Should I move back to Calgary?

[metallicat]

Originally Posted by peter12

I love how this discussion has a "Peter is wealthy" thread running through it. I am most assuredly not wealthy hence why I can't buy a townhouse in Vancouver.

Are you so obtuse that you can't see it's that way because you said you make "a lot of money, A LOT"? That's not even a humble brag, it's just a brag.

[Jason14h]

Property tax. Is there anything more annoying that takes your after tax dollars.

I'm sure young Peter didn't have property tax, utilities and home insurance factored into the budget! The amount of after tax $$ these 3 things take up is crazy.

That's all I really have to contribute

[blankall]

Originally Posted by Jason14h

Property tax. Is there anything more annoying that takes your after tax dollars.

I'm sure young Peter didn't have property tax, utilities and home insurance factored into the budget! The amount of after tax $$ these 3 things take up is crazy.

That's all I really have to contribute

I actually think property taxes should be a lot higher. A lot of resources go into maintaining the public spaces and infrastructure that allow home owners to live in and profit from home ownership. Why should Joe Public, who is renting, have to pay to maintain the pipes, electrical wires, phone lines, streets, etc...that all go to your property.

This is a direct consumption tax and a tax the community would otherwise bear. This is also a tax that gets investors and other people who skirt around the income tax/capital gains laws.

Property tax is much fairer than taxing income and using it for random purposes that may or may not benefit the payor in any way.

[you&me]

Originally Posted by blankall

...

This is a direct consumption tax and a tax the community would otherwise bear. This is also a tax that gets investors and other people who skirt around the income tax/capital gains laws.

Property tax is much fairer than taxing income and using it for random purposes that may or may not benefit the payor in any way.

Isn't property tax essentially the opposite of a direct consumption tax?

Rates are essentially based solely on property value, yet provide no fundamental difference in services and don't account for different loads on the 'system'.

[blankall]

Originally Posted by you&me

Isn't property tax essentially the opposite of a direct consumption tax?

Rates are essentially based solely on property value, yet provide no fundamental difference in services and don't account for different loads on the 'system'.

A matter of perspective. The more your property is worth the more you are benefiting from all the infrastructure that goes into maintaining the community that creates the value in that property. It can also be viewed as a tax on your cost of living, which makes it a direct consumption tax.

However you want to define it, property owners most certainly get benefits that society pays for, that non-property owners do not get. They should be taxed for this.

[afc wimbledon]

I find property taxes in Vancouver annoying because they are used to deal with the down town eastside and its problems, its not the fact that the services are being offered that is annoying, its that I as a Vancouver home owner are on the hook for the social problems of most of western Canada, I have always though the down town eastside should be a federal responsibility

[Mr.Coffee]

I live where Sliver does, he’s right about a lot of things. But Bonavista is salmon country. Everybody returns here if they grew up here. Pros and cons to that. Cool community and if you’re raising a family cannot beat it (biased obviously).

I wouldn’t worry about “vibe” and “nightlife” and “vibrancy” and hip places and all that other nonsense. If you plan to raise a family, follow Cliff’s advice.

Lastly yes, you should do it. We’d welcome you back with open arms and it’d be a pleasure to get reacquainted again.

[GGG]

Originally Posted by Jason14h

Property tax. Is there anything more annoying that takes your after tax dollars.

I'm sure young Peter didn't have property tax, utilities and home insurance factored into the budget! The amount of after tax $$ these 3 things take up is crazy.

That's all I really have to contribute

It’s my favourite tax. Of all the things I pay tax for roads, transit, police, fire and other city services are the most visible value.

Then are the provincial services like health and education.

At the federal level the value gets a lot less apparent. So if I had to pick a tax I hate it’s federal income tax.

[RichieRich]

Originally Posted by Monahammer

Well, I will happily throw myself up as an example.

My wife and I make a combined income of over 200K. Part of the problem is that when you start to make more, you also start to spend more (by choice of course, but it also becomes somewhat expected by your partner and yourself internally to have a better standard of living.)
So we bought a nice big house that we thought we would grow into over the next 25 years as a family. No regrets, the house has been great. But it was 500k.
Then there's property tax, insurance, etc. My wife and I both own our vehicles, so that is a positive, but there's still insurance on them. Utilities on the bigger property of course a bit more expensive as well.
When we're both working, we live well. We have a budget and are able to put a significant portion towards savings. But it has still taken us multiple years to build up a net worth of 100k (I was incredibly stoked about this.)
Now, we are having children. When my wife isn't working, we are able to save much less per month, but the EI from mat leave does leave us pretty happy. Things really get tight when the EI ends (so back to work for the Wife!) Small problem though, has anyone seen how much Daycare costs? We barely net any money from my wife working while one child is in daycare, now that the second is on the way... I just don't see it as worthwhile to have her work while we net virtually nothing and have the additional massive headaches of both working with two children.

So it looks like for the forseeable future once EI is out on second kid we will have to be satiated with essentially not adding to our savings and not building net worth outside of the principle payments on the house.

It would be very nice if property values doubled over the next 10 years, but even in an ideal scenario when both my wife and I were working and expenses are low, it would be very very difficult to increase our net worth to the same extent as our parent's generation was able to as property values increased.

We encountered the same issue... 15-20yrs ago. Wife stayed home by choice. Went several years without saving to RRSP or RESPs. Minimal pricy vacations. Not many toys for me. But we made it work. The key is to have good financial habits BEFORE you buy a home and BEFORE one partner becomes a stay at home. Those early investments however small carry you some 15-20yrs later. Learn to live on one salary and minimize lifestyle creep as income escalates. And to be clear I’m not saying eat cat food.

[AltaGuy]

I just went the other way. Well, sorta. From Calgary to Montreal to Vancouver. So from Calgary to the most affordable big city in Canada and then to the least - well maybe TO and Van are tied.

This place is ridiculously expensive. I literally pay double my old rent in Mtl and there is no hope of buying anything any time soon. And I make a lot of money and my spouse makes even MORE. (None of that is true, but we do fine).

It is beautiful here, and the weather this winter has me wondering why I didn't come earlier because real cold doesn't agree with me. One thing I've come to believe is that real estate simply won't ever come down in Van. Sky's the limit. There will always be people coming here from everywhere and bringing money with them. I can't really foresee property values dipping ever. If anything, it might become a little like NYC - nobody lives in Manhattan except the ultra wealthy, and people with normal jobs commute from the burbs to serve the rich.

[afc wimbledon]

Originally Posted by AltaGuy

I just went the other way. Well, sorta. From Calgary to Montreal to Vancouver. So from Calgary to the most affordable big city in Canada and then to the least - well maybe TO and Van are tied.

This place is ridiculously expensive. I literally pay double my old rent in Mtl and there is no hope of buying anything any time soon. And I make a lot of money and my spouse makes even MORE. (None of that is true, but we do fine).

It is beautiful here, and the weather this winter has me wondering why I didn't come earlier because real cold doesn't agree with me. One thing I've come to believe is that real estate simply won't ever come down in Van. Sky's the limit. There will always be people coming here from everywhere and bringing money with them. I can't really foresee property values dipping ever. If anything, it might become a little like NYC - nobody lives in Manhattan except the ultra wealthy, and people with normal jobs commute from the burbs to serve the rich.

I came from London to Vancouver in the 80's because there was no chance in hell I would ever be able to afford to live in London. its never become affordable since then frankly, Vancouver will always be a desirable place to live, I do think its over priced but the new wave of Hong Kong immigrants I suspect we are about to get will keep the prices up even though they are too high, if I was in my 20's or 30's I'd probably be looking to Naniamo or Victoria to buy in

[peter12]

Originally Posted by metallicat

Are you so obtuse that you can't see it's that way because you said you make "a lot of money, A LOT"? That's not even a humble brag, it's just a brag.

Do you need a loan? Some money?

[calumniate]

Originally Posted by peter12

Do you need a loan? Some money?

You're the freaking worst.. wow

[Manhattanboy]

Born and raised in Calgary. Fortunate to have worked here during periods of fabulous growth.

The City’s best days are behind. We are the new Winnipeg. So nope. Not a chance.

[stampsx2]

Originally Posted by peter12

Do you need a loan? Some money?

It’s been a long time since anything on cp has made me laugh but this comeback was gold.

[stampsx2]

Originally Posted by metallicat

Are you so obtuse that you can't see it's that way because you said you make "a lot of money, A LOT"? That's not even a humble brag, it's just a brag.

The definition of jealous envy.

[Hemi-Cuda]

Originally Posted by flamesfever

I have always told my kids that if you find yourself rather poor financially, just move to a small town to increase your quality of life.

When I was a kid, my family moved from Toronto to Trenton, and my world expanded enormously. Instead of only knowing a few of the people on our street, I now knew half the people in town and felt more a part of the community. I was able to go hunting and fishing, enjoy sports, etc. and get to know a lot of great people. Even to this day I am in touch with kids I grew up with in town.

I feel that what is most important is not where you live, but what you put into the community you live in. I get a rather nostalgic feeling at christmas time when I watch all those christmas movies, which generally take place in small towns.

Small towns will limit you quite drastically on the career front, that's the whole reason I moved to Calgary from my small town in the Okanagan. I'll also provide a flipside anecdote that small towns can end up trapping kids. Hard drug use was rampant in my graduating class simply because there wasn't much else to do, and if you wanted to pursue any kind of university degree or technical training the closest options were Calgary or Vancouver. Most of the people I know from school either left town and are in one of those cities now, or they stayed and started working in the trucking industry. There's also no way I would raise my kids in any of the small towns in Alberta that I've spent time in simply due to the backwards cultural thinking so prevalent in them

For me Calgary is the best option in western Canada to raise a family

[Bunk]

Originally Posted by Manhattanboy

Born and raised in Calgary. Fortunate to have worked here during periods of fabulous growth.

The City’s best days are behind. We are the new Winnipeg. So nope. Not a chance.

Terrible defeatism. I understand pessimism, but if we make good choices as a community, we will grow and thrive.

[Hemi-Cuda]

Originally Posted by calumniate

You're the freaking worst.. wow

No, people who freak out about anyone posting about money (even when it's clear they're exaggerating for effect) are the worst. I get that times are tough in this city but just calm the #### down

[GomerPile]

Originally Posted by Bunk

Terrible defeatism. I understand pessimism, but if we make good choices as a community, we will growth and thrive.

This - I believe we are seeing a positive shift. We have far too many smart younger folks here that are looking for something different. The STEM folks arent their parents STEM, they don't want to sit at a desk for 30 years pretending to be a company engineer, without actually engineering anything.

The amount of VC cash pumped into the city in the last 12-18 months was unthinkable a decade ago. Hell, we just had a local company become a tech unicorn. The growth of the craft beer movement becoming its own industry. The affordability of downtown real estate for companies to grow, the affordability of families being able to purchase houses and the location in NA.

Calgary is going to continue to become one of the most attractive places to do business and live. As long as we can shake the oil and gas dinosaur attitude.