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> moving to a major Canadian city from a major American as a way to save money is a foolish idea. Please read my entire comment again. I did write "I'm not say

> moving to a major Canadian city from a major American as a way to save money is a foolish idea. Please read my entire comment again. I did write "I'm not saying you'll end up with more money if you live in Canada." But people hear "Canada has higher taxes" and assume it's like 20+ percentage points higher, not 5 percentage points higher. > Gas is more expensive. Not really. It's the equivalent of USD 2.81/gal at a Toronto Costco[1]. It's $2.75 at the Sunnyvale Costco (cheapest gasoline) right now.[2] > What cities and neighbourhoods were you comparing? 2 bedroom in Downtown Vancouver - $3250 (presumably CAD, which is ~USD 2400)[3] 2 bedroom in Mountain View - $3600 [4] Same thing for Toronto. > Alcohol and cigarettes are more expensive Uh...don't smoke? It's expensive for your health too :-P. Yeah Ontario and BC liquor laws seem to be stuck in the 1940s sadly. But alcohol isn't usually a major component of most folks' household spending, so it's hardly a budget-killer. 1. https://www.gasbuddy.com/Station/130688 https://www.gasbuddy.com/Station/130688 2. https://www.costco.com/warehouse-locations/sunnyvale-ca-423.html https://www.costco.com/warehouse-locations/sunnyvale-ca-423.... 3. https://www.padmapper.com/apartments/vancouver-bc/downtown-vancouver https://www.padmapper.com/apartments/vancouver-bc/downtown-v... 4. https://www.padmapper.com/apartments/mountain-view-ca https://www.padmapper.com/apartments/mountain-view-ca

def8cefe 6y ago
>2 bedroom in Downtown Vancouver - $3250 (presumably CAD, which is ~USD 2400)[3] This is one of those instances where things get lost in statistics without local knowledge. West Vancouver (part of downtown) is a very nice area a person who makes 200k USD would be happy to live. The Downtown Eastside (also a part of downtown), a short walk from West Vancouver, is littered with used 'insulin' needles, aggressive panhandlers and crime. Mountain View is a suburb (70k pop), Vancouver (700k pop) is the hub the suburbs extend from. >Not really. It's the equivalent of USD 2.81/gal at a Toronto Costco[1]. It's $2.75 at the Sunnyvale Costco (cheapest gasoline) right now.[2] Trust me man, gas is more expensive. Look at averages, not the lowest available price at any given time. There are times when you get lucky but overall it is more expensive. The divide gets larger when the commodity price of oil is higher (unlike right now).
- jogjayr 6y ago
  Ok, then Burnaby[1]. I visited Vancouver last year, and stayed there. It's quite nice, also a suburb, and a short train ride into Vancouver. You can have a 2-bedroom for CAD 2900. I think you're underestimating how insanely expensive renting in the Bay Area is. > Look at averages, not the lowest available price at any given time. I compared prices from the same outlet (Costco) in different locations. That's as apples-to-apples as you can get. I made two visits to Canada last year, and bought gas at random (non-Costco) outlets. At no point did it feel significantly more expensive than California prices - I converted in my head every time I filled up. Gas is extremely cheap in Texas, compared to California (and also Canada). 1. https://www.padmapper.com/apartments/burnaby-bc https://www.padmapper.com/apartments/burnaby-bc
  - def8cefe 6y ago
    > I made two visits to Canada last year, and bought gas at random outlets. At no point did it feel significantly more expensive than California prices - I converted in my head every time I filled up. This is another point. Canada is a huge place, where gas prices vary wildly even within provinces. Gas in north Ontario is often much more expensive than south. Sometimes the price in St. Catherines is 20 cents cheaper than gas in the GTA because of the 'gas wars' their stations are famous for. > I compared prices from the same outlet: Costco. That's as apples-to-apples as you can get. You can cherry pick information to say whatever you want. You compared a single daily station price in Vancouver to a single daily station price in CA. Costco also requires a membership and they use cheap gas to lure people in, it's not a traditional gas station (though I may look into a membership now...). This is also a time in history when gas is unusually cheap. I suggest you look at averages. There is good reason for the price difference. Although Canada produces a lot of crude, we refine almost none of it so we import pretty much all of the finished product. That money you're saving on the apartment in Vancouver vs Mountain View basically works out to that 10k USD extra you would spend on tax you worked out earlier as well (but of course you would not make anywhere close to the same salary in Vancouver or Toronto). If you want to move to Canada I encourage you to do so, it seems like you would be happy if you did. But to go back to my original point, if you move to a major Canadian city from a major American one with purely financial motivations, you will be sorely disappointed. Also I wanted to work this in somewhere: https://xkcd.com/180/ https://xkcd.com/180/

def8cefe 6y ago

>2 bedroom in Downtown Vancouver - $3250 (presumably CAD, which is ~USD 2400)[3] This is one of those instances where things get lost in statistics without local knowledge. West Vancouver (part of downtown) is a very nice area a person who makes 200k USD would be happy to live. The Downtown Eastside (also a part of downtown), a short walk from West Vancouver, is littered with used 'insulin' needles, aggressive panhandlers and crime. Mountain View is a suburb (70k pop), Vancouver (700k pop) is the hub the suburbs extend from. >Not really. It's the equivalent of USD 2.81/gal at a Toronto Costco[1]. It's $2.75 at the Sunnyvale Costco (cheapest gasoline) right now.[2] Trust me man, gas is more expensive. Look at averages, not the lowest available price at any given time. There are times when you get lucky but overall it is more expensive. The divide gets larger when the commodity price of oil is higher (unlike right now).

jogjayr 6y ago
Ok, then Burnaby[1]. I visited Vancouver last year, and stayed there. It's quite nice, also a suburb, and a short train ride into Vancouver. You can have a 2-bedroom for CAD 2900. I think you're underestimating how insanely expensive renting in the Bay Area is. > Look at averages, not the lowest available price at any given time. I compared prices from the same outlet (Costco) in different locations. That's as apples-to-apples as you can get. I made two visits to Canada last year, and bought gas at random (non-Costco) outlets. At no point did it feel significantly more expensive than California prices - I converted in my head every time I filled up. Gas is extremely cheap in Texas, compared to California (and also Canada). 1. https://www.padmapper.com/apartments/burnaby-bc https://www.padmapper.com/apartments/burnaby-bc
- def8cefe 6y ago
  > I made two visits to Canada last year, and bought gas at random outlets. At no point did it feel significantly more expensive than California prices - I converted in my head every time I filled up. This is another point. Canada is a huge place, where gas prices vary wildly even within provinces. Gas in north Ontario is often much more expensive than south. Sometimes the price in St. Catherines is 20 cents cheaper than gas in the GTA because of the 'gas wars' their stations are famous for. > I compared prices from the same outlet: Costco. That's as apples-to-apples as you can get. You can cherry pick information to say whatever you want. You compared a single daily station price in Vancouver to a single daily station price in CA. Costco also requires a membership and they use cheap gas to lure people in, it's not a traditional gas station (though I may look into a membership now...). This is also a time in history when gas is unusually cheap. I suggest you look at averages. There is good reason for the price difference. Although Canada produces a lot of crude, we refine almost none of it so we import pretty much all of the finished product. That money you're saving on the apartment in Vancouver vs Mountain View basically works out to that 10k USD extra you would spend on tax you worked out earlier as well (but of course you would not make anywhere close to the same salary in Vancouver or Toronto). If you want to move to Canada I encourage you to do so, it seems like you would be happy if you did. But to go back to my original point, if you move to a major Canadian city from a major American one with purely financial motivations, you will be sorely disappointed. Also I wanted to work this in somewhere: https://xkcd.com/180/ https://xkcd.com/180/