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My husband and I are of the generation that is still hanging onto land lines and we don't really know why. In fact our entire phone system needs re-evaluating and I'm not sure where to start! I'm looking for advice on a couple of things -- US/Canada cell phone, and cutting down our current monthly budget on phones. Here's what we have right now: 3 land lines and 2 cell phones.
Canadian Landline 1 - $60/month, VOIP, free long distance
Canadian Landline 2 - $23/month, VOIP,free long distance, I use this phone in my office/home business.
US Landline - $50/month, no physical phone, just a telephone line in NY that gets call-forwarded to my office landline so my NY tenants can call me free.
Canadian cell phone, $25/month pay as you go
US cell phone, $20/month pay as you go tracfone - irritating that we don't get service on this phone till we drive half a mile down the road towards the border.
So that's the whole picture, we're paying $178 a month and everyone we know, family, friends, tenants, is very frustrated that we have five phone numbers, lol. My husband thinks we can survive with just a cell phone each, but Canadian cell phone rates seem astronomical, and US doesn't seem to work for us unless we drive down the road.. I've looked at phone plans but my brain turns to mush and my IQ plummets when I try to figure it all out, lol.
I also like wearing a headset when on the phone for work, so I can listen and type. I'm also used to very good sound quality.
Our goals are - to reduce our monthly costs, to reduce the quantity of phone numbers we give people and to have at least one cell phone that handles the US and Canada nicely without huge roaming charges. Would appreciate any advice!
I can't say that it would entirely solve the problem, but you might look into a VOIP system like Ring Central.
It's a Virtual PBX, so you can route incoming calls to several numbers to different phones, or to PC software. We use this to keep both FL and SC numbers (incoming), along with 800, and fax, and all of it can be forwarded to a single number on the other end.
I'm sure that there are other systems like it out there.
You might wish to look into Google Voice to transfer some of your phone numbers to and as far as having phones to call Canada, you can get Magic Jacks and if you have either androids or Iphones then you can download the Magic applications to your cell phones so if you have internet on your cell phone or while on wifi you can use the app or MJ's to call the US and Canada. magicJack APP
As far as the the cellular issue, you could just go with a US plan but get their roaming feature added.
It seems like there is information missing though. Do you go back and forth across the border often?
We are in San Diego (border city) and I have done TONS of consulting work for both Mexican cell companies and here in the US, so I am just trying to get a better picture of what your actual daily usage is like to warrant any kind of decent solution.
I'm on the Canadian side. We own some property in the US so I was able to get Verizon to put a phone line in one of the buildings in the basement. It doesn't have a phone plugged into it but just gets call-forwarded to my Canadian number. I find it pricey at $50 a month (it was to cover long distance rates to the call-forwarded number) so I'll definitely look into the Ooma link you provided, thanks!
I go over to Buffalo about once a week on average.
Yes, I wondered if my husband should get a Canadian cell phone and I should get a US one, because I tend to do more business stuff over there. And we're together a lot, because we both work at home so we could use his phone in Canada and mine in the US.
My daily useage is very small. About 4 to 6 times a year there will be an apartment vacancy to fill and that's when I'd be answering messages and talking to people on the phone forever... I'd guess during those times I'd be on the phone for 60-90 mins a day for a few days.
Vectoris,
Glad I could help, thats what these forums are all about.
It really does sound like you should just the International Roaming option enabled for your US Cellphone. Your usage is really minimal and most of the large operators here in the US, have very good rates for roaming in Canada. You will get to keep your US number and your phone will simply go over to Fido or Bell (whoever the roaming partner is).
I didnt catch what cell carrier you are using for the US, so your mileage may vary. I have AT&T and for the times I have gone into Canada (Vancouver) for trips its been great and much less expensive than buying a pay as you go SIM card JUST for being in Canada for a week.
Also, as others have mentioned, dependong your technical level, setting up a Google Voice number as a proxy number is VERY good. FOr example, you can have one number via Google Voice that connects to several other numbers. You can just give your friends/family, whoever, that one number and so long as you plug that number into your GV account, all phones will ring.
There are customization options too. You can have multiple phone numbers connected to your GV number and activate/deactivate whatever numbers you choose.
If you want any more help, feel free to PM me and I can walk you through it.
I'm on the Canadian side. We own some property in the US so I was able to get Verizon to put a phone line in one of the buildings in the basement. It doesn't have a phone plugged into it but just gets call-forwarded to my Canadian number. I find it pricey at $50 a month (it was to cover long distance rates to the call-forwarded number) so I'll definitely look into the Ooma link you provided, thanks!
I go over to Buffalo about once a week on average.
Yes, I wondered if my husband should get a Canadian cell phone and I should get a US one, because I tend to do more business stuff over there. And we're together a lot, because we both work at home so we could use his phone in Canada and mine in the US.
My daily useage is very small. About 4 to 6 times a year there will be an apartment vacancy to fill and that's when I'd be answering messages and talking to people on the phone forever... I'd guess during those times I'd be on the phone for 60-90 mins a day for a few days.
First off: $178 for 5 lines is rather cheap, by U.S. pricing, anyways.
Based on your usage, I personally would do one or two things:
1: Get Canadian cell phones for both you and your husband. Go with the cheapest plan. Ditch the other lines. Communicate with potential tenants on your cell (you call them), and absorb the costs. Considering the limited amount of time spent making such calls, it should end up being cheaper for you in the long run.
2. Use Skype, Google Hangouts, Google video chat, etc., etc. to talk to potential tenants.
I suppose there is a third: if your property is in Buffalo, just communicate through email and/or text messaging, then meet when needed when you make your weekly trip.
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