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lol...I left Canada 12 years ago...Canada is not moving forward, very little industries to choose, very little roles and positions to offer, the work culture is slow, lazy and dumb in general. Cost of living and tax is high. The government is not open to welcoming more outside investment or allow more companies into Canada. \nAnd having Trudeau as the PM makes everything just worse... \n\nThe only reasons I would go back to Canada, for a vist only, is because of the fresh air and trees and quietness. And maybe some food that I like...and to see my family. But that's all.....I moved back to Hong Kong, and then explored opportunities in mainland China as well. Honestly, after my experience back in Hong Kong it felt like Canada is at least 20 years behind. And after exploring mainland China, it feels like Canada is 40 years behind. \n\nSo yea, no plans to move back to Canada.....because even elderly homes in China now provides really high quality service compare to the ones offered in Canada, you would feel like the Canadian elderly homes are a prison for old people.

You nailed it Sonia, me and my family of as been living here for about 17 years and yes we have been through it all, so I could actually feel the clock turning as you spoke. I would like to add one thing though which you are right about that, if you are planning to come and start now, it definitely is not the time to come, 17 years ago was a different time and I can also tell you that we feel the pain yet even now to make ends meet. Honestly, life was good until a few years ago but now the value is declining to a great extent, again as a disclaimer this is my personal experience and would probably apply differently to different individuals. In short, as you said, if you are doing well somewhere else, don't hit the axe on your own feet by coming here.

Does this thing still exist in this place??\n\nBecause i live in a Muslim Area residence and they don't do this here. We actually feels secured because of them because drunk people causing havock and trash can't cause trouble here. D&rug dealers can't also linger in our area because the Muslim people here doesn't care about them $#it and will tell police about them.\n\nThe people with other religions also come to them to talk if there is neighborhood disputes.\n\nBut! Our Muslims here doesn't harass women with different clothing, because they respect other religion. They don't care if they $|aught€r a pig if they have a feast or party.\n\nIt's give and take. If the Muslims have parties or it's Ramadan time, people should not say something because its their turn to do their stuff.

I am a Canadian citizen who moved to Bangkok, Thailand, 26 years ago as I had a professional job there. At that time, I was attracted by the Thai culture, the weather and the quality of life. I have been married to my beautiful Thai wife (S.E. Asian ladies are stunning?) for 23 years and we have two grown up children (one is studying in Canada!). I feel that I have more personal freedom in my daily life here, under a military government, than I would in Canada. There is also fast fibre optic internet, reasonably priced phone plans, the low cost of living (I bought an apartment after the 1997 financial crisis), affordable and world class private hospitals. I have learned the language and this is the perfect country for me to retire in. I could not clearly see the future years ago, but I asked myself, where do we think the future is? With creditor nations or with debtor nations? I am so glad that I made the decision to leave Canada in 1997!

I was tinkering and planning for a full 5 years wanting to live in Canada, BC but decided not too after evaluating the monthly cost. Each annual visits gotten longer and longer to get the feel on the ground. It was not meant to be, perhaps next time thou.

Many of the issues you bring up are the same here, but I am willing to deal with those over the impending chaos we are seeing down here. I am an American living close to the border in Buffalo, but I am considering a move to Canada due to the political climate down here. I would rather pay a little more in taxes & gas than deal with the Christian Taliban we are heading for. The Canadian housing market can be fixed, food prices can come down, but once you start losing rights, it's time to consider your options. When I (a straight white guy in his 50's) can see the writing on the wall, it's getting close to time. That being said, living in a state (New York) that will fight the incoming stripping of our rights, will buy us a few years. I can deal with all the other things (high housing costs, soul crushing medical debt, overpriced college, & out of control gun violence), but we are way too close to a civil war for my comfort. I travel up and down the east coast and don't believe what they are saying, we are way too close to a pre-WW2 Germany situation for anyone to feel safe. The amount of gun owners threatening violence is very concerning.

Canada has the same problem as the United States: wrong kind of politicians elected. Like the U.S., most Canadians consider themselves compassionate liberals and thus feel obligated to vote for said, compassionate liberal politicians. The problem is, for Canada and the U.S., these compassionate liberal politicians don't know how to run the nation's economy except to run it further into the ground. And when the problems get really bad, the solution is always, raise taxes because liberal politicians are either Marxist Socialist and believe the citizenry are obligated to pay higher and higher taxes for more government intervention, meaning, interference, in most cases.\n Whenever Canada does get around to voting in a conservative prime minister and government, the Canadian mass media immediately goes on a years-long negative campaign of deliberately undermining the government in the eyes of the Canadian People, demeaning them as inept and uncompassionate and comparing them to fascists. Eventually the Canadian People get so distressed they have to vote back in the liberal party. And then the same happens again.\n I'm just glad our Canadian brothers are not blaming the U.S. government or the CIA, but instead are clear-headed and courageous enough to blame their own government and past legislations and laws that do the exact opposite of what is supposed to happen, level the playing field for all Canadians.\n I'm reading about the outrageous pricing of Canadian housing and am astonished. But one YouTuber explained this about his Canada. Everyone in Canada wants to squeeze into the few, concentrated urban areas that concentrate business, finance, manufacturing, job opportunities, et al. As it happens, these areas are too few and far between. So what ends up happening is geographical overpopulation, despite Canada having a total population of around 32 million souls. People in California can certainly understand this phenomenon. You can purchase a 3-bedroom house out in California City, which is near the Mojave Desert, for $176,000, but there's nothing out there to make it worthwhile living there. Conversely, a tiny, 3-bedroom home in Torrance, Los Angeles, was selling for $800,000 in 2018. \n As realtors put it this way all the time, location, location, location!\n I'm going to pass on commenting on Canada's National Health Care. I've read criticisms from native Canadians on the Internet. As Canadians, they're entitled to say whatever they want about their country. If I, a Yank, open my big mouth, I'm going to get trolled by a hundred angry Canadians defending their National Health Care as the world's greatest socialized medical care. Health Care is already expensive enough in the U.S. Most people get it through their employer, which pays a part of it. But employees' monthly deductions for health insurance have been growing steadily over the past 30 years to where it's now a huge chunk out of one's monthly paycheck.

I lived in the USA for many years and Canada has many good points.\nFree health care, lower crime, less guns, less poverty, I get the feeling that this is a conservative hit job

As someone from Brazil, to me this video feels like just some champagne problems. You guys have no clue how easy you have it. But at the same time, I agree that easier times make people more soft, so you start to see problemas everywhere.\nEven with all of this problemas Canada still one of the best places to move in. Try living like a month in a 3rd world country (as an average native, not as a tourist using your strong currency) and you soon will be reminded of how lucky you are

I’m from Canada and moved to Europe the better part of twenty years ago. It’s nice to visit, but I don’t want to live there. I just feel it’s really boring and isolated.

I came to Canada 33 years ago. Life was better but in the past 10-15 years it has gone downhill from rent, food, and basic needs to gym memberships and so on. I am thinking of moving back to Afghanistan with some savings and start a business there. I feel like I am living to work and pay bills. Barely have any savings.

The thing about Canadian experience is so true, even for Canadians that live abroad and then come back. I spent my 20s living in Japan and when I moved back to Canada I had such a hard time finding a job because all of my experience from the past decade was overseas. It’s taken me about 6 years to get stable footing here again but the rising cost of living still has be feeling a bit uneasy at times.

I do agree that we need to normalize and promote a simple lifestyle where non essential consumption is discouraged. I am living in a two bedroom place only 546 square feet and it’s too much! A few months ago I ended up getting a roommate so the place wouldn’t feel so empty. This woman had no other options and likely would have been homeless had I not taken her in. I think Canadians need to help each other a lot more, rather than looking to the government and the crime minister. Their high taxation and uncontrolled deficit spending is the main cause of our economic woes.

As a canadian born here and raised by first gen immigrants this is true. Parents came from poorer countries and came to Canada for peace and to be better off financially. They worked hard and made sure I would live a better life then them by focusing on school and getting a good paying job. Fast forward, I graduate university landed a good job and am still struggling in this country. Feels like deja vu now Im considering moving countries for the same reason my parents did.

My family came to Canada 5 years ago. The main reason was because my dad had been busy setting up a branch of his European company here for two years. He wanted to launch this new branch and then retire early. Canada as he knew it was a good option for him to do this. We even had a house long before we came to Canada. And we now live on the west coast of Canada. \n \nFor us, the transition to feeling at home here wasn't particularly difficult. We also had enough experience of what it was like to live in other countries. Canada actually turned out to be a very easy country to quickly settle in. \n \nI've heard that Canadians can be reserved, but my personal experience is completely different. \n \nNevertheless, I got to know fellow immigrants who didn't find it easy to get started in Canada. In my experience, they were not very or only rudimentarily informed about what to expect in Canada. Their expectations were very high and they failed because of the reality of everyday Canadian life. \n \nOthers had similar experiences, but they persevered and ultimately arrived in Canada. Some of my fellow students are international students who are also considering leaving the country because Canada doesn't offer what they were hoping for as a better life here. \n \nThe reasons are really too individual in nature to really generalize. I think there should be a lot more help given to people who are struggling with their fate in Canada, because there are enough programs that they could take advantage of but that they never hear about. \n \nUltimately, it may help if someone just listens to them and perhaps has some advice, no matter how vague it may be. Those who finally arrive in Canada after years of a long odyssey and find this country something like home are, in my opinion, those who never gave up.

Absolutely on point. What the Arab world can do though is Demand sanctions on Israel and call out Israel’s brutality and call out the United States. They are still tiptoeing. Every time I watch United Nations interviews. The Arab world is too afraid to call out the United States for this type of genocidal support, and it’s not just the Arab world. I’ve noticed that the entire world is afraid to criticize, especially after the last veto on the Floor of the United Nations vote coming from the United States. And the fact that Britain abstained I just don’t understand why they’re not called out by name and I don’t believe the world should go down to the scumbag level that Israel goes down to buy speaking ill of everyone but themselves, but I do want to see more aggressive talk Saudi Arabia has so much leverage I mean so much leverage I would have to say it’s quite dangerous that even with all the power Saudi has over the west, it doesn’t take advantage of this to protect the holy land, Saudi, needs to get their heads on straight and realize we need to stop fighting Muslims and start standing together Unfortunately Saudi and their population have been acting like they are superiors to the remainder of the air of world even though they are the reason Muslims living across the world have been demonized and we feel that we are always being attacked as Muslims because of the policies of Saudi Arabia on its own people. Just saying.?

I am a Brazilian who lived in 2 different countries in Europe and of course in Brazil, and I share the same feeling as this guy once I lived in Toronto for 12 months and could not stay any longer. Canada self sells itself very well, but once you are inside it is not worthy. It only fits those that are very consimists. Just for those who think that happiness can be purchased.

The Arab world is sitting back waiting for social media to stigmatize the Jews as hostile Before they step in and do anything. I don’t think they really care about people dying or living. In fact, I feel they see war as religious fulfillment so as to spearhead another attack on Israel.

High cost of living - taxes, ridiculous real estate market, lower pay, little to no summer (all of it spent under construction) terrible drivers and a government at the root of it all and chunk of the population that feels obligated to vote for that terrible government because of their LGBTQ+ě%#@>; status or that are looking for handouts.

I feel this regression is happening in so many other countries as well, or other factors, but leading to the same outcome. The question arises, where is it still great to live.......

I don't want to live in a WEF prison. I won't move there even if the Canadian government pays me. I feel sorry for my fellow South Africans that move there. Get little Swaups g-string out of the prime leadership and I think that it will be a wonderful country to live in.

I don't want to live in a WEF prison. I won't move there even if the Canadian government pays me. I feel sorry for my fellow South Africans that move there. Get little Swaups g-string out of the prime leadership and I think that it will be a wonderful country to live in.

ha ha ha\nyou \nspeak\nmy\nthoughts\n\nlmaoo\n\nim an immigrant. i came here not for settle down my life here or not anything like that at all.\ni decided to come here, because my family is living here.\ni come from a Asian country.\n\nyesh.\nwhat i had been experiencing in my country, my city are actually better than Toronto, tbh.\ni didn't expect that i will come here and then settle down here.\nafter one year, my mind has already thought about moving to another continent after a few years in Canada.\ni missed my family. i love them.\nbut i just cannot.\nhere is not what i want for myself. i don't feel that i belong to here.

? it's not only immigrants leaving. I was born and raised here and eventhough it was great growing up, I will miss what this country was. There are far more affordable places to live with much better quality of life. I feel sorry for future generations who will never know what it will be like to live debt free.

Unfortunately, Montreal is going down too... Been here for 18 years and it's getting worse (lots of road work, homelessness, opioid crisis, rental prices increasing (which fuels the homelessness crisis..) I don't go downtown anymore, it sucks and I don't feel safe. Even the Plateau neighborhood where I live now has a lot of homeless people, needles found in parks, HUMAN poo found in the same parks...). A lot of shops and restaurants are closing too... It's sad! I never thought i'd want to leave Montreal, it has a lot of great things but I want to feel safe when walking at night or taking public transportations...

Canada is awful. Since I moved here 1,5 years ago I’m just struggling with the depression all this time. There is no joy in this country, no feeling of safety. Crime is happening all the time. I don’t feel safe walking on the streets. My salary is low bcz no employer is willing to pay good money to an immigrant. I’m not able to afford a car but the public transport is just terrible! I can barely afford to split the rent with my partner. Barely can save any money. As an immigrant I will never be able to buy a property here. I lived and worked in another country and I was able to save so much money and have a great life, travel, buy food, have fun. Here I am not able to do this.

i feel sorry for anyone who is in such a desperate situation that they chose to come to Canada. no one in their right mind would want to live in this forsaken place

The city where I live feels like Kalcutta. I wish they know how to smile.

He acted correctly no apologies should have be sent. We are living in a sick world based on feeling and emotions.

Nice content, loved your English. As an immigrant myself and being Asian living in Canada, I literally didn’t have any big dreams when I decided to move to Canada. But only expectation I had was people would be more friendly, educated and so on, and I didn’t noticed that much about(i won’t like to call it racism) but the way local see and behave the other different countries people but now after living here for couple of years I can so easily see how the local treat you, behave you. That’s my biggest disappointment. It might be just my prospective or the phase that im going through and so on. But just wanted to share. Again i know I’m not the first or only person who felt it. And yes I know the local very closely too and how and why they feel that. Some of the immigrants aren’t respecting the rules, tradition or so on here. Well i guess it is what it is. \nJust wanted to share my experience. \nAnd I myself been thinking about leaving Canada for good too and I totally agree with your points. \nHopefully at least housing and rent goes down.

I absolutely agree with this lady even in USA where we have been living since last 25 years we also feel same that what Indian vegetables, fruits and fish test they don't test same and yummy in America. Indian soil, weather and water may be is more nutritious and have less minerals and more vitamins in it.

There are essentially two major problems when discussing this issue. First and foremost, it is VERY difficult for anyone to even attempt to bring up an intelligent argument because they are instantly branded a racist, so many people just keep quiet, which is not healthy in a democracy. Secondly, when examining the world as it is today, the inescapable fact is that the nations with a high standard of living and a truly democratic system simply cannot sustain the rest of the globe!! It's simply a numbers game, if we gradually permit the rest of the world to bring it's problems here, the outcome is predictable. I'm sorry but I feel that it's a terrible thing when I go out and almost ALWAYS notice that I am a minority. I don't care what your politics are, that is just wrong. And the aspect of that is most unfair? The countries where these people came from would NEVER allow that to happen. In fact, most often we are not welcome in those countries at all!

England is a country not a religion. We have a government for rule, not a church or anything else. You believe what you want but dont insist that others do the same. Muslims come into a country or are even born in a country that the majority don't live like they want so they club together, multiply, dont integrate into the majority or native system forcing the non believers to leave as they are made to feel uncomfortable for non being Muslim. Those who have left a messed up country which has been made a mess as a result or religion, try their hardest to make the receiving country exactly like the one they have left! If you dont like the native life style of a country, dont go to that country! If you are born there, believe what you want but never force others to believe what you believe and try to integrate into the local society maybe? London (England capital city) is now majority populated by non English people! Surely that cant be right on some level where the non indigenous outnumber the indigenous of a capital city!

thanks bro im feeling the same way in quebec living canada soon too

Am suppose to feel bad for immigrants when we as Canadians can’t afford to live in our own country!!! ??? most Canadians can’t afford house’s!!

Canada-\n\n It's not highly educated immigrant... they are English speaking labourer who come with hope no good industry nor high paying jobs... Timmy's and warehouse labor.. \n\njust a English test?\n\n The skill the talent run south as the system is unwelcoming as hypocrisy and superiority is embedded in system!\n\nFor far too long, too many people arriving in Canada have been funnelled toward dead-end jobs .\n\nThis is the definition of modern day hypocrisy and superiority!\n\nOECD estimates-By 2050, we will no longer qualify for the G7 and could find our standard of living in the range of Spain and Greece, rather than the U.K. and France.\n\nIn Canada Canadian. Experience is required - a false claim because of which talented skilled technology driven people never stay for long...\n\n\nThe world does not value Canada because Canada itself feels it's superior; somehow!!

100% bang on.. I've lived in Dubai (traveled to many other countries).. this is nowhere near being considered as developed anymore (GDP criteria is outdated)..Canada got developed and they forgot to update and even upgrade..!! The drug situation is so bad that I really hope that you didn't come across crackheads/homeless who are under the influence of drugs at all times.. No doubt there are way more homeless people in India, but they are working or at least trying in some way to make their life better and they never hurt you at least, here, it's the opposite, as they literally can do anything.. you can find them roaming all over on the streets of Old Toronto, Vancouver, Ottawa.. You can literally find them everywhere.. someone commented earlier that you should give 2 years.. Bro or sis.. it's a complete waste as I am at the same point.. and on top of it when you invested 2 years, it even becomes tougher as it becomes even harder to go back as you have spent so much on furniture, house, car, tools, n all and most importantly - 2 YEARS of life. I left my pregnant wife and have been staying away from her and a 1-and-a-half-year-old baby boy hoping that we'll create a better future and can afford to struggle right now.. its been 2+ years.. Honestly.. I am still not able to figure out whether there is any future or I have spoiled my present looking for a future.. its a dilemma beyond explanation in words, with no relatives or anyone based here.. I've a lot at stake currently and that's the only reason I am stuck otherwise leaving this place seems to be inevitable.. \n\nI travel extensively all throughout and forget about expressways anywhere in Canada (Except 407 which has an insane toll rate) it's a 4-lane highway just 80 km from Toronto to the rest of 450+ kms to Montreal which are 2 major cities of this so-called developed country.. same is for Ottawa, the same hold true from Calgary to Edmonton, and any other major town/city!! on top of it, they are struggling to even maintain those (always under construction - even construction is a wrong word to use as they aren't adding anything new.... it is just being repaired in true words) Same is true with adding new infra in terms of hospitals or any other facility... Banking sucks.. Still dealing through the mail (Postal mail).. (Mails not e-mails). I simply can't get that.. the tax agency - CRA sends communications through the mail, and the same with any other agency.. Comon.. grow up is what I feel at times..!! People are literally not willing to work (Except hard-working immigrants), Govt. doesn't have any plans for the future regarding the economy and development... just bringing in immigrants.. that's it..\n\nYou've made a very smart decision and really at a very good time.. wish you, and your family all the best..!!

So you don't live here and yet feel like you are entitled to an opinion?

what has been shared in this video is nothing that people are not aware of. Everybody knows that you have to do all the work yourself,no maids, cooks, etc. like India.These facts have been there for years, nothing new about them. If people want to got there for further education, it is different, but then Canada is not all that good as far as higher education is concerned, there are better countries to choose from with better weather conditions and better lifestyle and high class education. Who would want to live in a cold and inhospitable country, payig through your nose. Here in India, if we fall sick even with just cough / cold, we can go to the nearest doctor and get medicines, sometimes we can even just ask the pharmaists to help us to choose some medicines for pharmasist here are half doctors.\nEven our standard of living has become so good, that we don't even feel like shifting to a new country. We have metros, good buses both AC as well as non AC, good trains, good resturaunts, hotels, what is it that we don't have here?\nIt is always better living as a first class citizen in our own country, than living like second class citizen elsewhere. The attraction and the charm of living abroad is no longer there.\nOur country has improved so much and so fast in the last 10 years, we have good bathrooms in schools and other public places, which was not there previously. Only drawback in our country is the traffic and infrastructure, which will also become better, but will take time, because of our country's population.\nIn fact you will find servants and watchmen all coming to work in a bikes or scooters, which was unthinkable some years back. Their life has changed for the better, they live in rented flats/or on lease, their children study in good schools and so on, and they dress also so well, that you cannot differentiate between them and the people they work for.\nMany of the so called advanced countries do not have many well educated people like our country, the children there are not as knowledgeabe like Indian kids, their knowledge is limited to the town they live in, they don't know anything about the world outside.\nAnd now with the Khalistani terrorist living freely there it is all the more dangerous. And on top of it, it is a country ruled by a dumb Prime Minister, who has to give asylums to all good for nothing, ( and all only for votes) uneducated people whose only job is to sell drugs to kids and indulge in terrorism and threaten people.\nGood thing, you have come back, for there is nothing like sweet home.

I live in canada and used to think, may be i am the only one facing all these problems and feelings of that emptiness, doing everything on your own, no jugaad, and the drugs issues etc.etc..i agree with you for every single word you have spoken...i see some people judging for your returning to own country and giving importance to own mental health

A friend off mine lived there . She ended up with over 2 million in dept, they were making her feel terrible so she took her life.

Like you, I know someone happy with their job, location, medical care and opportunities, but they are also very uncomfortable with the political situation - I'll just say it - Republicans. You need only look at Trump and its followers. Guns over lives (including kids), billionaires over poor, religion over others' freedoms (gay/trans/abortion, etc), mass spread of misinformation (Fox news, OAN, etc) and a personal selfishness and anger which was made very clear during COVID times. It makes them feel like they are walking on eggshells, at least compared to Canada where they lived before and people would look out for each other more (even if they didn't know them). They like the weather, job, opportunities, the USD buying power, and their friends, among many other things, but it just feels excessively risky to them dealing with the combinations of these things. I can completely understand why they and others might want to leave the US.

I love Toronto.However for these last few yaers things have gone from bad to worse. No longer can you feel safe walking or the TTC or even ubering.These illegals just turn up without working for a minute and are given ALL the benefits. We who have worked all our lives through snowstorms or winds at 170kiiometer per hour are getting shut out of our benefits. Toronto is a HUGE MESS,unfortunately the taxpayers are the ones who are getting the end of the stick.

I studied in Canada back in 2010, worked in Africa for many years and I am from Africa. Currently, live in Europe, Portugal I got my residence after 2 years. I came here from Africa with my family. The quality of live is good. You have more free time to be with family, health systemn and education are free. You may pay monthly fee meal for your kids depending on your income with low income you dont pay nothing. What is true is about the economy grogth for you and family. I feel some segregation, racism is visible and very difficult to see black in very high paying job. I know many people who got nacionality but still earn minimum wage. As someone who lived in Canada, Africa and now Europe, yes Canada is way better I don't agree with USA in term of quality of life and security mainly if you plan to immigrate with your family

The USA is good if you’re willing to overwork to make money… you will basically work work work and that’s not a good life. I recommend USA if you are young and want to flex in the future. I work every day in America and I’m not missing anything but I feel like a slave honestly. Canada is good for foreigners that are trying to get PR and a Citizenship from a western country quick because Canada needs a lot of immigrants due to its size. Canada is not good to live because it’s just so damn cold and housing costs too much. Europe is good if you’re trying to be lazy because the government likes to give money and health insurance is free but it’s hard getting PR and Citizenship. In Europe the income is very low on average compared to the US but the reason is cause there’s just so much overtime available in the USA and things are more 24/7. Europe is better to start a family and safety security…. But you will be giving up working super hard in the USA to make good amount of money…. Pick your poison. I recommend going to Canada to acquiere a Citizenship quick then go to USA and work like a slave with a lot of overtime for 10-15 years and before your 40-55 years old you move to Europe…

1) Toronto is poor value. Getting housing of any kind (buying or renting) is stupidly expensive. And the quality you get for the price is lousy. Especially the newer builds, which are just thrown up as quickly as possible and sold to investors. Policy measures generally all seem to serve to just inflate the price of housing further. The occasional lip service given to affordability is amusing, but ultimately sad. There are lots of people who really do not want the housing bubble to pop. They will fight against it with all they have.\n\n2) It has become kind of boring. There is lots to do if you have money, but it’s harder to find entertainment on a budget. Even the free stuff like parks are filling up. Stuff like sporting events, eating out, going out is very costly across the board. Even the “cheaper” stuff is expensive. It seems like a lot of local culture is disappearing. Even the cool neighbourhoods are filling up with the same chains. I think the high commercial rent and bureaucracy is deflating a lot of would-be entrepreneurs. Most landowners seem to just be banking on cashing out their land for condos.\n\n3) Canada overall has a high cost of living compared to salaries. In the US you can find lower cost of living areas that still give you a real city experience. And in Europe you can be poor but still live a decent, if no frills, life. In Canada the basic necessities are all expensive. Phone bills, grocery bills, rent, insurance are through the roof. Domestic travel is expensive. And the dollar sucks if you want to travel abroad. Health care is free but good luck finding a family doctor or waiting 8 hours in the ER these days. It’s expensive to be poor, or even middle class.\n\n4) Most of the Greater Toronto Area, outside the core, is soulless suburbs with awful transit - very “American” except with worse traffic congestion. You will need a car, which is another huge cost. Row upon row of old cookie cutter suburbs with the same crappy houses. Good luck walking anywhere, and if you do you will need to walk down boring, treeless arterial roads with cars zooming past right beside you, and cross giant eight lane intersections that were never built for humans on foot. In a rainstorm or on a fall evening you have to be really careful not to be run over by aggressive drivers.\n\n5) It is hard to raise a family in an apartment here. You can do it but it’s not very easy, and also you are still kind of judged for it. Lots of young people are feeling stuck and are deferring or avoiding starting a family. Buying any type of house, even a basic townhouse, requires pledging your soul to a bank by taking a massive mortgage with eye watering debt in a volatile market. But few apartment buildings have the kind of sensible gentle density, the family unit sizes and the common amenities, like little courtyards with jungle gyms, that you might find in Europe. No one ever contemplated that anyone would ever desire to raise kids in an apartment. It’s just a cultural thing that has worked its way into how things are planned and designed.\n\n6) The transit system is ok by North American standards but awful by international standards. There are only two real subway lines, one stub line, one line that is permanently out of service after a derailment, and another line that was supposed to open a couple years ago but still has no date for opening. The subways go out of service frequently, sometimes for the dumbest reasons, and then it is a zoo of shuttle buses. The streetcars are nice but so slow. The buses are fine if you find yourself dreaming about riding a daily herky jerky rolling tin of sardines. They are building a lot of transit but it will take decades to get done.\n\n7) There is still a lot of cool multiculturalism and opportunities to experience different foods and cultures - one of the best things about Toronto. Increasingly though it seems to be losing the fun vibe of the 90s, when everyone celebrated each other’s backgrounds and was chill. It seems the immigration is not as broad based anymore and also people are importing a lot of their “old country” grievances here. The immigration system also kind of preys on people abroad by selling them a false fairy tale, so they end up dejected when they arrive and see how things really are.\n\n8) This one might be controversial but it’s kind of an ugly city. There’s nothing particularly of historical meaning or value. Some of the older neighbourhoods are kind of nice, but the last 25 years they have only built giant glass skyboxes, one after another. There aren’t the cool “missing middle” walkups like in NY, Chicago or Montreal (or even LA). There are very few buildings with much architectural character. Some of the buildings they deem “heritage” here are an embarrassment.\n\n9) For safety, honestly on this score I think Toronto is not bad. There are not too many real “ghettos” and it’s night and day compared to much of the US. With that said, there is more vagrancy and social issues these days, with tents and such. It’s very sad but the shelters are full, lots of homeless go into the libraries, parks and transit system. It does make it harder to enjoy these public amenities safely. It is nowhere close to Europe where you might let your kids run free around town. Canadian parents still helicopter their kids and the place again is not designed to really be safe for kids, in the same way as Europe.\n\n10) Finally, a bit of a double edged sword. Toronto had a lot of youthful energy - people coming here from all over. It is definitely not as sleepy as many parts of the world. With that said, it is becoming a bit of a transient place (minus the world class experiences like London or NY). If you are from elsewhere you might find it hard making and keeping friends. I’ve seen lots of people struggle because it’s is hard to build a strong social network. We have a very “shallow” culture here - people are extremely polite but not overly warm and hospitable. We treat one another kind of like neighbours - meaning we’d like to have a cordial, drama-free coexistence and otherwise kind of stick to ourselves.

Thank you for posting this! I feel much the same.\nI was born in Toronto but my family moved to another city in Southwestern On. when I was 10. I pledged to move back and did in 2004 to become a student. I loved the freedom and vibrancy of the city, met many friends and had a wonderful time. Even as a student, working part time, I was able to afford a shared accommodation downtown and still have a bit of disposable income. \nAfter graduating college, I found full time employment and was able to live comfortably alone in my own 2 bd apartment in mid-town for many years. In 2012, I met my partner and we continued to live in North York in a 3bd rent-controlled unit. We could see the decline in the city over the next several years. We decided we would never be able to achieve what we wanted to by staying where we were so in 2018 we took the plunge and bought a home in Windsor and have never looked back (though Windsor also has many social/affordability issues) .\nIn all, I miss the Toronto I once knew and loved but the decline of the city is pretty shocking.

I left Toronto 20 years ago after living there for 8 years. I didn’t feel welcome and was worried about my livelihood. A lot of Canadians I’ve met were very close-minded and not friendly at all. They weren’t interested in other cultures and would rather hold onto stereotypes against “others”.

... And here is why:\n1. Insanely expensive housing with next to none disposable income left in the pocket. \n2. Inability to get into the real estate market unless $$$ was brought in as an investment. This will leave locals and people who were born in Canada left out for good even further. \n3. Extremely competitive job market. Newcomers will have to suffer for a long time to break-in. \n4. Depression and drug addiction is everywhere. It's more deadly than covid but the government can't address the problem because they lose control for good. \n5. Canada is far away from many other places, which makes things worse as you feel trapped in a workcamp with no place to escape. \n6. The cost of living is getting much faster with the salaries significantly behind year after year. \n7. Canada became the country of failed government, failed multiculturalism, too tolerant as a result. \n8. Retirement in Canada will be impossible for 95% unless you agree to live in the middle of the nowhere until depression kills you. \n9. Many who came to Canada 25+ years ago and still around felt trapped. Canada's source of immigration will likely be the poorest communities who will agree to put up with everything listed above just to get out of where they live right now. \n10. Sad, but true. I have seen a steady decline in Canada since 1998. Things get worse every year.\nAmen to that. I'll be visiting Lviv in 2025 for the first time since 2000 to check on my apartment in the city centre, not far from my Alma Mater LPI. I THANK GOD every day I didn't sell it and so I have a place for retirement!

I was born and raised here, and like you I love my city. There's always something to do and see. But I feel so tied into this city, it's hard for me to imagine leaving. Any savings had will be spent traveling in all the time, especially when I work for TIFF in September. I've been lucky so far in living here and Mississauga, but even my luck is running out.