The Unexpected Cost of Living in Vancouver

[@LivingInVancouver-BC]

Which of these surprised you the most? Call/Text Direct - 604-831-4837 email: [e-mail] Book a call: www.calendly.com/albrechtgroup

[@sf3102]

Super helpful video, though it shattered my dream of retiring in BC from California. 😥

[@LivingInVancouver-BC]

@sf3102 Oh no! I'm sorry to hear that. What was it that really broke that dream?

[@sf3102]

@@LivingInVancouver-BC I feel the visa requirements are too focused on in-demand work skills. If I'm a good person who is retiring, has money enough to buy a house, pay taxes, and help the local and national economies, then what's the problem? I don't get it.

[@MTN99999]

Hello Sebastian! Wow excellent video you really broke it down nicely thank you! I think that the cost eventually evens out Between the money you are saving on property taxes in BC vs ON and those savings will go towards earthquake insurance but that deductible is insane 100K+ but I am assuming that than the homes there and infrastructure must be built different and engineered to sustain a potential earthquake to a certain extent 🤔. Given all this info and carrying cost it maybe more beneficial to have the property under a CORP/TRUST when you work with your CPA to offset those expenses and pass on your assets to your kids/spouse with less or no estate tax frictions. Really informative and now thanks to you I am factoring rhat into my numbers. Keep up the great work talk soon and have a great weekend to you all 👍

[@vancitybz]

Can you do a video on duplex products in Vancouver? Different looks and areas.

[@LivingInVancouver-BC]

@vancitybz Yeah, not a bad idea! :)

[@johnnyboyvan]

What happened to your sound quality??

[@LivingInVancouver-BC]

Yeah...I accidentally plugged my mic into the headphone jack rather than the mic jack (new camera). So it used the camera's default mic...which wasn't great. While it's not perfect audio, I hope that it's still good enough to watch!

[@OrdinaryFilmmaker]

@@LivingInVancouver-BC Been there done something similar like not turning on the external mic. Nothing worse than recording a 30 minute video and all you have is in camera audio.

[@LivingInVancouver-BC]

@OrdinaryFilmmaker Ugh. The worst! A good lesson learned, though...a mistake I won't be doing again.

[@shazzrap]

You could run your audio via adobe podcast . Does a decent job fixing the audio 😊

[@huskavarnapunkband]

Unexpected broken microphone costs

[@OrdinaryFilmmaker]

You scared me with the Earth quake insurance when you said it can go up to $1600. I thought this was a monthly fee, but being annual, it is not as scary, but when looking at real estate, I'd rather pay $400 vs $1600. What factors calculate a $1600 vs $400 policy? Is it location: Richmond vs Kitsilano or $2.5M home vs $40M Home? Just curious, how do they know the home is empty? We were considering picking up a condo for about 12 month before moving as a transition place. We might not live there the required 6 months in the first year... :( This might no longer be an option. The land transfer tax is very annoying. I wonder if the people making these decision realize how many people are being priced out of the market. Is the tax lower for retired people? Very topical - all things that have been on my mind. Thank you for this video. It hasn't scare me off, but I guess I need to keep working two jobs my retirement date Sebastian. PS. Your transition effect are great. What are they called. I'd like to use the same ones from transitioning to a map of something - the ones where it spins from from frame to the next.

[@LivingInVancouver-BC]

Yes, it'll range depending on the value of your house. Where exactly you are located...and the bells and whistles included in the coverage. And yes, it's annual not monthly. I should have mentioned it in the video, but these numbers are related to owning detached homes and not stratas. Stratas are required by the Strata Property Act to carry insurance on the structure and that will include earthquake insurance. Individually, you'd just be on the hook to make sure your contents are covered and potentially insuring the earthquake insurance deductible. Re empty homes tax. We have to self-report. Annually, affected home-owners must apply for exemptions. If asked, we have to prove the status of residence...and it is quite heavily enforced (there are also snitch lines for us to rat each other out). Keep in mind that there are actually a number of exemptions involved that could impact you...like the year that a property transfers ownership is exempted (renting it out would also be an option). There is no reduction in the PTT for retirees. And no, I don't think the government is highly concerned about how their taxes impact the cost of home ownership. It's quickly forgotten. Glad you found this one helpful @OrdinaryFilmmaker! Not sure what the transitions are called, to be honest. I've switched editors (I can ask him if you let me know a timestamp of a transition you are wondering about) and this one is definitely a bit more in tune with snappy transitions. Unfortunately, he couldn't do much about my audio issue on this video though.

[@OrdinaryFilmmaker]

@@LivingInVancouver-BC I'd say this video struck close to home more than any other. It was a much needed smack in the head, but in a good way. I've been focused on neighbourhoods: the dream of moving out there and if it was right for us. I had focused less on the reality. This forced me to consider fixed costs. The exemption is something we can take about when we get the condo. Having it as a transition place would make the move much easier. One of us could always move out before the other. The transitions are between 0:33 - 0:45 and 1:02 to 1:06. Looks very good, it's something I'd like to try. Audio is not very forgiving. I've recorded with batteries dying, forgetting to turn on the recorder many times... Can't be a perfect video every time. At least we could hear you clearly, but yeah, his works ups your game for sure.

[@LivingInVancouver-BC]

@OrdinaryFilmmaker Yeah, the realities of the move aren't quite as fun...but just as important! Glad to hear you can see an improvement in the editing! The audio will be better next week. ;) I've asked the editor about the transitions and will message you with his answer once I hear back from him.

[@OrdinaryFilmmaker]

@@LivingInVancouver-BC Thanks I appreciate that. I'm always looking to improve and learn from others ;)

[@huskavarnapunkband]

One hidden cost , is getting your bike stolen... Everyone you know has had their bike stolen at least once.