Going back and doing thinking this evening, a lot of what stresses me out is the lack of stability. Namely in housing and I think this is a big part of why I dont really enjoy life much.

Going back the best times were the stable times and much less stress around housing and well less stress leads to better life in my view.

I could be wrong but seems that way anyhow.

Being a renter in BC really brings no stability and there is always the constant stress of possiblt having to move again.

Maybe its the fact I have moved nearly 20 times in less than 10 years and I just crave the stability of the past?

Hard to know for sure.

Maybe I am just having a 11 year homesick feelings which is clouding my judgement of Canada...

This whole trying to enjoy life and be happy is a lot of work and I seem to lack the ability to succeed.

I agree if you are always worrying about housing then it builds up stress. you seem to have moved on average every 6 months! Is this because you can only get short lets, or is it something to do with the housing market in BC? From where I sit, it seems you need to concentrate on fixing a legally binding longer term let - say 2 years - then you'll have time to settle down and hopefully enjoy life more. your contributions to these forums is much appreciated and I'm sure you've helped more than a few to understand life with mental problems - excuse me if that's too strong a phrase! Keep smiling!

That is a lot of times to move! Since moving is meant to be one of he most stressful things we can do, I'm not surprised you feel stressed!

I don't think it is possible to enjoy life in them circumstances. When we first came here we moved 4 times in 3 years, I always felt like a temp resident during that time. When we moved for a 5th time it was to our own house and the stress level subsided immediately.

I know $$$ is an issue with you Smiffy, but, have you ever thought about a trailer, or mobile home, Canada is a popular place for this sort of living, and even though it be a small place, it would be your own small place.

EG:

http://m.kijiji.ca/house-for-sale/va...=1460378276897

http://m.kijiji.ca/house-for-sale/va...=1460378276897

http://m.kijiji.ca/house-for-sale/de...=1460378276897

http://m.kijiji.ca/other-real-estate...=1460376867210

http://m.kijiji.ca/other-real-estate...=1460376403064

What a sensible suggestion Magnumpi. Would or could this be a possibility JS?

If I had moved that many times, I would be well beyond stress. I think many of us tie our emotions to our home. I didn't when I was younger, I was happy to move country with nothing more than a suitcase, but since I've lost my parents and had a child of my own, I have found that the idea of 'home' is vital to my well being and sense of safety.

I've often wondered about this. When you see the inside photos the only thing that makes it look like not a house is a lower than usual ceiling and sometimes the...what do you call it, that 'crease' in the middle.

Our house has slightly lower than usual ceilings downstairs, so maybe the difference seems less to me.

Other than that they just look so normal inside. And it's the inside you live with, not the outside.

The downside, for me, is that they all seem to be sited out of town. I know of one here that has a fair few shops nearby and has a bus stop right 'outside' for maybe a 10 minute ride away from bigger stores and strip malls and 20 minutes into the Downtown area.

So that wouldn't be so bad.

But for a driver it would be no problem at all and most people might consider that almost downtown living.

Perhaps it just needs a smaller city to make it more doable - but then that can be said about much of Canada's affordable living anyway.

I did it in the UK. I was young, and in the RAF, wanted a place of my own so decided to move off camp and live in a mobile home, rented tho not bought. I loved it, nearby local pub, no more room inspections lol, or bull nights. Lived there for several years before I left the RAF.

It's possible. I know some who do, do the stuff they want, have a blast and have somewhere to lay their head at night.

One of my children declined the opportunity for stability, to be a "yummy mummy", and now has a nomadic existence roaming war torn countries. She enjoys some more than others but, overall, certainly seems to enjoy life. There are many other people working for NGOs who have similarly unstable lives (to say nothing of the members of the Légion Étrangère) so, yes, some people can do it.

If you can't then Magnumty's idea seems a winner. Modular homes, essentially caravans without wheels, are common in rural Canada and some of them are very nice indeed. One concern I would have is that they usually sit on rented ground.

Wow, I thought I was bad with 10 moves in 10 years (my little one is not even 5 yet and has had 5 addresses (and about to get another two by the end of the year - the last should hopefully be our own home though)

I can totally relate - it definitely leads to a lot of stress and a feeling of not quite settling.
Not feeling like you can do your own thing or ever quite relax in case you damage something or the landlord decides to sell up and you have to move on sucks.
You tend not to buy things because you know it's just something else you have to pack next time - or because it might not fit in the door of the next place (some may say that's a good thing not having too much stuff - but I'm talking about essentials even like a decent sized dinner table that's not just a wobbly IKEA $100 special).

You always have to put up with others choices in décor (for Canadian rentals every wall seems to resemble the inside of a nappy for some reason - it's like there was one renovation show that they all watched that told them it wouldn't offend anyone to plaster poo over every single wall.)
Ah how I long just to paint a wall bright purple just for the hell of it

Hope you manage to get something a bit more permanent soon that will enable you to feel like you are at home and at ease.

OP....the grass is not always greener on teh other side. There are a lot of peopel with fancy houses, sometimes bigger than they really need due to keeping up with the Jones', and with that comes other forms of stress.

Just becaus eyou see a couple with a nice house and cars in teh driveway doesn't mean they don't have stressors keeping them up at night. I mean most people don't see divorce coming until it hits them, and the next thing you kmow that house is being put on the market.

Then there are those scraping by just to pay off their mortgage, but their friends on the outside looking in will never know. There is also the point about upkeep i.e. property tax, new roof, etc

People in Quebec move yearly, and it's a common thing over there. This idea that we all have to own a home is ludicrous.

But. It not only is it a place to live it's also a sound investment. Obviously it's best not to stretch the finances too thin or like u said it can be more of a headache. But also rent can go up, pricing a person out of their residence.

Not to those who have lost money selling their homes, or those that had it repo'd

I think we paid about 26 for the trailer in Oliver, there are pros and cons. For you, jsmith the downside to south Okanagan would be the heat, you'd be loving the A/C for a month or more each summer, lots of service industry work but not all of it full time, some good jobs that come up from time to time, check the Oliver Chronicle and Oliver Daily News for postings.

It's the old argument tho "rent or buy" personal preference is called for I guess. I prefer to buy, you obviously prefer to be a renter, I have no issues with either options.