Planning a move within Canada can seem like a big task, but with the right steps, it becomes much more manageable. Whether you’re moving to a new city or across provinces, understanding the process can help you save time and reduce stress. By following our Canadian moving guide, you will be able to find the right place and know how to approach the move. Of course, you can use the help of Miracle Movers Toronto to get you to any point in the country you need. Let’s go over some basic information to make things easier for you.
What to focus on before you move?
For any move, you want to think about it first. There are just certain things that you want to think about before you make a final decision. That’s why our Canadian moving guide will also cover some of the basics. Here are some of them, including:
- Cost of living
- Employment rates
- Quality of life
- Healthcare
Cost of living
Before you decide to move anywhere around Canada, looking at the financial impact will be of great importance. The average monthly expense for a single person without rent is around 1,000 CAD. If you move with the whole family, know that the average for a family of four is around 5,192 CAD, excluding housing costs. These costs include food, transportation, utilities, and leisure activities. For instance, public transport passes can cost around 100 CAD monthly, with taxi fares being about 4 CAD plus 2 CAD per kilometer. Of course, each city and province will have its own differences when it comes to costs. Before you hire the long distance movers Toronto residents recommend, make sure to analyze even the smallest of details.
Employment rates
Of course, the job market will be of huge importance before you relocate. Canada offers such a variety, and every part of it will tell a different story when it comes to the job offers and the overall work market. There’s a notable rise in full-time employment, and the unemployment rate in Canada currently stands at around 6.6%. It’s important to search what industries are standing out and in which city or province you want to relocate to. Overall, companies in the country operate in industries such as the service sector, particularly in accommodation and food services and professional, scientific, and technical services.
Quality of life
Before you decide to relocate, it’s important to move to a pace that will have a high quality of life. Thankfully, there are plenty of places around Canada that can offer you just what you need. When you look at the country as a whole, the quality of life index of Canada is around 163. Of course, for such a lifestyle at a high level, you want to have excellent healthcare, education, safety, and other factors.
Certainly, the first thing to analyze is your personal needs or your family’s needs if you’re moving with your family. For many, using cross province movers they can trust will ensure they find a place where they can feel at home. Thankfully, plenty of places in Canada can offer you what you need, and it’s up to you to pinpoint the right location to move to.
Quality healthcare
Education and the health system should be highly important. The public insurance model, broad-based according to Canada’s healthcare system, allows for the provision of necessary hospital and physician services. This system focuses on the issuance of care in proportion to need and not on the ability to pay, although most of the services provided under the system are funded from general government revenues. This range of services is prescribed: outpatient prescription drugs, mental health care, and dental care are not mandated by the federal government but are instead offered to some extent by each province and territory.
The latest government initiatives aim to invest in the training of health workers, retention and recruitment of health workers to meet these challenges. This will be one crucial factor in continuing service quality since staffing shortages and high job vacancy rates are also noted in health occupations.
What are some of the top cities in Canada to move to?
What Canadian moving guide would this be without some suggestions? Of course, we focus on the most popular areas to relocate to. These are the top urban areas that will have plenty of opportunities. However, don’t stop with these and explore even more places in the country. Here are the five we think will stand out:
- Toronto
- Vancouver
- Montreal
- Calgary
- Ottawa
Toronto
Toronto is one of the best cities in Canada for relocation. It markets the fact of its big city status with multicultural diversity hosted by this city, with a populous ethnic composition hosting people from many ethnicities, faiths, and cultures cohabiting harmoniously. This mix of cultural diversity gives a welcoming air to the place, as over half the population of the city comes from outside of Canada, thereby providing a very broad global outlook with several cultural experiences for the city.
Toronto is active and changing, with many booking residential movers Toronto citizens vouch for. That’s because it’s full of business and culture carried on by rapid economic growth and changes through immigration and global investment. This fact was reflected in the construction scene and attractions such as Love Park near the waterfront, which added to the city’s attractiveness as a global destination. A city with a great healthcare system, excellent educational institutions, and plenty of employment opportunities together form great prepositions to lure people looking for professional as well as personal fulfillment.
Vancouver
Located between beautiful mountain ranges and the Pacific Ocean, Vancouver is one of Canada’s most beautiful and liveable cities. Its beautiful and comfortable weather conditions are totally different from the severe Canadian winters. This lively city is well known for being just the perfect place for city lovers and, at the same time, nature lovers. The local natural setting gives the opportunity to practice alpine skiing, hiking, and some active water sports, all in one place. The city is doing its part to connect some of the best skiing spots in North America to the giant Whistler-Blackcomb found across the whole world.
However, the cost of living is high, speaking relatively, and housing costs are especially high, if not at the top, compared to other cities in Canada. For those who can afford to live there, Vancouver is a city rich in culture, like Gastown and Commercial Drive. Vancouver is highly ranked among the most liveable cities in the world. It scores highly in healthcare, culture, environment, education, and other important areas.
Montreal
Montreal shines through as the best among those cities in Canada. The cultural patchwork of Montreal is based on French-Canadian heritage, fed by an amazing arts scene, and crowned with historic architecture. Another draw to the city is its affordability: from food, utilities, and even public transportation, everything comes at relatively low prices compared to other big cities. A one-way local transport ticket costs just $3.50, making getting around both easy and economical.
In addition, this city’s educational institutions are very highly rated. The most famous world universities—McGill and Montreal University—propose a great variety of programs for students worldwide. Light-born Montreal: city of entrepreneurship and culture, number 60 in the world for the best cities to contribute to culture and innovation. Another plan to settle entrepreneurs, researchers, and investors in the city includes an emerging innovation hub downtown. Will this entice you enough to consider moving from Toronto to Montreal, or will you need more space in your new home?
Calgary
The city holds great importance to Canada. Citizens have also recognized Calgary’s commitment to culture and education, and it attains some of the highest educational standards worldwide. In this vicinity, one has easy access to an array of outdoor activities, from the world’s best skiing to hiking. The city also prides itself on diversity and hospitality, with half of the population being born outside Canada, thus creating a rich cultural mix. On top of that, the continued affordable living in Calgary has made it a pretty attractive place for people and families considering a move. If you’re looking for a stable place to live in, Calgary is the place to think about.
Ottawa
As the capital city of Canada, Ottawa offers quality life factors. Ottawa is known for offering high-quality healthcare services and world-class education. The state offers residents coverage of most health services under the Ontario Health Insurance Plan (OHIP). It hosts some of the most prestigious institutions, including the University of Ottawa and Carleton University. To that effect, Ottawa becomes quite the place throughout the year when it comes to the festival scene. Crowds of people flood the city for major events like the Canadian Tulip Festival or the Tim Hortons Ottawa Dragon Boat Festival.
Living in Ottawa also translates to living in a city with the best of both worlds: a place wherein urban functionality is complemented by natural beauty, complete with many surrounding parks and paths for fitness. It’s a city that prides itself on being family-friendly, with a low crime rate and a relatively young population.
Timeline of our Canadian moving guide
After doing some quality analysis, you want to know how to prepare. Of course, there’s a huge difference between local and long-distance moves. However, you still want to be ready for all that comes with your relocation. For that reason, let’s go over a timeline of your average Canadian move.
Three months before the move
There’s never a dull moment when you’re moving. For that reason, it’s important that you start as soon as possible with your organization. A three-month mark is a good place to get your move on. Here are some suggestions on what to do at that time and about the things you should do then to make the relocation smoother.
Move during the off-season
Pick a moving time outside of the popular spring and summer months. During these times, schedules are squeezed, and there isn’t enough driver capacity to meet everyone’s needs, so you’ll want to move during fall, winter, or spring. However, if you’re moving for school-related reasons yourself, you may not be able to avoid moving during this period. But if it’s at all possible, you may be able to negotiate a sweet discount.
Take time to scope out your new area
Even though the house looks like it is in winning shape, it would be inadvisable to skip an inspection. You do not want to lock yourself into a lease that doesn’t cover your needs. Find a place you can temporarily stay and allow you to check out housing options in your new city. Prepare before you arrive by perusing tried-and-true Craigslist, using Google Street View to cross reference what you’re seeing. And once you get there, go on your search with a good amount of cash in your savings account that can be drawn upon as needed.
There are a number of upfront costs associated with relocating to a new house, even though conventional wisdom says your rent should be less than a third of your monthly income. You’ll often be required to pay a rental application and background check fee, credit, the first month’s rent, and a compulsory security deposit, usually equivalent to another month’s rent.
If you do not have the time, energy or resources for a house hunt, put your stuff in a moving company storage facility for a month and use services like Airbnb to crash in short-term apartment rentals. By the time you find a place, you’ll know for a fact that you’re in a great neighborhood.
Canadian moving guide includes finding the right movers
You’ll want to get down to business now that you know your new area. Consider a move that best fits your lifestyle and budget. The DIY approach is very mentally and physically demanding because you’ll be coordinating everything yourself, but it is often cheaper. Hiring professionals to take the task on means you get to breathe easily on moving day. Contact us and request moving quotes to get an idea of just how much movers can cost you.
This goes without saying; the more you move, the more it costs. Not all of your belongings will have to be transported. So you might consider either donating some of the items you won’t be using anymore, making small gifts for your friends, or even throwing away or recycling the stuff you don’t need, like old furniture pieces. Depending on the distance, you may determine what pieces you want to take with you and which ones can be replaced at the destination with new ones.
Two months before the move
There’s no time to rest after getting the basics out of the way. Even two months before the move, things must be done to ensure everything is a big success. Here are some of the tasks you want to do to make things easier on yourself.
Gather moving supplies
Start getting all the moving essentials ― tools, packing tape, measuring tape, a dolly, bubble wrap or old newspapers, and boxes. But avoid paying too much for your cardboard. Hit up businesses like dollar stores and liquor stores that receive lots of weekly shipments to get boxes for the unbeatable price of free. Also, don’t forget to check out Craiglist’s free section for packing solutions.
KonMari your life
Relocation is the perfect opportunity to get rid of excess belongings and save big on moving costs. Enter Marie Kondo: Nobody has a more efficient decluttering method than the bestselling author and Japanese organizational expert. Her “KonMari” approach focuses on grouping items by category instead of the room they will go to and keeping only those things that “spark joy.” Be honest about the items you use and which make you happy, and you’ll find yourself decluttering with ease.
Dump unnecessary items
Now that you’re clutter-free – well, almost clutter-free ― you still have to figure out how to dispose of all your extra stuff. Setting up a garage and selling or donating to charities is a great step. That will be a great way of decluttering. Reserve high-value specialty items for online sales, like vintage items you picked up while traveling. The garage sale can be for everything else that might earn you some extra cash but isn’t worth shipping ― for instance, your old TV. Just avoid throwing things out, especially old clothes. Donating to charities is a much better option.
One month before the completion of the Canadian moving guide
The date of the move is drawing near. However, even a month before the relocation, it will be necessary to make final preparations. Let’s go over some of them, and you won’t have too much trouble when relocating.
Sort, pack, and label like a boss
The more carefully you pack, the more it’ll pay off when you’re settling into your new home. Whether you’re making a DIY move or booking professionals if you’re choosing the full-service option, it may help to take photos of your place, focusing on how details like electronics and wires connect to avoid too much hustle, especially if it’s likely to remain the same.
Once you have taken the photos, you’re ready to start packing and ensuring your belongings are protected. Substitute unyielding and clunky suitcases with heavy-duty plastic bags, especially if you’ll be using your car. Avoid any potential soul-destroying spills on any of your valuables by putting plastic wrap under your toiletry bottle caps. Also, try to leave items that you’ll require easy access to over the month in open, labeled boxes, and place key items you’ll need during the first few days in your new home in a clear plastic bag.
The week/day of the move
The clock is ticking on our Canadian moving guide, and the move is around the corner. You must have already completed some crucial tasks. However, we have some tips on what to do during the last week of the relocation and even on moving day. Here are the last-minute tasks to go over.
Schedule time to cut the cords and clean up the apartment
Your goal is to arrive at moving day stress-free. Nobody likes the unsettling feeling that you forgot to do some very important things ― for instance, returning your cable box to your service provider. Create a final to-do list for the moving week and tie those little odd ends like changing your address, canceling cable, returning your keys to the landlord, and cleaning up the apartment to a security deposit-worthy shine. With all that complete, you’ll be able to keep calm.
Load the car, trailer, and moving truck the right way
As you’re putting your belongings in the car, keep in mind the little details that will save time, space, and money in the long run. When loading your car, ensure that all the heavy stuff is spread out on each side properly for a smooth ride and to save on gas.
Overpacking your car could actually damage it, which is the last issue you want to deal with on your first day in your new home. But that doesn’t mean you should leave empty spaces. On the contrary, get creative, wrap your blankets and towels around awkwardly shaped things like TVs, and put additional belongings in your handbags. You might also consider purchasing an overhead luggage carrier to transport more items. Check to make sure the rearview and side mirrors are in clear sight, put your car in drive, and you’re ready to go!
Make your Canada move easier
Are you ready to move? With our Canadian moving guide, we’re sure you’re more than that. Our advice provides you with some basic information about what Canada has to offer and how to prepare for the relocation process. What will be your priority? Is it going to be the cost of living? Will education be something you will pay close attention to? Wherever you plan to move, you’re ready to go to the place that will fit your needs the most.
