London, Sydney or Toronto/Vancouver? (real estate, rent, buying)

[saphiry]

Hi,

I'm ready to move to a different country (again) since I have been living abroad for almost three years already. I'm 25 years old, no kids, no boyfriend, a Master's degree and one year work experience. I don't have any job in any city abroad yet, so I would start everywhere completly from the scratch. Cities I'm considering:

- London
- Sydney
- Toronto
- Vancouver


I have unlimited visa for both London and Canada, so that wouldn't be a problem. In Australia I would have to start with a visa that's limited to one year, but I don't mind.

Which one would you choose? Sometimes you just need to hear the opinion of random strangers since friends are usually trying too much to get you as close as possible

Thanks a lot!

[Jesse44]

Uhhh, how about telling us more about yourself, line of work, what you like to do, what kind of person you are...?

[saphiry]

I work in marketing/online marketing, I lived in New York before and really loved it. On the other side, the rents were a big
turn off too and I know London rents ar very high.
I love city life, going out, but I also love the beach and good weather. Difficult..

[BIMBAM]

Originally Posted by saphiry

I work in marketing/online marketing, I lived in New York before and really loved it. On the other side, the rents were a big
turn off too and I know London rents ar very high.
I love city life, going out, but I also love the beach and good weather. Difficult..

I don't think work would be a problem in any of them, although rents aren't cheap in any either. Vancouver has expensive real estate, but the renting is actually fairly affordable compared to these other three, so it'd be a similar rent and cost of living situation as the others. Magnificent laid back city for the outdoors, but the winters are rainy and its defintiely the smallest of the three, and can't compete on nightlife or big city amenities. Can compete on dining, however.

Personally, I'd go with Sydney. It's the only one that combines good weather, outdoorsy stuff, and big city life. Canadian cities all have poor weather and London gets chilly and rainy all the time. Still a very expensive locale, however. But I'd give it a shot.

[saphiry]

Thanks!!
What about dating, any experiences?
It's not that I'm desperately looking for a boyfriend, but when I lived in NY the dating scene kind of annoyed me. Basically everyone was single but "seeing a couple of girls/guys"- That's really not what I'm looking for.

[paull805]

Right BIMBAM, so up sticks and move to Sydney over the other three because the weathers nice! Its life not a holiday, plenty more factors to consider.

[other99]

Sydney is the place to be. Great weather and the winters not too cold. Great beaches, and climate. From there you can travel right around Australia.

After that consider Toronto. I never been there but it would be a really nice city to live in.

[eastyork]

Originally Posted by saphiry

I work in marketing/online marketing, I lived in New York before and really loved it. On the other side, the rents were a big
turn off too and I know London rents ar very high.
I love city life, going out, but I also love the beach and good weather. Difficult..

Love the beach and good weather....sounds like Sydney is the winner.

I'd like to point out you can swim in both Vancouver and Toronto, I have.

I remember the water was kinda cool in Vancouver when I swam at English Beach/Stanley Park area, and the swimming season is only 2 or 3 months long.

Toronto has a few nice beaches too, Sunnyside Beach in the west end, or even better
"The Beaches" boardwalk area in the east end. Again season is short, about 3 months.

[Trimac20]

If you like good weather and the beach Sydney is really the only choice. As for dating, well, not too dissimilar I would imagine. There are some cultural differences, it's been said we have less of a 'formal dating culture' (whatever that is) but I think some men will be intrigued by your American accent.

[mooguy]

In Vancouver you can expect the lowest level of wages of the 4 cities and rents are high but not as high as London or Sydney but buying real estate is the most expensive in the english-speaking world. Vancouver is definately not the city to go to if you are trying to make money.

Toronto has the coldest climate.......a bit colder than new York's winters and summers are the same as NYC. Vancouver and London have the rainest climates and Sydney the best. Many people I know who moved to Australia moved back because they didn't like the isolation because it doesn't matter where you are in Australia you really are in the middle of no where.

If whether is your thing then Sydney and outdoors Sydney and Vancouver. If you are a big city person obviously London but Toronto is a more liveable and relaxed atmosphere as is Canadian society over Australia or Britain both of which are more conservative.