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Best places to retire in Canada for low budget snowbirds

18K views 70 replies 18 participants last post by  steve41 
#1 ·
OK, let's get this over with - I am a uncommitted wandering middle-aged male who just happens to have been born in Canada, has had tenuous connections to Canada for over 25 years, and is reluctantly remaining until I am rich enough to permanently leave. Might never happen. My purpose here is not to get into a moral debate about nationalism, but to discuss practical solutions for others in the same situation as I am. I am sure I am not the only one who thinks and acts this way.

Moving on...

Where is the best place in Canada to live on a budget of under $1200 in passive State income? Better under $800. Even $650 (no GIS). Plus have few limitations to one operating a little unregulated business for extras. I won't just be watching the clock until I can leave. I intend to be economically productive if my health allows.

Context - I am talking about only half the year in Canada -- obviously the warmest months. Could be a small city or even a town. I am not a wilderness kind of guy, though I have thought about being a lighthouse-keeper.

Everybody is going to have their own wishlist, so tell me yours.

For me it is, in order of priority...

1. Cheap: None of this $900 a month for a bachelor apartment. Subsidized housing maybe (I am creating a whole thread on this). In GVRD transportation is expensive, although maybe at 65 I can get a senior's all-zone bus pass. Currently, I have to pay $91 in Vancouver for *one zone*. $170 for a three zoner! So I walk and when I have to take the bus I use my stored value Compass card so rides are $2.10 instead of cash of $2.75.

2. Vegetarian-friendly: Able to grow my own veggies or lots of food banks with produce. Arctic would be good for a long growing season. Lower Mainland of BC has enough rain to grow greens but I do get tired of the slugs and wet shoes. Places like New Westminster with its Salvation Army have plenty of food banks. It's basically Hobo Paradise. This also means a lot of drug addicts and mentally ill. Trade offs, trade offs...

3. Good weather: One summer each in Toronto and Manhattan taught me that that hot and sticky part of the world is not for me. Summers hot but not humid would be ideal. Some breeze would be nice. The thing that gets to me about GVRD is it drizzles for months. In Singapore and Malaysia it pours dramatically then dries out half an hour later. I prefer the rainy season of West Bengal or Sikkim (I was in Calcutta and Gangtok for their monsoon and dealt with the flooding better than eternal cloudy skies of depressing Vancouver). Calgary -- I loved the hail storms of summer, but it was actually too sunny. I was always squinting my blue eyes. Where is the 'sweet spot' in Canada for agreeable weather?

4. Business friendly: Not a depressed economy, so I can operate a seasonal business or get a part-time job. Maybe a place catering to tourists. But that'll mean higher cost of living. Hmm, trade offs again. I know that the flavour of the decade is 'internet businesses that can be operated from anywhere'. I am not convinced. I like brick and mortar with human contact. I'd prefer to not live on handouts.

5. College or university town: Can take courses and maybe meet some women not my own age (I don't like bars etc)

6. Cultural: historic buildings, live theatre, film and music festivals, etc

7. Cosmopolitan but English-speaking: Where I live in GVRD the languages I hear the most are about equally English plus Chinese, Korean, Farsi, Russian and increasingly Arabic. I'd like to live somewhere in Canada where the demographic is more native language English-speaking. I'll bet Quebec is more Anglo-friendly than GVRD!

8. Religious: I prefer to be near a large Buddhist or Orthodox Christian population. I am actually secular but love religious festivals and parades. I have no problem with plenty of Hindu and Sikh Temples either. Lots of Catholic churches would be fine too.
 
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#55 ·
If you are expecting GIS and OAS, you dont want to invoke a clawback by working. Plus you want to spend time abroad eventually. I would instead look for a work for room and board arrangement. Then there is no income exchanged. You get to keep basically a free part time residence in Canada, get healthcare and other benefits. I am sure you might find that sort of an arrangement in the okanagan because that place is very seasonal. Work in a tourist winery for 6 months, party up in Thailand in the winters. You dont need to be rich to live a nice life on this planet.
 
#57 ·
When looking at cheap places to live there are usually contradictory factors.
Small towns, say in the maritimes, prairies, rural Ontario etc often have cheaper rents but you pay more for groceries and other items at local stores.
Exampke. Sardines 99cents in Calgary, 2.19 120 km away in small town.
Utilities can also be higher in small town. Transportation can be cheap in that you can walk most places in a small town, or drive in a couple of minutes. On the other hand, gas is more expensive and if you want to go anywhere outside of town or to travel, you have to go further at more cost. ( including medical specialists etc)
Entertainment variety and expense differs greatly as well.
You have to really weigh the different factors.
 
#68 ·
I have lived on the Coast all my life. I am currently looking out over my beach with tall evergreens, sealions, gulls, eagles, the occasional Orca. The snowcapped mountains of Vancouver Island and the magnificent sunsets are glorious. On the other hand, I have heard of retirees moving here from Saskatchewan and moving back home after a few years.... major claustrophobia.

BTW, I am 3 ferry-rides away from Vancouver and love it.

Strange.
 
#71 ·
By 'here' I didn't mean where I live now, but BC in general. Albertans don't seem to have the same problem. Comox, Courtenay, Qualicum are full of them. Rather than go to the Okanagan, they want to be on the coast. I guess in Alberta, you are always aware of the mountains and what lies to the West. Saskabush, not so much.
 
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