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it's really not better anywhere else. i lived in australia for 10 years before moving back to toronto and i definitely prefer it over here. grass isn't always greener

Sadly everything you shared is pretty accurate. I got got followed to my work place by a stranger I met in the TTC streetcar. He proceeded with attempted to assault me in the building of my workplace. This left me traumatized for months, thank goodness I overcame my fear of riding the TTC. On the question of rent, it’s insane it actually may force some people to stay in bad situations just so they can maintain the living conditions they are accustomed to like staying in toxic relationships or terrible roommate situations…etc. I did get very lucky, moving in 2022 from living with a roommate to living on my own in a bachelor same area and really nice area in Mimico by the Lake for a rent of only $1400. Simply because my landlords are an old couple not greedy at all who prioritize having a good tenant over making extra cash but having to deal with different tenants every few months just because people cannot sustain the increase of living in Toronto plus paying their bills and rent. So there is hope, if you can find a landlord that has these values you won the lottery. I’m hoping things change for the better in Toronto, there’s no reason why the city cannot tackle all these issues in a more efficient way. But like sometimes I think of moving to a smaller city and if it weren’t for my current rent which is very low for the time we’re in, I would have moved to a cheaper province a long time ago. Thanks for posting your experience, wishing you all the best with where you decide to move to!

I moved to London, England, 5 years ago from Toronto. There's a lot of the same issues here, but I'd rather be in London than Toronto as there's just so much more to do here. Toronto is expensive but boring. At least in London you get what you pay for. I'm a city girl through and through so I couldn't imagine not living in one.

Ma'am we have our PR and my elder daughter is in University of Toronto studying Life Science and we are in Dubai. Now next year my wife and younger kid will travel. Wife has good job and I am not moving. My elder daughter is already staying there. My younger one is 13 years

The last time I drove down Young St, I was stopped in traffic waiting for it to move, when a homeless man stepped out from the side of a building and started peeing on the sidewalk, right in front of people who were walking by. Of course they side stepped him, some gave him a dirty look, others just didn't care and continued walking around him. Toronto is fast becoming a dirty, violent city.

I am from Toronto and it's really changed for the worst as of my recent visit, my family all wish they could move , I currently live in Halifax due to work for the past 5 years and it's also bad with similar issues . Canada ?? has really changed for the bad .

We lived in Toronto for 30 years and moved to Calgary 6 years ago because of a good job offer, and the hope for a less congested, polluted, dangerous, expensive environment. Here in Calgary, we are living in the inner core and can enjoy sitting in the back garden without hearing the drone of traffic or airplanes. Toronto was fabulous from 1994 to 2014. All our friends and family who still live there are unhappy with the decline of the city.

Toronto still felt like a safe, small city until the mid-1990s, but that changed; I moved out when I felt it change for the worse.

We live in Barrie Ontario, but have lived much closer to Toronto before. We are both in our mid to late 50’s and are planning on semi retiring in 3 years to New Brunswick. It’s very affordable and easy to retire there. As Ontario is extremely expensive, I can definitely see people moving out east in Canada as well as companies relocating there for the simple reason of affordable building rents or to build a new building for their business and offer jobs at a place where their employees can afford to live. I am also predicting that the populations in New Brunswick and Nova Scotia will see huge growth in the coming years.

I agree. In fact, thanks for having 2 passports, I am moving back to the EU in the next year or so. Toronto, and Canada, will take 10 years to recover. It's not worth staying here.

I am the Landowner as Toronto Tribe Mohawk Hollywood Royal as Queen of Canada and Royal Chieftain of Indians of America. I had God bring all Canadians into the Chateaus of Canada and God brought them in for Covid in 2019. Everybody is in the Royal York. I Natalie Helferty am in Hollywood North on Northern Heights Drive as one of myself as a way to End the War against Canada. Toronto is now the Empty City Syndrome just like New York was in the 1990s. There is the Entertainment District only as Hollywood North. New York Rental Rates were through the roof and Racketeering By Russians was driving the prices up so everybody moved into the Waldorf Astoria. Toronto is going through the same thing as Hong Kong Chinese Racketeers drove the prices up with condo rates in Toronto in the 1990s and they never were under Rent Control. Everybody was moving in the 1990s into the Royal York back then as Hollywood Actors could not afford the condo fees as all Movies are for Free and nobody made any money acting. There were no real Rent Subsidies in Toronto like in New York though as the City was not meant for Foreign Nationals to Scam Rent Subsidies out of the Government. Bloomberg as Mayor of New York knew who was from New York and who was not. Toronto is getting to be that way as Hollywood Royalty is all Canadians who grew up in Richmond Hill and were working as Government Staff. There was a need to keep the Racketeering in check so Homeless Shelters were offered instead in Toronto by the City. There are Clones made by Britain who tried to take over Toronto and they became Homeless People on the streets. The Police would arrest them all the time. It became a real problem for the city. There is a neighbourhood watch program that alerted police to vagrants in Toronto who were ruining the city by peeing on the street corner. They were Charles III out with Fred of Balmoral as Vagrants. The Asylum Seekers now are the Butler to Charles III as a way to be belligerent toward the Royalty of Canada who hasts everybody in the Royal York now.

Please don’t mislead people by saying “don’t move here” because of rising rents. Just because NY has even higher rents/COL, does it make it not an attractive city to move to? Rents go up with demand, which means more people want to move to Toronto. Just because your rent went up doesn’t mean it’s a bad city. The people who can afford it will move for a good reason and enjoy the city.\nEdit: I see you caveated this at the end, good. Would be nice to have this caveat upfront though.

Unless you have a net worth of over $100 M and an additional annual income of at least $5M, don’t even consider moving to Toronto (in which case, why would you want to live there in the first place?) — except, of course, for the fine year-round weather, the bracing mountain air, the breathtaking sea views, and the plethora of Old World antiquities, all of which are truly lovely...

Grew up an hour away from Toronto, and lived there between 2018-2020 while attending grad school. It was expensive then, and has only gotten worse. My friends that remain are afraid to taoe the TTC, and as you touched on even the nice neighborhoods no longer feel as safe given all the random crime. I work in community services, and so much of what we are seeing could be mitigated or outight eliminated with better funding for social services. It's been almost three years since I moved across the province, and although I love to visit, I could never move back eith the way things are now.

As a Montrealer, Toronto to me was pretty much like any big charmless American city but cheaper, cleaner and safer. So I understood that American visitors, at least, would like it. But no more. What hasn't changed is that it remains a physically unattractive city, replete with highways and strip malls, especially near and north of the 401, where most people I know live, as it's cheaper. Great for business, but Montreal is far better in almost every other way. Even friends who've moved to TO 25 or 30 years ago admit that.

I currently pay $734.96 per month for my bachelor apartment in Parkdale, Toronto. All inclusive. I found the place in 2015, and it started at $660.00 per month. It's a smaller building where I know most of my co-tenants. Quiet neighbourhood most of the time. I've been one of the lucky ones for sure. I love this city! I'm from Peterborough and I will never move back. Some of the best memories of my life have been here. But you're right Alina, it has changed. Much like most other major cities in the world. The economic hardships being the #1 issue. Rent going up, wages staying the same, and inflation not slowing down. But with Toronto, the transit system is far behind the progress of cities like New York. Toronto should have multiple subway lines going east and west. Queen St. and Dundas lines for sure. The overall culture of the city is not as vibrant as it was during the 2010s. That could be Covid related. Or things are taking awhile to come back to pre-Covid form. But a lot of great venues and restaurants have been shutting down. And being replaced with the construction of condos. The real estate is insane here. It feels like things have gone downhill since the Raptors won the NBA championship in 2019. Because that really united everyone when there were a million people gathered for the parade. I'm hoping things turn around and there's more affordable housing for newcomers. I know I'm staying here for a while longer. Because of my cheap rent. And career attachments to the city. Great job on the video! ?

I spent a lot of time in Toronto going to college then university and working in the summer. I love certain pockets of Toronto, the diversity, the opportunity and the uniqueness it holds however I would never move to Toronto. I do live in the GTA with my family and we were fortunate to buy a house pre housing market increase in prices and thank God we did! If I were a young person starting off now I would 100% relocate to a smaller city up north if I could get work there or to another province in need be. It is not worth all the stress and unhappiness that the trying to survive in the rat race that Toronto has become.

While I identify and agree with the overall sentiment of this video, here is the problem Alina. As a somewhat successful tech person who came from nothing, I refuse to move out of a city to a culturally or globally lacking city due to “budget”. I tried spending time in BC and Nova Scotia in the capital cities. I could not spend more than a week in Saskatchewan. I can assure you that someone with decent skills and lifestyle would not be able to sustain their social and personal life, and mental health anywhere in Canada other than Toronto. If I spoke decent French, I’d say Montreal is a decent option. Vancouver is too lopsided as an international real estate haven, even though beautiful. So the problem is that Toronto is honestly the only city someone like me (and most my friends) would consider living in Canada, and we are all unfortunately being forced to move to the US. We are in our very early 30s so it’s still not too late to have a big move but none of us wanted to try out NYC or SFO much later than now. I hope things improve and we are able to move back to Toronto. But right now, unless you make $300k+, it’s impossible. And we are only able to make that money in the US (most of us). Cheers and keep it up.

Nice video - but every city has had issues since covid. Look at San Francisco - yikes! Toronto in relative terms is definitely a bit down from where it was pre-covid, but being balanced, it's improving - just over the last 2 months, the Go Train into the city is now FULL 5 days a week (not just 75% on Tuesday to Thursday and then empty Monday/Friday). Vibrancy is therefore returning to the core, there are more people, a bit less homeless (many have moved their tents to Hamilton), and while we have a ways to go, it's still the best large city I've been to, very safe, clean, and I still love it. That said, downtown east after dark is a bit sketchy, but it always has been, so just be street smart and you will love it here.

Thank you for bringing Toronto’s issues to light. If my Mother wasn’t living in Little Italy and loved the area so much, I would have moved to a different province by now.

I was born and raised in Toronto in 1971 and moved north in 1988. I DESPISE setting foot in that city nowadays. My advice, RUN.....RUN WHILE YOU STILL HAVE LEGS TO STAND ON!!

Toronto is not escaping what I see in the cities you mentioned NY, SF, Baltimore etc. As to moving here it's not the right time atm but lets see how bad it gets and policy responses from all lvls. of gov. ?

Thanks for sharing your observations Alina. p.s. I lived in T.O. for a year and enjoyed it. Now it surely will be a place I only visit. I, too, once thought of moving to Toronto. And having read some comments from viewers... consolidated my future plans. ?

Yep, I emigrated to Canada (Toronto) in 1994 and lived there for seven years. The property prices were out of reach even then, so we moved east and bought a house in Pickering. We then moved to Calgary in 2002 and started a business. Now retired, own properties, and grateful to help others find reasonably priced accommodation. I speak often with my fellow immigrants, and many are returning home. Canada has become too expensive for them - and increasingly unsafe.

i was born in Montreal and i moved here 8yrs ago. Everything people hear or say about Toronto is a lie. Toronto is going downhill fast and the powers that be dont seem to care. The TtC is in shambles and prices are sky high and no relief in sight as the blame is put on non sensical reasons. Blaming the poor and international students for Torontos problems is absurd but that is what we have. I know many who are playing the system to get what they need. This is not a country but 10 fiefdoms reporting to the queens jester in Ottawa.

never found toronto that exciting anyways compared to other north american cities...heavily overrated city.... if you can move to another city... go for it... your pocket and sanity will thank you.

I could never move back to Toronto, sad to say. Homelessness here in Montreal has gone up 44% since 2018. Something is definitely wrong. Our quality of life is diminishing. Canada is unaffordable. Mental health issues and crime on are the rise. I notice gun violence has increased here. The pitfalls of capitalism and a market economy where money and profits come before people.

I did my Masters from the University of Windsor. And the only reason I moved from Windsor is because job market is really small over there. \n\nI am living in the Scarborough region now, and I gotta say, one peek into the Line 2 Kennedy Subway station, and you feel depressed. \n\nI genuinely believe Malaysia, with their LRT/MRT systems, have better public transport service than what Toronto provides.

I live in Regina Saskatchewan. I visited Toronto recently and I have to say I don't like it at all. Even though, I have already saved up enough money while working in Saskatchewan to buy an apartment in Toronto without mortgage, I won't consider moving to Toronto at all. The traffic drive me crazy. There are so many vehicle on Hwy 401 and all other roads even at mid night, going to work will be more or as stressful as your work. I am surprised to find out most of my friend who has better or same qualification as me only get about less than 70% as I get paid. Life quality must be terrible compare live in a more afford city like Regina Saskatchewan.

I've been living in Toronto for over thirty (30) years with a little two years try in Halifax, which didn't work due to the lack of meaningful jobs.\nWhen I arrived here in the late 80th I was very impressed with all the services provided and the speed to see medical professionals.\nI'd spent almost 10 years without a family doctor since my first one retired, and now I'm fortunate enough to have one who is so busy that I have to wait months for an appointment.\n\nIt is painful to notice that already paid services are disappearing and how dirty and dangerous this, once an amazing city, is today.\n\nI'm retired now just waiting for my wife to do the same to move out of this country, with the hope that our very low combined pensions will be enough to live somewhere else.\nMoving out of the city, even out of the province, it is not an alternative since anywhere out of here, includes having a car with all the expenses that this include.\n\nSad reality for retirees and specially for young couples with children in tow.\nSoon we will see this beautiful country devoid of human qualified presence to support all the neglected refugees that are coming.\n\nWho knows, maybe this is a new experiment on how so many homeless people can survive the harsh winter.\nGreetings from Toronto.

Alina - you can move to Finland , the happiest country in the world for four consecutive yeard 2019 to.2023. I was in Helsinki and Tampere last month for two weeks. In Tampere every things is new. Public buses Yutomg are new. Trams are new. Caffes are new, more new apartments. It is not Crowded like Toronto and it has no homless people. All Finnish speak very good English. So pls visit Finland but the Soumi language is very difficult.

So you are saying there is still a chance...LOL As a Torontonian, the truth hurts and I wasn't planning on watching this particular video. However, I did view it right to the end. Hopefully, one day Toronto the Good returns or at the very least things start getting better. It is our city and we all want the situation to improve. Hopefully, one day you will be able to make a new YouTube video on Toronto changing for the better and wanting to stay. I am originally from a small town and moved to Toronto for school and then work. BTW Thanks for filming and profiling my area the Harbourfront and Toronto Island ...I live just around the corner on Bay and Queen's Quay steps from where you were filming this video! I wish you continued good health and safe journeys on all of your upcoming trips! Looking forward to seeing your future videos and what comes next!

I am so happy to be able to live, in my language and in my culture, in the magnificent city of Quebec. I'm not rich, but I have a magnificent three-story residence there in a beautiful neighborhood where vegetation abounds, where crime is almost non-existent, and above all where my daughter also lives with my grandson!\nIt would never occur to me to move to Toronto, Montreal, Vancouver or any other large Canadian city. On the other hand, I could do it in almost any human-scale city in Canada, the United States or Europe. Everyone to his own tastes !

@31:00 minutes. People are not giving birth because that money from the Government is not enough. If you are renting a one bedroom, the moment you have a child you want a second bedroom. The cost of moving from 1 bedroom to 2 bedroom could be roughly $500 to $1000 in Toronto area. The extra rent alone will wipe out whatever Government is giving you. Cost of diapers, baby food, baby clothing adds up. The biggest is the cost of freedom (free time away from the child), to hire a nanny or daycare is too expensive for most people. Everybody you know is working so you hardly find anybody to babysit free or watch the child for you free.

Hi Alina, I used to live in NYC, I am use to the chaos of major cities, traffic jams, high crime, expensive cost of living, fast paced life style, etc. I wouldn´t mind moving to Toronto. I love your way and your videos, you beauty of beauties, rgs ❤❤❤

Remember my days in Canada. My both children born in Montreal. Graduated from Concordia and started first job in Toronto in 1988-89. Hired by Northern Telecom in one of 1000s resume. Moved to Ottawa stayed there till got opportunity to move to Dallas, Texas within company. My seniors, boss in Ottawa everyone persuaded not to move. Never looked back though if rate Canada best country in the world. Montreal, Ottawa and Toronto best cities in the world. Canadian most accommodating and loving people on earth. Always, thought to move back one day but looks impossible to go back

I have to agree with you the 401 Corredor west of Toronto to Kitchener Waterloo is very overpriced for housing if one is going to move to the ? such as Hamilton Kitchener Waterloo Guelph North out of the city towards Barrie Ontario everything is overpriced housing food once you’re out of metropolitan area yyourddependedon a private vehicle i.e. a car to get around

Like you, I recently returned to Canada from living in Asia for years. I moved back to Vancouver, and the changes here were immense as well. Basically, the exact same issues Toronto is facing; unbelievably high prices, frayed social fabric, homelessness, crime. I had some pretty severe reverse culture shock coming from Seoul where you'd see none of this (Korea has its own unique issues though).\nI've decided to stick it out as my wife and I can make it work for now, but wouldn't recommend young Canadians, international students, TFWs or anyone who's trying to get a start on their professional life to come here. It's about as uninviting a place for your career as its ever been. Expect to live with two or three strangers in a one bedroom working at a job with low pay.\n\nIt sucks to see how far Canada has fallen. I never thought I'd see it in this state, but here we are.

I grew up in Thornhill/Richmond Hill so on the boarder of Toronto and I would be in the city/downtown core regularly. I can say the city feels way less safe then it did a few short years ago, I definitely don't regret moving to Calgary last year

A few months ago, I was planning my move to Toronto for my kids education. Both my kids are Canadians and I felt that there will be more options for university in Toronto for both of them. But after the last 2 months seeing and hearing all these issues in Canada, my inner voice is telling me not to make the move. It’s scary hearing abt the healthcare crisis, crime and housing cost. Comparing to what I have now in Singapore, I’m not too sure anymore if Canada has a bright future ahead. Will Canada bring in privately run medical to support the medical crisis? And I read that Canada is in deficit now, how is it going to come out of it and solve all these problems at the same time.

Other options. Where. Thumbs down here. Just get out . If you are unhappy in toronto there are many that want to move here

I agree, Toronto is not the best place to live in at the moment due to the escalating cost of living and crime. But it would have been nice if you had discussed what the options are. Sounds like you moved to a better place. Please share what province and city that is

Living in Toronto for last 32 years and in 5 years will move to Southeast Asia

Grew up in Toronto and lived there since 1992. Left Sept 2021 and moved to Calgary... I never thought I'd move but affordability and my car getting broken into 4 times in 12 months pushed me over the edge.

not just toronto the entire country has chaned for the worst . Canada really feels like a third wolrd country .when i moved back from france ,depression hit me hard . Canada is a thing of the past unfortunately and whats sad is that canadians are so brainwashed , they have no idea how bad things are compared to the rest of the world .

Winnipegger here who lived in Toronto 2014-2020, moved back to Wpg 2020-2021 and is now back in Toronto. \n\nFirst and foremost, your comments on crime are inconsistent with the data and blown out of proportion. I suggest viewers take a look at StatsCan’s crime severity index which confirms that Ontario is the safest province or territory in Canada (safer than PEI lol). There are also scores for cities and Toronto is safer than almost every other Canadian city, safer than even Ottawa or Calgary, twice as safe as Vancouver, nearly three times safer than Winnipeg. If we start comparing to US cities, it would be even more shocking. Suffice to say, Toronto is not only safe, but it’s the safest major city in Canada and one of the safest major cities on earth. \n\nThe homelessness crisis has certainly gotten a lot worse, sadly. As has the cost of living, but you get what you pay for.\n\nHaving travelled to 35 countries (doesn’t mean I’m an expert, but I have some experiences in other places), I respectfully disagree and think Toronto is one of the greatest cities. It’s one of the greenest cities in this continent, safe, on the lake, super close to other major cities, great infrastructure (relative to Canadian cities anyway), it’s beautiful and there’s a ton to do, not to mention the diversity. \n\nDon’t be turned off by this, if you can afford it, it’s one of the best places you could live on this planet.

London is past ~80%, I'd suggest that's a bit higher than Toronto at 50% ;) I almost moved to Toronto myself for work, but the house prices/rent was extreme.

I live in the suburbs north of T.O. and look forward to moving back to Toronto. But, T.O. Is such a mess and I put that on self serving politicians who let the place run down. When it’s not a condo, turning into a condo, it’s boarded up stores waiting to be condos. No city planning vision, just more congestion.

Lived in Toronto for 21 years. Moved out 2 years ago to Calgary. The Best decision ever made. I only wish we made this move much earlier. Calgary is great, but if you decide to move here, please don't bring the TO attitude. Please don't Ontario my Alberta!

Good choice Alina. I am leaving Toronto after 40 years, moving to south western Ontario to live in the summer and South East Asia for the winters