The exodus begins

[Dion]

Has Calgary become too expensive of a place to live and work in?

Soaring house prices are driving public-sector professionals out of the city, say those in the know. So-called "portable professionals," who can transfer their skills anywhere in Canada, are beginning to leave the province behind, and it's a problem affecting portions of the public sector, said University of Calgary economist Frank Atkins.

Calgary EMS Chief Tom Sampson said while people are still cashing in on Calgary's booming economy, the cost of housing is taking a toll. "Calgary is still a very desirable place to come, but I think the price of housing is disconcerting," Sampson said.

http://calsun.canoe.ca/News/Alberta/...59859-sun.html

[MelBridgeman]

with more and more people able to work remotely or from home...moving to places like PEI and others with cheaper housing and living standard is the new black
________
2300 ENGINE

[Superflyer]

If I could move my job I would in a heartbeat. I cannot get into a house here and it is ticking me off. If I could move back East I would as I love it there.
I can see why people would want to do this as well, see a house here and move there where you can live morgatge free and have a little extra in your pocket, why not.
Guess that N.S. website worked on a few people.

[Cowperson]

There was an article in one of the local papers in the last week saying Calgary downtown housing real estate per square foot is now more expensive than Manhattan.

Couldn't find the link.

Cowperson

[TurnedTheCorner]

I remember that article Cowperson. Crazy stuff.

I'm telecommuting to work from home today. Home is still Calgary, but I suppose if the technology improves to where you can still collaborate effectively with co-workers and the productivity remains high, working from home could be from anywhere with a high speed connection.

I have no plans to leave Calgary though. Personal and family reasons make this the place to be for me for the forseeable future.

[ken0042]

This could end up being a problem if something isn't done soon. For me this isn't a direct issue- although I could sell my house and be mortgage free in Winnipeg, my type of work pays $10/hr less there than here; so I would be no further ahead. But if for example a nurse can make the same money in either city, it would make sense to move.

[Ice]

Living in Southern California I've heard about this same type of exodus for years. Yes, it is difficult for first time buyers to move here and buy real estate. But there are still thousands and thousands of people relocating here. If Calgary is a desireable place to live, people will come there, people will stay there and the ones who leave will wish they didn't. At least that's how it is down here.

The problem with leaving a city with high real estate prices is that you can't easily return to that city and purchase a home. Even if you can sell your house and buy one outright in another city/state/province, how do you get back if you want to? How do you find a half million dollars to put down? I have friends who have relocated to South Carolina, Florida, Texas, Tennesse, Oregon, Boston and every one of them wishes they could get back. Cheaper housing isn't always as great as it appears. Your lifestyle has to be considered. Home ownership, in my opinion, is not going to make up for being far away from friends and family, your hockey team, the places you like to hang out, your kids schools, and the familiarity of your city.

[Sylvanfan]

I'm not in Calgary, but I'm in St.Albert which is sort of undergoing a similar boom. I work from home and in my line of work it doens't make a whole hill of beans of difference now. I'm selling my place here in the next month and relocating to Kamloops where I grew up. Kamloops isn't that much cheaper and we do have to pay taxes in B.C. But It's a hell of a lot nicer than Edmonton and having golf season from March 1st to November 15th is a big improvement on what Alberta has. Also thats where my family is based, and my wife's is in Langley, so we will be closer to "home". In 2001 when I first left B.C. housing in Edmonton and area was less than it was in Kamloops, even as far back as 18 months ago housing there was more. Now Kamloops is quite a bit cheaper, especially at the high end. Why someone would sink 700k to live in the Edmonton area is beyond me....Than again 2 years ago I thought that about a 350k house which now sells for over 700. So in essence I'm one of these temporary Alberta transplants, who came out when things were bad in B.C., cashed out, and returned home when things improved there. Mind you the company I work with never really was in rough shape in B.C, they came to Alberta thinking it would be better to attract new staff. Now they're asking me to try and get an office going in Kamloops because they can't find staff, or keep any when they do.

[photon]

It definately puts pressure on things that's for sure.. the thing is for every person that moves away because it's too expensive, eight move in because they're still better off, or they come from places where it's even more expensive (cost of living vs. salary). It's still cheaper in Calgary than other places around the world.

And salaries are going up faster here than other places as well, but the economy isn't very effecient.

The trick is to have everything level off gracefully without having a big crash at the end.

[looooob]

Originally Posted by Cowperson

There was an article in one of the local papers in the last week saying Calgary downtown housing real estate per square foot is now more expensive than Manhattan.

Couldn't find the link.

Cowperson

I think it was a deceiving article. my recollection was for "New York" the prices weren't for Manahattan at all, but instead for Nassau County

[Tron_fdc]

I'm born and raised in Calgary, and I've been a homeowner (thank god) since about 1999. I just bought another rental with my housing equity, and to be perfectly honest I can't wait to cash it all in within the next few years, and move to small town BC. I suspect I'm not alone either, although the rest of the migration may be moving East and not West. The pace in this city is a little too crazy at times.

[looooob]

Originally Posted by Cowperson

There was an article in one of the local papers in the last week saying Calgary downtown housing real estate per square foot is now more expensive than Manhattan.

Couldn't find the link.

Cowperson

I can't find the exact link, but this was the piece about New York

A typical New York City first-time buyer would choose a four-bedroom, two-bath, 1,400-square-foot home on a 5,562-square-foot lot priced at $525,397 ($375 per square foot) in Nassau County and 45 minutes from the Wall Street financial district by subway or car

and it was compared to a condo in Mission in Calgary

the same article said that a Mission condo goes for 500 dollars per square foot. a quick internet search turned up that the average price for Manhattan realestate is a little over 1000 per square foot

[photon]

Originally Posted by Tron_fdc

and move to small town BC.

Be careful there too, right now lots of small town BC's are booming because of increased forestry, which is in response to the pine beetle thing. But in 5 years when they've cut it all down, those same towns could be in trouble. Which is great if you are buying in 5 years, not so much if you are buying now

[Tron_fdc]

Originally Posted by photon

Be careful there too, right now lots of small town BC's are booming because of increased forestry, which is in response to the pine beetle thing. But in 5 years when they've cut it all down, those same towns could be in trouble. Which is great if you are buying in 5 years, not so much if you are buying now

Dude, all I need is a remote cabin and a typewriter.....

[Ford Prefect]

I'm a home-based magazine publisher, with a network of writers, sales agents, etc. spread across Canada. Thanks to high-speed internet enabling me to operate from home, I relocated to small town Alberta seven years ago. It's probably the best decision I ever made. Don't get me wrong ... I'm not slagging Calgary. Calgary is a great city, but it grew into a place I wasn't happy living in. It's still a great place to visit, and I appreciate the city now more than when I lived there because I know I can leave at the end of the day.

[Sylvanfan]

Originally Posted by photon

Be careful there too, right now lots of small town BC's are booming because of increased forestry, which is in response to the pine beetle thing. But in 5 years when they've cut it all down, those same towns could be in trouble. Which is great if you are buying in 5 years, not so much if you are buying now

The thing is if I live in a place like Kamloops and the housing market falls out, and I'm forced to live there, I'm okay with that. I love the weather, love the proximity to the ocean, the lakes etc.. If I live in Edmonton and the housing market crashes, I'll be one miserable S.O.B. who hates his life.

I'm taking the outlook that Canada is starting to emerge in terms of land and value etc....Once thing that always makes land valuable is location. The wealthiest families in longer established industrial based economies in places like Europe and Japan maintained a lot of their wealthe because they owned land, and kept it. Basically they sought out great locations and held onto their land. We still have that chance in Canada to pick a location we like to own land and get it. So I've picked mine, andI'm going to move myself there and hoard it. Canada won't run out of land anytime soon, but the land in the nicest area's is much harder to come by today than it was 15 years ago.

[burn_baby_burn]

Originally Posted by Ford Prefect

I'm a home-based magazine publisher, with a network of writers, sales agents, etc. spread across Canada. Thanks to high-speed internet enabling me to operate from home, I relocated to small town Alberta seven years ago. It's probably the best decision I ever made. Don't get me wrong ... I'm not slagging Calgary. Calgary is a great city, but it grew into a place I wasn't happy living in. It's still a great place to visit, and I appreciate the city now more than when I lived there because I know I can leave at the end of the day.

My home town, a small town south of Lethbridge, had up to 30 houses for sale a few years ago. Now, there are no houses for sale. A lot of retired people are selling there houses in Calgary and moving to a small town. Tired of the pace of life and also cashing in on the equity in their homes in Calgary. My mother says when she goes to the grocery store she doesn't recognize half the people. Which is very rare in a town of 900 people.

[photon]

Lol, true Kamloops is a good place to be stuck.

[Rhettzky]

Things definitely seem to be going a little crazy. Right now there are five houses on my block (five out of about 22) up for sale. Makes you wonder if everyone has the same idea.

[Cowboy89]

Naturally there will be longtime residents of Calgary who have seen their house prices go up by three to four times in the last decade deciding to pull the plug and cash in. Especially now since these prices seem much more long-term than percieved even a year ago. I wouldn't be shocked or even worried about an 'exodus' as in order to sell your home and move on someone on the other end is buying. Unless everyone in Calgary is buying second, third, or fourth homes and not renting them out, then net we're gaining people.