nanaimo but that is because I live in Victoria.

Drop me a message and let me know if you have any questions and I’ll do my best to answer them for you. I have lived in BC most of my life it is a very beautiful place to be.

Island Girl

Hi Island Girl, Thanks for the reply. We hadn't really thought of Sooke, is it a big or a small place. and how do you feel about "Island Fever". I know a few people who've visited VI and thought it was beautiful but full of "older people". Is there enough to keep a couple of teenagers entertained? Thanks in advance

Well 'Granny bashing' shouldnt be difficult then.

Hi. We have recently emigrated and live in Shawnigan Lake, having just purchased and moved into our '1st canadian home'. It is quiet up here really so if you are looking for 'action' go to Victoria or Nanaimo. There are a few of us on the boards from this way. Bananahammock is from Nanaimo and Ellsie i believe is campell River.

havent heard that term in a while!

Not so much looking for action, as wanting to know that our kids have something to do. We had friends who got fed up of driving the kids to various activities, like smimming and visiting friends, so they moved from their "ideal" home to somewhere in the town where the kids can walk to school and their friends houses. Jobs for us too and perhaps a "nursing home" in a couple of years.

I still have to ferry kids around but they are not short of things to do.Mount washington is 45 mins from here, Campbell River, with tubing skiing etc, my kids have joined clubs like air cadets. There are lots of young people in this town, and we have just opened www.northislandbattlefield.com