looking for general advice/answers to questions thanks!

[bluearies]

hi i am hoping to glean some advice/information from experienced members of this forum in relation to planning a move to canada.

we are an irish family, and are setting the wheels in motion for a move in summer 2010 but are a bit overwhelmed by the decision making especially in terms of what area of canada to move to.

i am 30, with a bachelors degree and about 5 years experience in the administration/office management field. having spent 3 years in the home i am currently studying to teach english to foreign nationals but doubt this skill would be in demand in canada so am willing to revert back to office based work.
dh is 36 and will complete 21 years military service in the irish army in 2010 at which point he can "retire", hence the date of our proposed move. he is a qualified chef and is currently doing various computer courses, mostly networking
we will also be bringing our 7 year old daughter with us (she will be 9 then)

my main question is, bearing in mind our skill set, what part of canada should we be looking at? we would like to stay on the east coast as it will be quicker/cheaper for my parents to visit or for us to return home.
we are not city types but would like a suburban area with good schools and job opportunities and plenty of activities for our daughter.

we will also be bringing approx $200-250,000 canadian dollars with us and wonder how this will contribute towards a nice family property (say average detached 3/4 bed with garden)

and finally what will our potential earnings be (just an approximate figure). ideally i would not work for the first year so as to settle my daughter into school, establish links with the local community, etc so we wonder if we could survive just on dh's wage for that first year (we certainly cant in ireland!!)

any other advice would also be greatly appreciated. it is very daunting making this decision and it may sound mad but we have never visited canada ourselves, just know a few canadian people and friends who have spent time there. we have never heard anything bad so it must be a great place to live.
we are just so disillusioned with ireland at the minute and cant see lights on the horizon so we really do want to give this a good shot.

thanks and sorry for rambling on!!

[CanadianGal]

Being Canadian I have to say the East coast is beautiful but has much smaller employment opportunities. Real estate is cheaper generally in the east but it is always more in a major city wherever you go. Cottagers and baby boomers retiring have driven up house prices in pretty locales. If its cheap and rural-that means it is harder to make a living.
We do have teachers for english as a second language. We receive so many immigrants from around the globe it is necessary!
It astounds me how many people pick the East coast with its limited employment opportunities because it is easier/quicker/cheaper to fly to Britain. It really isn't that much further to TO when you are in the air!! And for the few times people/family will actually travel-those extra hours barely add up in consideration of priorities as to where to settle! I know people are trying to be practical but I don't think that consideration should go in to the place you will settle. Look at the amount of job opportunities and cost of housing. Many people love Nova Scotia for example but it is a small workforce. New Brunswick doesn't even register with Canadians generally as a place to go and find work. BC is beautiful and so astronomically expensive that many here simply can't afford it. If you are coming with alot of money from the UK then you have a huge leg up on Canadians.
I say Ontario. Better home prices(*outside* the GTA-greater Toronto area-the golden horseshoe). Lots of work in a variety of fields and if you focus on Kitchener Waterloo for example, you have alot of employment opportunities in those cities and many neighbouring cities. You can even commute into TO if you want. Although I am confident you don't need to to find work. Prices are cheaper here then in the TO area and Guelph is about $30000 more across the board for a home then Kitchener- but still cheaper then Mississauga, Milton, Oakville, Ajax, Pickering. Please check out mls.ca - Welcome for house prices in those cities. You could also live in Cambridge which is cheaper too. North and West of KW home prices get cheaper. Immediate towns hold value because they are so close to the city and yet has small town lifestyle-but within 45 minutes commute you get much cheaper housing. Your money would go farthest there. Stay close to TO and you have a higher cost of living. But the Guelph/Waterloo/Kitchener(golden triangle) and Cambridge area is very commutable between each city and to TO, etc. Look at a map.
There are many places to check out in Ontario away from the TO area(avoid the cities immediately surrounding as they are pricey).
Ontario is a beautiful province/lots of employment in a huge range of fields-the most diverse in Canada I would think. Skiing can be found in Chicopee in Kitchener and about an hour and 40 minutes north (Beaver Valley). If you live north of Waterloo-homes are cheaper-you can commute into the city(or Guelph) easily and be that much closer to activities-the beaches and the ski hills. For instance, I am about 45 minutes from Lake Huron, Georgian Bay, and ski hills. Also you can reach these without the crazy traffic. A small city you may like is Owen Sound. They are on the water and skihills are in their back yard. Homes you like and much cheaper. More winter. But a good lifestyle. not the hustle bustle.
Unless you are constantly going to the airport I would not base my home/life/job around it. Canadians just make plans once in a while to go to the airport and travel to get there if need be. But really it is not very often. So I would not make that a big priority as it will actually not factor into the majority of your life/success here. KW area has an airport which is now doing international flights to take the load off Pearson(TO) airport. I don't think they go to UK yet but more flights are being added all the time to meet the needs of the big population outside the TO area. So it might just be a matter of time.
Hope that helps. Please check out other posts about this neck of the woods I have posted. I have talked quite abit about it. Don't for a second think you have to settle in TO and the rat race if you come to Ontario. Ontario offers a huge array of possibilties/lifestyles that are lovely. Ontario has the jobs/companies to support this-thats why we are the major province. Ontario is full of lakes/woods and differing beauty as well.

[gazanjuls]

just read your post canadiangirl gr8 info i to am trying to get to canada we are coming over in augs and are staying with friend in furgus can you tell me anything about london? or anywhere else.we will be around for two weeks on a recce thanks gaz

[CanadianGal]

London is a few hours drive from me. Fergus is about 35 minutes. Love Fergus! Its 15 minutes north of Guelph. Great smaller town with amenities that is striking distance to city and jobs. Little pricey because of this-but homes hold their value because its smaller town living close to the city. You can also commute over to Waterloo.
I have been in London a few times only. It has alot going for it. I know 1 expat thought it was lacklaster for landscape(flat). You get alittle more summer storms down that way too. You are getting farther away down in that southern area. If you want to be down in that neck of the woods then you'll do fine. But if you want to be a bit closer to TO without a long, long commute-try one of the cities I have mentioned.
Definitely check out London-but also Guelph, and Kitchener/Waterloo(neighbouring cities that run into each other). Guelph will be priciest. What kind of employmnet are you looking for?

[gazanjuls]

my wife is a kindergarten teacher and i can put my hand to anything but have been a house-husband for the last 7 years

[CanadianGal]

Yay for house husbands! I am a housewife, so there you are. We know the work involved. :-)
You have many choices. London is not a bad place at all to end up. Fantastic state of the art hospitals and an excellent university. I hope you have a good trip! August will be H-O-T. Get ready for it. People miscalculate how warm it gets here.
Are you looking for a larger city then? What kind of home/lifestyle would you like ideally? Scenery, activieties, etc?
PS. I use to live in Fergus-so it was cool when you mentioned it.

[gazanjuls]

hi i had no choice i married a girl who can't cook and won't cook.ya we like the idea of a smaller town( we live in a busy town)but i think we would like the choices of where we want to shop or go .i am not a one store man. we have two kids age 7&5 and a dog so we would like to get out and about. we like sun and also the snow .we went to France in feb skiing and the wife and kids loved it so that is a factor .i think you have more options in a big city .we will be looking for a detached family home with no mortgage.my friend lives at Bellwood lake .can i ask do you know anything about teaching? and do you think that a family could live in Ontario with no mortgage and both only work part time would the income be ok.

[CanadianGal]

Yes I think it is possible having the mortgage out of the way-and depending what your wages are. It also depends how much you want to put out for vehicles. Food and gas costs have risen-although compared to England's prices I am told we still have a great deal here.
If you like skiing stay up this way. Closer to ski hills. Down London way it is flat-and a long drive to ski. We have beaches this way too within driving distance. Lake Huron beaches to the west, Georgian Bay to the North. Landscapes vary too. if you go towards the north-you get rugged Canadian shield, pines and lakes. To the west-farm fields, some rolling terrain, very pretty too.
I know Belwood Lake! ;-)
So you would probably be happy to live just outside the cities. Homes can be alittle pricier in these immediate towns-but lifestyle is worth it-and they keep their value. If you are willing to go farther afield homes get cheaper-but it depends on whether you want to commute-time/winter driving/gas costs. With gas costs rising steeply, you might want to put that commuting expense into a mortgage to be close to the city anyway(and less hassles). I also don't think you want alot of longer winter commutes to get use to either. It may be a shock. Make it easier for yourself, not harder-if you know what I mean.
Teaching. My mom was a teacher for 30 years. Apparently there have been layoffs recently I heard on the CBC radio-because of inadequate planning in Ontario. But she should contact the Schoolboards, teacher's federation and ask what demand there is in her field. usually teachers can find work. The nice thing is with that kind of work, she can work in some lovely smaller locales away from the TO area. LIke Owen Sound for example. Which is close to ski-hills. You have alot of options for small cities/large towns-and close neighbouring small towns around Ontario. Home prices will vary and lifesyle and geography. I would focus away from the cities along the 401 corridor. Fergus, Elmira, St. Jacobs-a few minutes outside Waterloo and from Guelph. Stratford is a pretty smaller town with lots of arts and stores. But there are many locations to check out. Get looking on a map and ask me if you have questions. We have public and private schoolboards for your wife to check out too. I think where she will find work is a big starting point for you. Just make sure its not in an expensive area where wages don't go as far.