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The challenge facing vancouver is that the population can't afford to live there. While there may be a few tech companies in town, overall, the city doesn't ha

The challenge facing vancouver is that the population can't afford to live there. While there may be a few tech companies in town, overall, the city doesn't have an industry. Canadian visa policies got all kinds of foreigners investing big money into real estate in the city while not creating any actual jobs in the process. So there isn't much of an economy supporting the city + thus a pretty small talent pool for any prospective startups to draw from...

paulsutter 11y ago
Yeah "nobody goes there anymore - it's too crowded"
- 001sky 11y ago
  Real estate is weird. Easy to have absentee owners. Easy to house money not people. Etc.
msie 11y ago
San Francisco has the same problems of high real estate prices but if the pay were better and we have bigger companies here (and the Canadian dollar were stronger) then we'd attract more people. There is all this talent in the States and they'll just stay there. Plus lots of strong Universities in the area pumping out more talent.
- ryanobjc 11y ago
  As one of the talent in the united States, which ironically I went to school at ubc, there is very little chance I'd move back. I heard a senior dev maxes out at $85,000 a year. And with housing prices equal to the bay area, that's just a bad deal. But aside from money there is the respect factor. I'm not convinced that tech is respected in Vancouver. So take a triple downgrade and work for business folks who hate you?
  - van_developer 11y ago
    At my level CAD $120k/yr is average salary I've been offered locally, with no options, though after taxes that's $87k/yr and my rent is $24k/yr for a one bed condo so I would have $63k to spend per year. Instead I make remotely USD $160k, which is $210k CAD, and it goes to a consulting corporation that I write off everything I can including rent so pay much less taxes to my incredibly corrupt provincial government. I also have standard options everybody else in SV gets. Edit: I work for a startup that advertised here in the monthly who's hiring threads.
    - msie 11y ago
      May I ask what type of job are you doing? Rails? Javascript? Managing vs programming? TIA
      - van_developer 11y ago
        Basic security tests. I was hired as a full stack dev then moved to "Sr Security Lead" after writing a lot of tests that exposed bugs and squashed them before they became problems. I don't really consider myself any kind of infosec person but nobody else was doing it so I got the position. Edit: one previous job here locally I did the same tests and exposed bugs weekly on my own time, fixed countless authentication bypasses, and plugged a memory leak that had been slowing down the app for years before I was hired and when I asked for a raise or meaningful options the department manager gave me an unbelievable speech about how they don't like workers with only financial goals in mind, said I had no passion for what they were building if money was my motivation and suggested I quit. This was one of the top Vancouver tech industry outfits constantly shilled in the media. My salary at the time was $70k (2013).
        aprdm 11y ago
        Can you write about this kind of tests in a blog post or something like that ? Would be very helpful for the community in general, you seem to have a great knowledge to share!
    - 11y ago
Tiktaalik 11y ago
It's worth noting that while Vancouver has absurdly expensive detached housing (East Van: $1.2 million[1], west side more) the rental prices in Vancouver (~$1200-1400 for single bedroom in new building) do not reach the absurd prices seen in SF. Unlike SF, Vancouver builds plenty of condo apartment buildings, so if you wanted to buy a single bedroom apartment you could do so for $300k-400k. I'm not saying that's not expensive considering the average income in Vancouver, the real estate market is definitely in a bubble, but it's at least within reach, whereas detached housing prices exist in their own bizarre reality. [1] http://www.theglobeandmail.com/report-on-business/vancouvers-detached-house-prices-keep-soaring-as-supply-dwindles/article25852584/ http://www.theglobeandmail.com/report-on-business/vancouvers...
- deleted 11y ago
  [deleted]
- pcthrowaway 11y ago
  If you're willing to live with roomate(s), you can easily find a place in a desirable neighbourhood in the $600-800 a month range. While I realize my rent is uncharacteristically cheap for this city, I pay <$500/month in the commercial broadway area for my own room in a 2BR duplex unit.
  - serge2k 11y ago
    or move to Seattle and get paid enough you don't have to live with roommates unless you enjoy it.

paulsutter 11y ago

Yeah "nobody goes there anymore - it's too crowded"

001sky 11y ago
Real estate is weird. Easy to have absentee owners. Easy to house money not people. Etc.

msie 11y ago

San Francisco has the same problems of high real estate prices but if the pay were better and we have bigger companies here (and the Canadian dollar were stronger) then we'd attract more people. There is all this talent in the States and they'll just stay there. Plus lots of strong Universities in the area pumping out more talent.

ryanobjc 11y ago
As one of the talent in the united States, which ironically I went to school at ubc, there is very little chance I'd move back. I heard a senior dev maxes out at $85,000 a year. And with housing prices equal to the bay area, that's just a bad deal. But aside from money there is the respect factor. I'm not convinced that tech is respected in Vancouver. So take a triple downgrade and work for business folks who hate you?
- van_developer 11y ago
  At my level CAD $120k/yr is average salary I've been offered locally, with no options, though after taxes that's $87k/yr and my rent is $24k/yr for a one bed condo so I would have $63k to spend per year. Instead I make remotely USD $160k, which is $210k CAD, and it goes to a consulting corporation that I write off everything I can including rent so pay much less taxes to my incredibly corrupt provincial government. I also have standard options everybody else in SV gets. Edit: I work for a startup that advertised here in the monthly who's hiring threads.
  - msie 11y ago
    May I ask what type of job are you doing? Rails? Javascript? Managing vs programming? TIA
    - van_developer 11y ago
      Basic security tests. I was hired as a full stack dev then moved to "Sr Security Lead" after writing a lot of tests that exposed bugs and squashed them before they became problems. I don't really consider myself any kind of infosec person but nobody else was doing it so I got the position. Edit: one previous job here locally I did the same tests and exposed bugs weekly on my own time, fixed countless authentication bypasses, and plugged a memory leak that had been slowing down the app for years before I was hired and when I asked for a raise or meaningful options the department manager gave me an unbelievable speech about how they don't like workers with only financial goals in mind, said I had no passion for what they were building if money was my motivation and suggested I quit. This was one of the top Vancouver tech industry outfits constantly shilled in the media. My salary at the time was $70k (2013).
      - aprdm 11y ago
        Can you write about this kind of tests in a blog post or something like that ? Would be very helpful for the community in general, you seem to have a great knowledge to share!
  - 11y ago

Tiktaalik 11y ago

It's worth noting that while Vancouver has absurdly expensive detached housing (East Van: $1.2 million[1], west side more) the rental prices in Vancouver (~$1200-1400 for single bedroom in new building) do not reach the absurd prices seen in SF. Unlike SF, Vancouver builds plenty of condo apartment buildings, so if you wanted to buy a single bedroom apartment you could do so for $300k-400k. I'm not saying that's not expensive considering the average income in Vancouver, the real estate market is definitely in a bubble, but it's at least within reach, whereas detached housing prices exist in their own bizarre reality. [1] http://www.theglobeandmail.com/report-on-business/vancouvers-detached-house-prices-keep-soaring-as-supply-dwindles/article25852584/ http://www.theglobeandmail.com/report-on-business/vancouvers...

deleted 11y ago
[deleted]
pcthrowaway 11y ago
If you're willing to live with roomate(s), you can easily find a place in a desirable neighbourhood in the $600-800 a month range. While I realize my rent is uncharacteristically cheap for this city, I pay <$500/month in the commercial broadway area for my own room in a 2BR duplex unit.
- serge2k 11y ago
  or move to Seattle and get paid enough you don't have to live with roommates unless you enjoy it.