SHOULD YOU LIVE IN VICTORIA BC OR CALGARY AB?

With rising inflation and increased cost of housing, do you find yourself thinking about making a move to another city?

Back in 2017, my husband and I thought exactly that. We purchased a townhome in 2015 in a town called Langford on the outskirts of Victoria BC. At that time, you could get a townhome for $330K. Yes, you read that right, a 1600sqft 3-bedroom, 3.5-bathroom home for $330k. Fast-forward 2 years and the market was booming; our home increased in value by nearly 40%! And today, that very same townhome would be listed at about $899K. Crazy.

With the pressures of starting a new family we began thinking about our future in Victoria. How are we going to afford to “upgrade” to a larger home if/when we have more children? We wanted a backyard that was bigger than a phone booth – a place to call our own. The future was looking bleak as we were already stretched financially with our now “bargain” townhome.

This was when we started looking elsewhere. My husband was raised in Calgary, most of his family live in the area, so it was a natural fit. Moving was not a decision taken lightly, we had established roots in Victoria over the past several years. However, our minds continued to drift east of the Rockies; Will we have a better life in Calgary? Will we be able to get that family home that we wanted so badly? Is it safe? Will I be able to handle the cold (being from England, minus 40 is not very appealing)? So, this is when I started doing some research, on the pros and cons of living in Victoria and the pros and cons of living in Calgary.

Victoria, British Columbia

Buying a home –

The Multiple Listing Service® Home Price Index benchmark value for a single-family home in the Victoria Core in November 2021 was $1,249,400. The benchmark value for the same home in November 2022 increased by 4.6 per cent to $1,307,100 but was down 2.6 per cent from October’s value of $1,341,400. The MLS® HPI benchmark value for a condominium in the Victoria Core area in November 2021 was $536,200, while the benchmark value for the same condominium in November 2022 increased by 9.6 per cent to $587,800, down by 2.5 per cent from the October value of $602,700. – Current MLS® Statistics – The Victoria Real Estate Board (vreb.org) & VREBNewsReleaseFull.pdf

Pros

Cons

Calgary, Alberta

(Average 2022)

  • Single Family Detached – $656,299
  • Row & townhome – 356,662
  • Semi Detached – 550,671
  • Apartment – 283,540

CREB® | Daily Housing Summary

How Much Does It Cost to Live in Calgary – 2022 – MovingWaldo

Pros

  • Mountains (1hr 28mins to get from downtown Calgary to Banff).
  • Outdoor winter sports (Skiing, Snowboarding, Xcountry skiing, tobogganing, etc.)
  • Lakes
  • Hiking
  • Wide open space
  • International airport
  • Shopping
  • Restaurants
  • Chinooks Chinook Winds – Cool Facts Warming Winter • Travel Tales of Life
  • 5% GST and NO PST!
  • Calgary is one of Canada’s sunniest cities, averaging more than 2300 hours of sunshine a year.
  • Cons
  • Cold (A bit of an understatement, especially in January and February!)
  • Driving – Because towns are spread out, having a car is a necessity.
  • The cost of utilities and insurance are high

Final Thoughts

Moving is not easy and there are many factors to consider. I have been living in a small-ish town South of Calgary – Okotoks – for 4 years now and I love it. Do I miss the ocean? Yes! Do I miss the beautiful rainforest, yes! No matter where you live, you will miss something. But the Calgary area has so much to offer as well; the mountains and lakes take my breath away, and the open skies and the endless farmland make my heart sing. All things considered, moving to Okotoks was one of the best decisions I have made, and I cannot wait to grow with my family in this beautiful place.