But as the Latins say, "Da nada".
Newbie
Posts: 1 
February 8th, 2007, 11:31 AM
Ok, this is ironic because I found this thread by searching Google for advice on moving TO Nova Scotia from Calgary.
I LOVE Calgary, I adore this city. It is gorgeous, and I am going to be arrogant and say it is likely one of the 10 most beautiful metros in the world. I have travelled alot, and I have lived here 33 years of my life. There is just nothing that compares to, yes those mountains, visible driving around town, especially in Spring/Fall. I find the city, fresh, vibrant and it will always be home to me.
HOWEVER, the cost of living is insanely high. Now this is for Calgary specific, I can't speak for the rest of Alberta. Calgary is OOZING money, whether it be cars, houses, shopping, services, theatre, whatever! BUT, this is only good if you are also oozing with money, and I don't mean middle or upper middle class. My husband makes a great income as an engineer, and I could make minimium 15-18$ an hour if I had to work outside of the home, but even then we would still have bills, bills and more bills to keep up with the life here. Sure, this is in part due to choices, not everyone has to keep up with the jones' so to speak. But, Calgary encourages a very materialistic, fast paced and up to your neck in debt lifestyle again in my opinion. After all, the theatre, skiing, eating out with your friends at lovely restraunts, shopping in those upgraded malls at the upgraded shops, etc all costs mooola. So, it seems the more affluent the citiy gets, likewise the more you NEED to make to maintain the status quo, and let's face it....that's what suburbia is.
Is everyone still with me? LOL
So here's our predicament. I am SICK of this lifestyle. You know how a rich, moist chocolate brownie is good the first few bites, but sooner or later it gets *TOO* rich? That's Calgary in a nutshell. Its too much, its too exhausting keeping up with life here. This is actually a fact, on CFCN news last night they had a statistic that Calgary has one of the highest burn out rates in North America in its business sector. We are working ourselves to death to make more money to keep up with this boom!
Why move to Nova Scotia? Well, we are SO lucky in that my husband and I purchased our home in the west, mountain side of Tuscany 5 years ago and now have approx $200,000 equity in it.
My husband is looking to transfer to Nova Scotia, where we can purchase a lovely, renovated heritage home similar in size to what we have now for half the price with twice as much land for the kids to play and in a much quieter environment. The schools are awesome and compared to Alberta the health care system seems to be fantastic. Sure, there are pros and cons but for this life long Calgarian who does love Calgary, I am CRAVING moving to Nova Scotia and not having to worry about if I can afford my daily Starbucks with the other moms after school drop off
.
There, make what you want of it but that's my lecture on Calgary anyhow. I know its all about the choices we make, but to me Calgary has become really only good for the really rich.
Cate.
Ok, this is ironic because I found this thread by searching Google for advice on moving TO Nova Scotia from Calgary.
I LOVE Calgary, I adore this city. It is gorgeous, and I am going to be arrogant and say it is likely one of the 10 most beautiful metros in the world. I have travelled alot, and I have lived here 33 years of my life. There is just nothing that compares to, yes those mountains, visible driving around town, especially in Spring/Fall. I find the city, fresh, vibrant and it will always be home to me.
HOWEVER, the cost of living is insanely high. Now this is for Calgary specific, I can't speak for the rest of Alberta. Calgary is OOZING money, whether it be cars, houses, shopping, services, theatre, whatever! BUT, this is only good if you are also oozing with money, and I don't mean middle or upper middle class. My husband makes a great income as an engineer, and I could make minimium 15-18$ an hour if I had to work outside of the home, but even then we would still have bills, bills and more bills to keep up with the life here. Sure, this is in part due to choices, not everyone has to keep up with the jones' so to speak. But, Calgary encourages a very materialistic, fast paced and up to your neck in debt lifestyle again in my opinion. After all, the theatre, skiing, eating out with your friends at lovely restraunts, shopping in those upgraded malls at the upgraded shops, etc all costs mooola. So, it seems the more affluent the citiy gets, likewise the more you NEED to make to maintain the status quo, and let's face it....that's what suburbia is.
Is everyone still with me? LOL
So here's our predicament. I am SICK of this lifestyle. You know how a rich, moist chocolate brownie is good the first few bites, but sooner or later it gets *TOO* rich? That's Calgary in a nutshell. Its too much, its too exhausting keeping up with life here. This is actually a fact, on CFCN news last night they had a statistic that Calgary has one of the highest burn out rates in North America in its business sector. We are working ourselves to death to make more money to keep up with this boom!
Why move to Nova Scotia? Well, we are SO lucky in that my husband and I purchased our home in the west, mountain side of Tuscany 5 years ago and now have approx $200,000 equity in it.
My husband is looking to transfer to Nova Scotia, where we can purchase a lovely, renovated heritage home similar in size to what we have now for half the price with twice as much land for the kids to play and in a much quieter environment. The schools are awesome and compared to Alberta the health care system seems to be fantastic. Sure, there are pros and cons but for this life long Calgarian who does love Calgary, I am CRAVING moving to Nova Scotia and not having to worry about if I can afford my daily Starbucks with the other moms after school drop off
.There, make what you want of it but that's my lecture on Calgary anyhow. I know its all about the choices we make, but to me Calgary has become really only good for the really rich.
Cate.
^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^
Posts: 6,516 
Videos: 5
Location: Newfoundland!
Videos: 5
Location: Newfoundland!
February 8th, 2007, 11:51 AM
cate if you're looking to move to somewhere with a lower cost of living than calgary dont move to the UK. I'm assuming edmonton and calgary are roughly comparable here, but since i moved to edmonton from the UK, i've found life actually got cheaper.
cate if you're looking to move to somewhere with a lower cost of living than calgary dont move to the UK. I'm assuming edmonton and calgary are roughly comparable here, but since i moved to edmonton from the UK, i've found life actually got cheaper.
Clever Clogs
Posts: 642
Location: New Delhi , India
Location: New Delhi , India
February 11th, 2007, 09:50 AM
Thanks for your advice any ways any Idea how about moving to CANADA from INDIA or any resource to find more info on the same.....
Hermanntrude cate if you're looking to move to somewhere with a lower cost of living than calgary dont move to the UK. I'm assuming edmonton and calgary are roughly comparable here, but since i moved to edmonton from the UK, i've found life actually got cheaper.
Thanks for your advice any ways any Idea how about moving to CANADA from INDIA or any resource to find more info on the same.....
Hermanntrude cate if you're looking to move to somewhere with a lower cost of living than calgary dont move to the UK. I'm assuming edmonton and calgary are roughly comparable here, but since i moved to edmonton from the UK, i've found life actually got cheaper.
Genius
Posts: 768
February 11th, 2007, 11:47 AM
Tuscany is a modest neighbourhood with many new families. Perhaps, in Tuscany, people look around the neighbourhood and see the differences between the $400k home and the $500k home, but the rest of the city just sees Tuscany, a new neighbourhood with young families starting out with a mortgage and making ends meet. Having the fancy schools in the neighbourhood may contribute to the idea that everyone wants to be the best ... hard to say ... but Calgary has a lot of long term residents that really couldn't care less about material wealth. In fact, I think most Calgary residents are completely unimpressed with cash flashers.
The up to the neck in debt problems are common with young families buying homes completely beyond their means. The housing market looked like it was going to become unaffordable for new families ... so people jumped in and they are indeed up to their neck in debt. Families that were settled before the boom are in a completely different situation.
... just gotta defend my city here ... the boom has brought with it a whole lot of fast cash seekers, but that does not mean that the people of Calgary have adopted the values of the new arrivals.
Quoting maplecate
You lost me on the "keeping up with the Jones" bit. There are some people in Calgary that may want to keep up with the Jones, similar to every city in the world, but that is not the Calgary I know. Dinner parties are just as prevalent as fancy restaurants and old beaters are seen as often as brand new shiney cars. Nice clothing can be found at Holt Renfrew and Blus or at Eddie Bauers and Josephs. The comparisons are endless, but if there is an overall mentality that people need to be fancy, shiney and flashing the cash, I think that is a transplanted or neuveau riche value, not a Calgary original.
...
HOWEVER, the cost of living is insanely high. Now this is for Calgary specific, I can't speak for the rest of Alberta. Calgary is OOZING money, whether it be cars, houses, shopping, services, theatre, whatever! BUT, this is only good if you are also oozing with money, and I don't mean middle or upper middle class. My husband makes a great income as an engineer, and I could make minimium 15-18$ an hour if I had to work outside of the home, but even then we would still have bills, bills and more bills to keep up with the life here. Sure, this is in part due to choices, not everyone has to keep up with the jones' so to speak. But, Calgary encourages a very materialistic, fast paced and up to your neck in debt lifestyle again in my opinion. After all, the theatre, skiing, eating out with your friends at lovely restraunts, shopping in those upgraded malls at the upgraded shops, etc all costs mooola. So, it seems the more affluent the citiy gets, likewise the more you NEED to make to maintain the status quo, and let's face it....that's what suburbia is.
...
HOWEVER, the cost of living is insanely high. Now this is for Calgary specific, I can't speak for the rest of Alberta. Calgary is OOZING money, whether it be cars, houses, shopping, services, theatre, whatever! BUT, this is only good if you are also oozing with money, and I don't mean middle or upper middle class. My husband makes a great income as an engineer, and I could make minimium 15-18$ an hour if I had to work outside of the home, but even then we would still have bills, bills and more bills to keep up with the life here. Sure, this is in part due to choices, not everyone has to keep up with the jones' so to speak. But, Calgary encourages a very materialistic, fast paced and up to your neck in debt lifestyle again in my opinion. After all, the theatre, skiing, eating out with your friends at lovely restraunts, shopping in those upgraded malls at the upgraded shops, etc all costs mooola. So, it seems the more affluent the citiy gets, likewise the more you NEED to make to maintain the status quo, and let's face it....that's what suburbia is.
...
Tuscany is a modest neighbourhood with many new families. Perhaps, in Tuscany, people look around the neighbourhood and see the differences between the $400k home and the $500k home, but the rest of the city just sees Tuscany, a new neighbourhood with young families starting out with a mortgage and making ends meet. Having the fancy schools in the neighbourhood may contribute to the idea that everyone wants to be the best ... hard to say ... but Calgary has a lot of long term residents that really couldn't care less about material wealth. In fact, I think most Calgary residents are completely unimpressed with cash flashers.
The up to the neck in debt problems are common with young families buying homes completely beyond their means. The housing market looked like it was going to become unaffordable for new families ... so people jumped in and they are indeed up to their neck in debt. Families that were settled before the boom are in a completely different situation.
... just gotta defend my city here ... the boom has brought with it a whole lot of fast cash seekers, but that does not mean that the people of Calgary have adopted the values of the new arrivals.
