Could someone give me information please !

[zoe]

Hi Everyone
My husband has been offered a job in Calgary and his wage will be $64,000 per year. I know this in pounds is a good wage but is it any good for Canada ?
Any information about Calgary in general would be gratefully received. We have two young children. Is it a good place to raise a family?

Many Thanks in advance Cheers!

 

[JonB2004]

RE: Could someone give me

Calgary is OK. And $64,000 a year is plenty of money in Canada.

 

[thecdn]

You might want to look into the cost of living and housing in Calgary at this time - hello? lrg? where are you?

I lived there from 85-98 and it is a great city but I've heard the costs have been skyrocketing.

 

[Nikki]

Re: RE: Could someone give me information please !

You might want to look into the cost of living and housing in Calgary at this time - hello? lrg? where are you?

I lived there from 85-98 and it is a great city but I've heard the costs have been skyrocketing.

Yes the price has gone up 30% just in the last year. I am working at a real estate company right now and the average cost of a house in Calgary is $350,000-$400 000. That will get you an average place in an urban area. If you are looking to spend less you will end up in a bad area.

Just be aware that right now we are short on housing. It is very difficult to find a place to live, every single listing has competitive offers so be prepared to spend $20 000-$50 000 over the listing price in a competitive situation.

However $64 000 a year is enough money to live comfortably in Calgary. At least I think so.

 

[thecdn]

Hello Nikki!! Did lrg drag you over here too?

 

[Nikki]

Re: RE: Could someone give me information please !

Hello Nikki!! Did lrg drag you over here too?

LOL. No I was bored at work and ran out of things to read on the other forum. So I thought I would read some stuff on here.

 

[kale7334]

Zoe, I am moving to Calgary in December. I think 64k is not a bad salary for Calgary to start with as I hear that its booming. Soon 64k will feel like 54k but your husband would be making more by then too. Which industry is he in? I would love to email you and talk more but I dont have your email address!

 

[Dexter Sinister]

According to today's Toronto Globe & Mail newspaper, average price of a house in Calgary is $408,000, up 51% in the last 12 months. I dunno how useful an average might be in this context though, there might be a thousand houses sold for $200K to regular folks and 200 for $10 million to oil executives, or something like that, which would produce an artificially high average that doesn't reflect what most people will be looking at. What we need is the median house price, the price in the middle that half the houses cost more than and half cost less than.

$64K is a pretty good wage almost anywhere in this country, except maybe the Vancouver, Toronto, Montreal areas. And Calgary's a lovely city, with rivers and parks and wide streets and pretty decent weather (for Canada :wink: ) most of the time.

 

[zoe]

Hi Kale 7334
You can PM me I can't send PM I have not been a member long enough !!
Thanks everyone for the replies
Xzoe

 

[ol' dawg]

Re: RE: Could someone give me information please !

You might want to look into the cost of living and housing in Calgary at this time - hello? lrg? where are you?

I lived there from 85-98 and it is a great city but I've heard the costs have been skyrocketing.

Yes the price has gone up 30% just in the last year. I am working at a real estate company right now and the average cost of a house in Calgary is $350,000-$400 000. That will get you an average place in an urban area. If you are looking to spend less you will end up in a bad area.

Just be aware that right now we are short on housing. It is very difficult to find a place to live, every single listing has competitive offers so be prepared to spend $20 000-$50 000 over the listing price in a competitive situation.

However $64 000 a year is enough money to live comfortably in Calgary. At least I think so.

Yes, $64,000 can be comfortable, but it depends on the size of your mortgage. If you have a good downpayment and keep your mortgage lower, you'll be fine.

Absolutely forget about renting when you arrive, there is nothing. There are families of 6 reported to be living in 2 bedroom basement 'suites' sharing one small bathroom, and finding mice sharing their living space. There are news stories of many people living in campgrounds since that is all that is available - and they have been displaced ofr those who booked the space for the annual Calgary Stampede.

And the cost of a house in the suburbs, or even a condominium in central Calgary starts at over $250,000. There's a house down the street from where I live that went up last week for $400,000. A 900 square foot bungalow with an unfinished basement. It is more expensive to buy in Calgary than it is to buy in Toronto.

Good luck.

 

[LisNJai]

There is always smaller towns around Calgary..? Okotokes is a nice little place to live.. Not far from Calgary ground now of course.. it has grown soo much over the years.. But you could go to towns around the area... Your husband would have to commute.. but atleast you would be able to afford a house and raise your family... All housing costs are on the rise right now.. especially that way from Lethbridge... Sylvan Lake is roughly about the same way too.. We were there.. and we were looking to build... and a Lot alone.. NOT serviced is roughly $70,000 then you have to put a house on that.. your looking at atleast $400,000 by the time you are done... UGH> is all I can say to that...
but.. there are many small towns I am sure you could look into as well..
Best of Luck!!