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Yes, was about to make this same comment. In fact, I can't think of many places with a better future than Canada, all things considered (and Florida would not be on that list).
Outside of the obvious changing climate advantages that Canada has, it has abundant natural resources, it has a diverse population (one of the most diverse in the world) AND has an extremely low violent crime rate. It also has a largely urbanized population, so intra-metro public transit scales up much easier than it does in the US.
I'm obviously extrapolating an entire country's virtues to a single city, which of course is not entirely fair - I'm aware Vancouver has significant COL issues, and for Canada has a decently high crime rate. But still, it is much safer than nearly any major US city.
Except like 2/3rds of Canada lives SOUTH of Seattle. So that there is an obvious issue about the country's livable zone being very small relative to its total size! It's like Russia with the majority of its population in the most eastern of NINE time zones that cover that country.
Keep in mind 1.5m will get a small home constructed in the 1950s there. The newest ones are much more. I was actually just there yesterday and saw a few in the 8 figures.
The 1%er neighborhood houses I was citing were 3,348 sf built in 1972 with k & b remodels that look like 1990s. And 3,649 sf built in 1979 with a fairly recent remodel. Both have had price reductions. Is 3,300 sf a small house?
Again, the dirt my sister’s Vancouver house sits on is worth $3.5 million. If she sold it, it would be knocked down hours after the city issued the demolition permit. Move the house 1/4 mile north from Dunbar into Point Grey and the lot is worth at least $5 million.
The 1%er neighborhood houses I was citing were 3,348 sf built in 1972 with k & b remodels that look like 1990s. And 3,649 sf built in 1979 with a fairly recent remodel. Both have had price reductions. Is 3,300 sf a small house?
Again, the dirt my sister’s Vancouver house sits on is worth $3.5 million. If she sold it, it would be knocked down hours after the city issued the demolition permit. Move the house 1/4 mile north from Dunbar into Point Grey and the lot is worth at least $5 million.
I found the houses you’re talking about on Zillow. They’re not on the water. Waterfront properties across the street are way more valuable.
Also, I’m not saying Tampa costs more than Vancouver or anything like that. I just mentioned this because those neighborhoods are a little weird. Some great waterfront lots are occupied by 1,800 sq ft homes from the 1950s next to a 4,500 sq ft home built in 2022. It’s not easy to get a real sense for the pricing there since you have very different homes next to each other. This is pretty common in South Tampa actually as old homes keep getting replaced by mansions.
Last edited by FL_Expert; 08-01-2022 at 08:17 AM..
I found the houses you’re talking about on Zillow. They’re not on the water. Waterfront properties across the street is way more valuable.
My sister’s Vancouver house isn’t on the water. You’ve moved the bar to require waterfront? You can’t touch that for under $10 million in Vancouver unless it’s a condo.
My point is that Vancouver’s ridiculous housing prices make a Tampa bake off more competitive. You can live in the most exclusive gated neighborhood in Tampa for a fraction of the cost of a teardown in a former middle class residential neighborhood in Vancouver with a 33’ frontage lot where you have 3’ setbacks.
I feel like cost to rent is the better comparison than cost to own. You just need a place to live. Unless your wealth is generational most people will just downsize that 2M shack, cash out and retire. There's a cost to entry but it's not necessarily that you're giving up 2M for life.
If I just Google Tampa and Vancouver's average rents, if adjusted for currency, it's not that far off from each other - about 1900 USD per month. Of course huge variables at play to influence that but it's not a massive gulf.
I had floated the idea of retiring in Florida before but by the time I'm of age I'm really quite concerned with how the weather patterns have changed by then - will just have to see when the question becomes relevant rather than postulate today.
Except like 2/3rds of Canada lives SOUTH of Seattle. So that there is an obvious issue about the country's livable zone being very small relative to its total size! It's like Russia with the majority of its population in the most eastern of NINE time zones that cover that country.
It's a bit more complicated than that. Geography and history played a part in why that area of Canada is more populous. It's not just weather, since Toronto has much colder winters than Vancouver, and yet it's longitude is
43.6532° N, compared to Vancouver at 49.2827° N. Saskatchewan has 40 percent of Canada's arable land, but only 3 percent of it's population.
Without going too off topic, there are many liveable regions in Canada that just haven't gotten the population growth, because population tends to grow where the jobs are.
That said, yes, most of Canada is not considered liveable by most, since peopled live in the far north. However, as you pointed out, it's a huge country.
I feel like cost to rent is the better comparison than cost to own. You just need a place to live. Unless your wealth is generational most people will just downsize that 2M shack, cash out and retire. There's a cost to entry but it's not necessarily that you're giving up 2M for life.
If I just Google Tampa and Vancouver's average rents, if adjusted for currency, it's not that far off from each other - about 1900 USD per month. Of course huge variables at play to influence that but it's not a massive gulf.
I had floated the idea of retiring in Florida before but by the time I'm of age I'm really quite concerned with how the weather patterns have changed by then - will just have to see when the question becomes relevant rather than postulate today.
Comparing living costs between two different countries gets very , very tricky.
Tax structures are different and you'd have to sit down and figure out how they balance out. For instance the obvious one for Canada is healthcare costs.
People make a blanket statement on how expensive Vancouver is. Yes real estate is expensive, but other costs are in line with many places that don't get that label.
Comparing living costs between two different countries gets very , very tricky.
Tax structures are different and you'd have to sit down and figure out how they balance out. For instance the obvious one for Canada is healthcare costs.
People make a blanket statement on how expensive Vancouver is. Yes real estate is expensive, but other costs are in line with many places that don't get that label.
Right... My brother's household income in Canada is roughly half of what mine is here in FL. We live very comparable lifestyles (financially). There are A LOT of variables to consider that aren't as cut and dry as rent/property ownership vs income.
Right... My brother's household income in Canada is roughly half of what mine is here in FL. We live very comparable lifestyles (financially). There are A LOT of variables to consider that aren't as cut and dry as rent/property ownership vs income.
Sorry but that is not possible, unless you pay separately for health insurance, all else being equal (house owned fair and square, comparable locations in terms of costs) if your gross income is double that one of your brother, either you conduct a quite more frugal life in relation to your income or you brother overspend. I lived in both countries, your dollars go further in the US especially if your income is double in nominal dollars.
Odd comparison, I know. But I am sure it hasn't been done, so lets get in to it.
Which city is more livable? We are comparing
Quality of life
Culture
Better weather
Natural beauty
Entertainment/things to do
Food
Better future
Browsing City-Data I noticed this 2 years old odd comparo, I know both cities very well so I take a crack at it. I assume we are comparing metro areas with metro areas.
Quality of life: Highly subjective, weather preferences for example play a part in it. To me Tampa hands down. more affordable, better weather.
Public Transportation: Vancouver by a mile
Culture: Tie
Better Weather: Tampa by a mile
Natural Beauty: Tie
Entertainment/Social life: Tampa
Food: Tie. In Vancouver absolutely great Asian food scene, in Tampa better Latin American/International cuisine
Better Future: Frankly, I do not know how to answer to that. Vancouver has a serious COL problem associated with lack of good jobs, Tampa has a serious Public transportation problem (totally absent metro train system)
In recent times Tampa started to get his fair share of BS recognitions by various media sources (Times, Forbes, WEF, etc...) "Most beautiful", "Greatest quality of life", "Greenest city" and so on
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