FIRE to Canada

[Danny]

Dan, either you are trying to redefine the term "snowbird", or you are geographically impaired..."

REW

REW- I'm impaired in more ways than I'll ever know...

I like to get my chill on...

...don't want to live somewhere (Florida) where there so many hurricanes, retired people and out-of-staters...and this fixation and need for gated communities....

 

[REWahoo]

...don't want to live somewhere (Florida) where there so many hurricanes, retired people and out-of-staters...and this fixation and need for gated communities....

Understand. I'm fortunante in that we were able to RIP (Retire In Place). Only here in TX we hibernate in the summer... Thinking about becoming a "reverse snowbird" (FIREbird? )

REW

 

[nfs]

We're mulling living in Canada part of the year-Toronto-keeping a residence in Minnesota...anyone doing or thinking the same?...

Lots of Ontario is lower latitude than Minneapolis and more moderate weather...Winter in Toronto Summer in Minnesota

Toronto? Are you kidding? Toronto? As a FIREe? Toronto?

 

[Danny]

Understand. I'm fortunante in that we were able to RIP (Retire In Place). Only here in TX we hibernate in the summer... Thinking about becoming a "reverse snowbird" (FIREbird? )

REW

RIP makes sense...why I want to keep permanent place here in Minnesota....
FIREbird your way to Duluth on the shores of Gitchee Gumee...not much need for air conditioner there

 

[Danny]

Toronto? Are you kidding? Toronto? As a FIREe? Toronto?

nfs - go ahead start sharing with me...

 

[ShokWaveRider]

I think its pretty hard to do, at least legally. You'd have to watch out for the specifics of immigration laws and probably have to be out of the country for part of the year, although I don't know the specifics. Regardless of where you live, the US will still tax you.

Only if you make more than $80k a year in Canada (or anywhere else)

SWR

 

[ShokWaveRider]

It looks like you lose your US citizenship if you become a Canadian citizen by applying for Canadian citizenship (vs acquiring Canadian citizenship automatically). What sort of hoops to do you have to jump through if you decide to repatriate to the US?

NOT So! I am a Canadian, American and EU Citizen, I hold all 3 passports and it is perfectly legal. When I got my Citizenship they specifically stated, that we did not have to renounce our source country citizenship.

SWR

 

[ShokWaveRider]

Toronto? Are you kidding? Toronto? As a FIREe? Toronto?

Niagara Peninsular (near Toronto) is Beautiful!

SWR

 

[Danny]

Niagara Peninsular (near Toronto) is Beautiful!

SWR

Yes!! Stayed at a B&B in Niagara-On-The-Lake...more moderate weather than Minneapolis (it is all relative folks) gardening Zone 4 here Zone 6 there

 

[nfs]

Yes!! Stayed at a B&B in Niagara-On-The-Lake...more moderate weather than Minneapolis (it is all relative folks) gardening Zone 4 here Zone 6 there

Zone 8a-9 here.

Tell me, Dan, what's so great about Toronto. To me, it's just another big city. Small lots, traffic, pollution, noise. The city that turned its back on the lake. The weather is muggy summer and snowy winter. Sure it's got restaurants but almost everywhere has restaurants. Why Toronto? If you're stuck on southern Ontario, then why not a smaller place like Waterloo or Chatham or Belleville or ...

And not Niagara on the Lake. It's a Disneyish pastiche of a small town. Feh.

 

[nfs]

Only if you make more than $80k a year in Canada (or anywhere else)

I assume you're referring to the foreign earned income exclusion. That doesn't really apply to most FIREes.

 

[maddythebeagle]

Dan: do you live in Duluth? I live about 100 miles south in Wisconsin and it is like 2 differnet zones difference

 

[Danny]

Dan: do you live in Duluth? I live about 100 miles south in Wisconsin and it is like 2 differnet zones difference

maddy - no... down in the other Minnesota - the Cities People in the high zones may not realize how challenging it can be to garden here...

 

[Danny]

Zone 8a-9 here.

Tell me, Dan, what's so great about Toronto. To me, it's just another big city. Small lots, traffic, pollution, noise. The city that turned its back on the lake. The weather is muggy summer and snowy winter. Sure it's got restaurants but almost everywhere has restaurants. Why Toronto? If you're stuck on southern Ontario, then why not a smaller place like Waterloo or Chatham or Belleville or ...

And not Niagara on the Lake. It's a Disneyish pastiche of a small town. Feh.

nfs - BC I'm guessing...good memories of visits to Vancouver, V island and Victoria...are you near Vancouver and if so how do you like it...

...sounds like you have experience with Toronto...what part did you live in?

We want to rent an apartment part of the year in a BIG, noisy city again...snow, let me tell you about snow...we're now in a quiet suburb in MN...those other small cities you mentioned well they look nice but quiet...we want to live in a place with a street life...where you can walk or use public transit to do errands or to go out to the theater, and whatever... and one of those 6,000 restaurants...so car traffic wouldn't be an issue anyway...

.....with this in mind can you think of some appealing things about Toronto? (I know it's crowded, traffic is bad, crime is way low..people are friendly and seems like a well run city...what is the saying "like NY if it was run by the Swiss"?)...we really enjoyed the neighborhoods so many ethnic groups...you're right they turned their back on the lake but lately they have been embracing it full frontal with a revitalization project...N-O-T-L is a nice place to visit... Feh?...Oy!, you nebish, you and your big words, I've become ferklempt with your mishegas about this here shtetl and the pastiche de disney! You meshugina...you and your cockamamie kvetching
Best regards
DanTien

 

[Red_y]

For Maddy and anyone else interested...earlier in the thread we were talking about taxation in the US vs. Canada. Here's a quick summary of the differences:

http://www.transitionfinancial.com/us/income_differences.htm

 

[Spanky]

I like Toronto. My cousin lives there.

The cons:
The traffic is congested during commute hours -- not too different from any other metropolitan areas. It seems that a lot of people living in high rises. I personally prefer to live a single family home. 15% sales tax.

The pros:
It has a lots of Asian grocery stories and restaurants. The Asian food is excellent since many of the top chefs left Hong Kong (before 1997) to Canada and also inexpensive because of fierce competition. The city has many museums, gardens, theaters, book stores, shops, etc. The city also has a professional baseball team. Academic institution - University of Toronto.

 

[Danny]

I like Toronto. My cousin lives there.

The cons:
The traffic is congested during commute hours -- not too different from any other metropolitan areas. It seems that a lot of people living in high rises. I personally prefer to live a single family home. 15% sales tax.

The pros:
It has a lots of Asian grocery stories and restaurants. The Asian food is excellent since many of the top chefs left Hong Kong (before 1997) to Canada and also inexpensive because of fierce competition. The city has many museums, gardens, theaters, book stores, shops, etc. The city also has a professional baseball team. Academic institution - University of Toronto.

Spanky - We'll most likely rent in a high rise...just a matter of which neighborhood....so that's why the asian food was so good...

 

[ER@40]

Will be applying from Europe, seems to take about a year from here.
The points system is very generous now, have a degree?, meet the age criteria?, and its reasonably straightforward or so I've been advised (reliable source).

Question for the wise: In Canada :-

1. How far will US$24k go?
(sole yearly pre-tax income, single person basis)

2. Housing wise, how far will US$250k go?
thanks

 

[Spanky]

Dan,

Living in a high rise has some positives: no garden work and a great view of the city.

Have you thought about Vancouver? The climate is more moderate than that of Toronto. Vancouver also has a large asisan community.

Spanky

 

[Danny]

Dan,

Living in a high rise has some positives: no garden work and a great view of the city.

Have you thought about Vancouver? The climate is more moderate than that of Toronto. Vancouver also has a large asisan community.

Spanky

Spanky - Yes, I would like to spend a few months there also...Actually I want to spend a few months at a time in a lot of places...NY, Boston, Paris, Northern Italy(will be there in November this year hopefully Northwest is still flying),etc....keep the home base in Minnesota and go to these other places once or twice a year...most likely in winter....that's part of my FIRE dream...Living in other places not just trips...and I'm trying to make it be true. Best regards
DanTien

 

[ShokWaveRider]

Dan,

Living in a high rise has some positives: no garden work and a great view of the city.

Have you thought about Vancouver? The climate is more moderate than that of Toronto. Vancouver also has a large asisan community.

Spanky

Rain, Rain, Rain & More Rain, If not Rain Clouds and More Clouds. wit long enough and you may see the sun

SWR

 

[Danny]

Rain, Rain, Rain & More Rain, If not Rain Clouds and More Clouds. wit long enough and you may see the sun

SWR

Similar to what folks down the coast get....Oregonians don't tan they rust. ...

 

[Red_y]

ER@40, I sent you a PM in answer to your questions.

 

[nfs]

are you near Vancouver and if so how do you like it...

Close enough and far enough. But it's awful where I am. Honestly.

sounds like you have experience with Toronto...what part did you live in?

It's been a long time. I'm there about once a year now and, aside from visiting friends, I really don't see the point.

We want to rent an apartment part of the year in a BIG, noisy city again

Bangkok, Seoul, Mexico City, ... Oh, you want snow and noise. How about Montreal?

N-O-T-L is a nice place to visit...

Exactly. The whole place has been re-engineered to accommodate visitors. Residents can get stuffed. It's not the only place like that. It's happened with Whistler too in Canada. In the US, the best example I know personally is New Hope, PA, which was a hell of a nice place to live 30 years ago and has turned into a Potemkin village, just like NOTL.

Feh?...Oy!, you nebish, you and your big words, I've become ferklempt with your mishegas about this here shtetl and the pastiche de disney! You meshugina...you and your cockamamie kvetching

You're stretching my Yiddish skills.

<Red_y>:

http://www.transitionfinancial.com/us/income_differences.htm

That's very misleading. It only shows federal income taxes. Most US states have a pretty light hand when it comes to their own taxes. In Canada, the lowest provincial taxes are higher than the highest state taxes anywhere. So be careful.

<ER@40>:

In Canada :-

1. How far will US$24k go?
(sole yearly pre-tax income, single person basis)

2. Housing wise, how far will US$250k go?

On US$24k, you make about $4k on the exchange rate and you lose it to income tax, so you end up with about C$2k a month to live on. For some, that will support a very reasonable lifestyle; for others, not. Food is as cheap in Canada as in the US. Rents depend on location. Clothes are more expensive but, hell, FIREes are supposed to shop at thrift stores, right? Public transit is reasonable, gas is hideously expensive, medical care is "free". It wouldn't be grand but it wouldn't be penury either.

US$250k for housing will go far in a lot of places. You probably have to rule out metro Toronto and Vancouver completely. But there are lots of other places with much lower prices. C$200k will do you nicely in lots of places. You can always go whole hog. Look around long enough at http://www.mls.ca and I'll bet you can get well under $50k if you'll settle for a dying town on the bald prairie or a dead mill town on the BC coast or an abandoned outport in Newfoundland.

<ShokWaveRider>:

Rain, Rain, Rain & More Rain, If not Rain Clouds and More Clouds. wit long enough and you may see the sun

Thanks, SWR. You're right. It's awful here.

You may think I'm teasing. That's only partly true. Anyone contemplating a move to Vancouver or environs should be encouraged to spend a January and February there before finalizing any decision. It is really grey in the winter.

 

[Calgary_Girl]

2. Housing wise, how far will US$250k go?
thanks

$250K US will buy you the following house in Calgary. Located approximately 15 minutes to downtown.

http://pictures.mls.ca/mls/reb9/highres/7/c31827071.jpg