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I think that a lot of people who seem to hate Canada in this comment section are either from Toronto and Vancouver, the two most expensive cities in the country, but these two cities don't represent Canada as a whole. \n\nPersonally I live in a smaller city in Québec (Saguenay) and life quality is super good, there are a lot of job opportunities and housing is very cheap, and it is an amazing place for outdoor lovers\n\nI saw many comments saying that the US is cheaper than Canada... Those people simply don't compare what's comparable. If you compare Toronto with comparable cities in the US like New York, Los Angeles and San Francisco, Toronto is in fact MUCH cheaper. If I compare my city with comparable cities in the US, well it turns out that Saguenay is much cheaper\n\nSo before wanting to move to another country, you can simply think about moving within Canada. If however you hate winter, then there's no reason to stay here ?

I am indonesian, but i’ve lived in Japan and the US for study purpose, and i relate to your experience. Eventhough i had a strong moslem community when i was in Japan/US, and halal food was accessible there, i was still feeling uncomfortable that as a moslem i couldn’t express my identity freely. Whenever i wanted to go for a roadtrip or place outside of my city, i need to search if halal food was available in there or not, while in Indonesia i don’t have to worry about halal food, almost all food are halal, the restaurant usually inform us if their are not halal. Another experience is that in non-moslem country, they didn’t provide many prayer rooms or mosques, that’s also sickening for me. I mean i don’t mind to pray in a random parking lot, or in a park, or in an emergency stairs, or in changing room in mall, or any random places; but i really missed my country where prayer room is available anywhere, you can find prayer room in gas station, in a restaurant, in the mall, in airport/bus station/train station, etc. Also mosques are everywhere too. You are easily going to find mosque after walking around 200m, well yeah there is a reason why Indonesia is a country with the most number of mosques in the world. Another thing is islamic class. When i was in Japan, i could only join an islamic class where people gather to listen from syeikh (or we call it as “pengajian”) once in every other months, in the US was better, mosque in mu place held islamic class every other day. However, in Indonesia, islamic classes are everywhere, it’s like every mosque held their own class, until to the point that i am confused what should i follow because there are so many options ?. The last is that, in moslem country or at least in my country, finding moslems outfit is very easy. So yeah, overall, i prefer to live in moslem countries. Alhamdulillah i was born in moslem country, and alhamdulillah my country’s situasion, eventho not perfect, is peacefull.

I am a resident with Muscular Dystrophy in a wheel chair. I am exhausted! I work 5 days a week 8-10 hours a day and I do not feel well at all. I have no choice but to work because I cannot afford to move - What I pay for rent in his city is insane already. There is no where for me to go and there is no way I can find a cheaper place. I feel like I am living a nightmare to be honest. It just getting harder and harder and it seems like the people in Toronto are getting colder and colder. There are no social programs with enough funding and disability income is impossible because it doesn't even scratch the surface of rent costs. Food is completely out of control too. It just feels like I am circling the drain and the will end up homeless eventually. People with disabilities are treated very poorly in this province but in Toronto it is especially cruel and cold.

Toronto is a fake city.\n\n52% of people there were not born in Canada.

I live in NYC, and have been to Canada at least four times, but the last time I was there was quite some time ago. I always had a good thought about Canada, because it seems like some of the problems we have in this city, Canada also has in some way. Right now the city is a complete mess; at post pandemic and with a bit of a recession and a noticeable increase in groceries to basic things like cat food and tissues. That's not the biggest problem, it really is the legislation or lack of for people who not care for themselves. Those homeless people are almost not helpable and I don't feel threatened by them, but other people definitely do. The way the government has handled these undocumented migrants is a complete disaster and couldn't have come at a worse time. We have a serious housing crisis as well, and people can end up paying for high rent, for not the best places, but they want to live in a certain location. The migrants are coming in at about 60k in the last two weeks. You see mothers with little kids or babies selling candy all over the trains and it's becoming too much. Many see it as a form of child abuse or exploitation and we do not respect it at all. I think they feel we are weak and will just pay double for something we don't need. At one station today I must have be approached 3 times and interrupted 2 times while using my phone. It's just too much and we already have a lot of immigrants here, so I'm not sure where these people believe they will find any meaningful employment and the cold is coming. I wasn't born here, but came legally as an infant. I think the border situation is a disaster and it's obvious to a lot of people that the government lets things happen that will definitely effect citizens in the next couple of decades. The city is crowded enough and I do not know where this is all going, people do not want undocumented migrants house a few hundred feet from a childrens school. I just don't understand how they let this happen....I guess this is how Biden does things and all the groups that cheered buses pulling in when it first started are dwindling down....they just want them passed on to someone elses responsibility, but wouldn't want them as neighborhors necessarily. It's a lot of hypocrisy here. Canada seems better in some places, and the same in others.

Interesting video! Here's my perspective:\n\nI'm from Quebec City, of Chinese descent, born and raised in Montreal, where I lived for 21 years. I've also lived in Vancouver for 3 years, Toronto for 5 years, returned to Montreal for another 3 years, and have now been in Quebec City for 15 years.\n\nAs a Quebec City resident and business owner, I find the city amazing. During the pandemic, there were many programs and subsidies available. I even wrote to Prime Minister Justin Trudeau regarding the CEBA program for businesses, suggesting some changes to the eligibility criteria. They followed through, and Federal Finance Minister Bill Morneau sent a detailed response, signed by him but likely written by his staff, explaining the revised criteria and suggesting other potential programs. Provincially, my MP's staff guided me through various programs. Ultimately, I received nearly everything I needed to survive and potentially thrive through the pandemic (to be confirmed in 2024).\n\nTaxes are high, but I feel safe in Quebec City. Crime rates are low, and I've experienced little racism, possibly due to my fluency in French. Starting a business here has been easy, with minimal costs and bureaucracy.\n\nAs a gay man, I've never felt endangered. I can comfortably express affection for my spouse in public without feeling judged.\n\nHealthcare, including access to medication and doctor consultations, is extremely affordable. Super Clinics offer next-day appointments at no cost.\n\nI own a commercial condo for my business, which cost significantly less than it would have in Toronto or Vancouver. My rent for a one-bedroom apartment is CAD 755, and electricity bills are remarkably low.\n\nWith the shift to online business, I've accessed international markets while benefiting from a low-cost, safe environment. I received a CAD 2400 subsidy from the Canada Digital Adoption Program, among other government-funded programs, to expand internationally.\n\nAlthough homelessness exists in Quebec City, many supportive programs are available, and most homeless individuals here are polite, likely because they face less stigma.\n\nI believe it's crucial to explore different locations when moving to Canada. Many smaller cities offer great opportunities, which works to my advantage.\n\nRegarding the judiciary system, it's not perfect but feels less biased compared to the Supreme Court of the United States, such as in cases like Roe v. Wade.\n\nMy advice to immigrants is to learn the local language fluently for effective communication. Utilize all available federal and provincial tools, like legal aid, and don't hesitate to contact your MP. In my experience, they've been very helpful.\n\nAll the best, Febby!

I move from one country to another every five years because of the nature of my job. As a practising Muslim with children here are some of the countries I’ve lived in which you guys should consider :\n- Turkey is very developed and your family will have to make less adjustments in terms of quality of life. If you can speak Turkish then you are good to go.\n-Morocco has a very rich culture and the economy is relatively stable.\n- Malaysia is beautiful and has great community sense. Very helpful people. The main adjustment will be with the eastern culture which is very conservative. The cuisine is also very unique.\n- Qatar and UAE are both similar in the sense that finding jobs won’t be a problem and lots of people understand and speak english. Also these two countries are developed and the \n education standards are the highest I have seen in countries following sharia. Also these countries are less strict than Saudi Arabia which is my native country. I really hope you two \n aren’t considering it. Your girls will not grow up happy in Saudi. Trust a women who has done it. I love my religion but inshallah no child should go through that environment because her \n parents were attracted to the holy land.\n-Lastly this is a rather outlier in this list but you should consider India. There are mosques everywhere in almost every city and even the Hindus fondly wake up to the azaan. Most \ninclusive non-Muslim country I have lived in. My children loved it. We lived in one of the many Muslim communities near a mosque in a city called Hyderabad which was ruled by a Muslims for hundreds of years. Even though they have their own languages nearly everyone speaks english. The schools are great. The police create spaces for Muslims to worship on the roads so that traffic doesn’t disturb them. Very inclusive and the city itself is beautifully developed. The job market is great and it is a very affordable place to raise a family.\n\nI hope you guys check these places out. I’ve only listed the countries which I felt were the best options but I’ve lived in almost all the countries with a sizeable Muslim population. Best wishes to you folks from the Sayyid family. Allah be with you.

i started to practice islam in 2009 while living in spain. and left it in 2010 and relocated to turkey. would never go back. love spain and keep my best memories of living there. but now i have three kids and need to think about them first. and i think that a muslim should live in a muslim environment. istanbul is like a european city but with adhan and people who wont harass you for your religion.

I was in Turkey for 3 months and loved it! Istanbul was magical, and i loved how so many Muslims from across the Muslim world lived there. There were Libyan's, Syrian's, Bosnians, Afghans, Africans - very diverse! I stopped to pray in Ottoman era mosques for every salah and met wonderful Turkish brothers who invited me for soup, tea/coffee. Their hospitatlity is well known! The city never sleeps and every shop is open with families out and about, islamic shops selling Islamic clothing, halal food is nothing to think about again. The other good thing was that there was always something to do. Fajr at Aya Sofya, Juma at Sultan Ahmed mosque, a taxi to Eyub Sultan, then to a religious neighbourhood of Fatih, amazing architecture, great food, affordable and safe. The only negatives were traffic and pollution, but given Istanbul's population, that was understandable. It was also summer and peak season. Also, you can literally cross into Europe and then Asia by ferry. Its to die for. Other parts of Turkey are also great to visit. The blacksea cost is stunning as an example in point and more natural mountainous beauty over city living. Turkey is a great option if you haven't already thought of it and if youre a fan of Erdogan, its a good place to visit and invest in

I'm from Birmingham in England. I was raised in a Christian family, but living in such a diverse city made it easy for me to revert very smoothly to Islam. We have a very strong Muslim community here, with many mosques and schools. I had considered moving to California with my children so I could be with my fiance (who is also Muslim originally from Jordan) but, he will be moving here instead, as he feels like we may not be safe there. I'm so happy for you all, I imagine the children must be so excited ??

I wish you the best ?\nWe, (me my husband and my 7 years old girl) live in the UK Kent county BUT for the last year I stayed to think about moving. We are originally from Bulgaria but Turks and came to UK 10 years ago, we just bought our house 3 years ago, basically created everything from scratch. It is bot an easy task to start from the beginning again but I believe that if Allah maid to think about moving that means He will help you.\nAs a hijabi muslim woman in a community that there are not other Muslims around I can say I feel relatively safe BUT some days I notice the look of hatred in n some peoples eyes. The other thing my girl started to question some topics they have been receiving at school and it is a constant battle for me to keep explaining to her the right and wrong. More over she is listening for now but not sure for future and this scares me.\nAs you said praying and being a practicing Muslim is difficult here as well. We are Turks but do not have Turkish nationality but when we go for religious holidays in Istanbul I feel completely different, it just feels like I have to live there near the mosque. My inner me begging me when we are in Istanbul in the old part of the city to stay there forever. \nI really know what you feel and want. I am looking for Muslim countries where possible we can move BUT unfortunately I made the conclusion that there is not a place even in a Muslim land that we can live the way of peaceful practicing and being a Muslim what we want to be. \nJust advise be careful with the Arab world, other than that if you look at Türkiye I would say do your research really well, not in every town there you can live your religion. Azerbaijan is excellent I would say but they are still under the influence of Russia. \nSo really difficult decision, may Allah guide you. Amin

you should try Sri Lanka... its a multi cultural country. And the people around are very kind and its easy to blend in cuz there's no discrimination at all! most foods are halal also cuz the muslim population is big, many restaurants are run by muslims and there are many girls schools for muslims including religious studies... u cn find musjids in every city/town... and again, the people are so flexible. as a muslim in sri lanka, im so glad im sri lankan cuz i love the people in this country, cuz no matter what, all of us have each other's backs.. <3

Same is happening here in Australia. Cost of living is unbearable even if you are earning six figures it’s pointless, and worse is housing, you need a minimum $1.3 million to buy any house even 50KM away from city with no infrastructure, There is no chance you can afford it. Government has imported 1.5 million immigrants in less than 2 years it’s ruined our country

I find it so amusing that Canadians always have to preface everything with self righteous boasting about how multicultural they are, how their city has a world class this and that—in this case—film festival etc. etc. I have never been anywhere in Europe for example where first anyone even mentions Canada much except to say that there are a lot of trees. And no one in real cities with a culture like Paris, Madrid, Berlin harp on how world class they are or how multicultural they are. Also, in terms of immigration, give me a break—you have obviously not travelled anywhere—go to Berlin, Paris, New York etc. to see people from all over the world. Canadians have been told through the internal propaganda that Canada is the best country in the world—but it’s not.

ALina I see you are a jet setter ( going around the world seeing different places which. Is great and educational ) but remember your dear. dad. he. raised you in a good and Loving way and he’s getting older not younger have you ever considered Living close. too him. and working from home ( And I agree Toronto suck’s I trucked 18 wheeler’s in there delivering product’s in the the 1980s for a. while and everything you said is true about Toronto , I also worked. there. about 5 year’s ago on night shift on a union pipeline job, and stayed at Bradford, Ontario about 40 miles or. so north of the city of Toronto , driving a small truck , I don’ t want too sound. negative either but you couldn’t pay me enough. too. Live there, Now. or Never not. my cup of tea / I grew up most of my Life in. Saskatchewan , I’ am about the same age as your Dad or a year younger , / A good Looking Lady Like you would do well in Saskatchewan , and if you didn’ t Like the cold in the winter you could be a snowbird. you and your Dad ( go away for a few month’s too a warmer place) just. saying. there are a lot of good people in Saskatchewan (Ukrainian, German, Norwegian,Finnish, Irish and English and Scottish just. too name a few, I think there is a good future for a young person or person’s in. Saskatchewan for. a future, and Listen too your father , he Looked Like he’s worked hard all his Life on. the farm, I can tell Listening too him , he’s no dummy ,smart man, I still have a neighbour where I had a small acreage 17 acres south of Tisdale, Saskatchewan ( Brent Butt country ) he farmed across the road from me ( still owns the farm ) retired Lives in nearby Melfort, Saskatchewan has an apartment room he’s around your dad’s age , / I. Live in a small town on the edge of town between Toronto. and. Ottawa ( winter are quite damp here , do too all the Lake’s in Ontario )Anyway the best too you and your Dad in the new year if he is still. farming l hope he had a good crop this ( or if the Land is rented l hope the renter got a good crop) also. best too you and your Dad / Bill S. Canada

Excellent video. I am a 29 years old Canadian with high education. I make 125K/year and yet after 2-3 years of looking actively I still can't manage to buy a house near the city as a first time buyer. I made many offers but lost every time. The demand is so high and the offer so low that many people bid way above the asking price even though the prices are sky high. Most of those people sold their previous house for a lot more than they bought it many years ago and therefore, are able to do so. First time buyers like myself don't have this advantage and the ones with lower salaries might never have the chance to have a house except if they move far from the city. Our government does not slow down on immigration because there is a labor shortage due to the older generation retiring but they don't build enough houses and allowed foreign investors for too long which results in the housing crisis we are currently in. My father bought a decent house near the city for the equivalent of 2 years of his gross salary at the time... Now the equivalent is more than 4-5 times my gross salary even though I make more than him at the time (taking inflation into account). Our healthcare and education systems are falling apart as well. Both are currently on strike in the province I live in due to terrible work conditions and salaries from our government. The cost of living has increased considerably in the last few years as well, especially the food even though the companies are making record net profits this year. Yeah... Canada is not doing well right now.

My parents came from India to the US and eventually became professors at the University of Arizona in Tucson where the cost of living was relatively low. Being an only child made our living standard that much better. Had we lived in a city like New York or San Francisco, the cost of living would have been much higher and possibly we would not have lived as well. But then there are many places in the US where the cost of living is even less than where we lived in Arizona! Indeed, in the United States, the cost of living can substantially vary depending on where you live.

I am a Canadian and I am puzzled by many of the claims you make. First housing price will vary a lot depending if you are in Vancouver, Toronto or Quebec City. Where I live, in the greater Montreal area, it's not difficult to buy a house if you have 2 median salaries. You say healthcare is expensive ?? It's mostly free (paid by our Taxes) and there are a lot of jobs posted. Almost all companies have a very hard time recruiting as there are very few candidates. The only thing I will give you is grocery price which is indeed expensive. Ultimately I agree that Canada is not great but where would I go ??? U.S. , Western Europe or every where I can think of is even worst in most respect.

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.

In my province healthcare is ostensibly nonexistent. Wait times at ER's are well over 12 hours and you're often directed to go home without ever seeing a doctor. \nThere is an extreme deficit of doctors. I've been waiting 6 years for one and there are people who have waited much longer with no relief in sight. \nHousing is unaffordable. A decent (nothing special) one bedroom 1 bath apartment is around 1600 a month and this is a largely rural province, not a metropolitan city. \nHomes are being bought as fast as they go on the market at extremely inflated prices by people moving here to escape the more populated provinces. This has raised property taxes by 20% in the last 2 years.\nThe economy is in shambles. Homelessness is exploding and the government seems uninterested in fixing it in any realistic or helpful way.\nFederal and provincial income taxes are nearly 50% of your income (44% for me and a bit more for my wife). So, what money you do make you get to keep a little more than half.\nElectricity is about 3 times what it is in the US and the rate here is increasing by 29% over the next 3 years.\nGroceries are unreasonably expensive and becoming more pricey by the day. Provincial sales tax is 15% on top of those groceries as well. \nThis is a short list of a few of the more glaring issues but there are far more. Canada has transformed over the last 5 years into a place I hardly recognize anymore. If something isn't done about it soon we'll be living in a third world country by 2030.

They show a lot of grocery stores when they talk about monopolies, but it’s in everything. When I was getting my internet set up I found out only one of the two main companies in Canada is provided for my area (they do this on purpose). So I pay over $100 a month just for internet. And literally have no other cheaper option other than living with no internet. (I’m in a small town so there aren’t even any cafes or anything to pop into). And live alone. Another thing, we’ve got a big country, and I live in a rural community, so most of my colleagues drive at least 45 minutes to get to work, one way, because they’d rather live in the city. And this is NB so you can’t take public transportation like trains to get here, you’re driving on the highway to get here. Since the pandemic houses have more than doubled, I did get a raise, but it was I think 4% over the last three years. So cost of living is definitely increasing at a much higher rate. Before the pandemic I could buy a week of groceries for one person for $60, now it’s more than $100 for a week easily, and that’s with looking for bargains and reducing the amount of meat and fresh produce I eat. It can’t keep getting worse, because people already can’t afford it, so something is going to have to change before everything breaks completely.

All points are bang on. Too many monopolies inside too many extremely large categories. The taxes are out of control!!!! Everyone says free health care. Not true. What percentage of healthcare is done through company benefits? My guess is a high %. Also, look at some of the salaries people are making who work for the governments! The city I live in, about 150,000. There are dozens of “captains in the fire department as well as dozens of captains in training making 120,000 per year and have the ability to work 24 hour shifts (how much downtime) and I’m not sure how many days total in a month they have to work 6 or 7 shifts a month. We have a LOT of firemen. My property taxes are over $6000 per year now.

I was born and raised in Toronto. I have no family inheritance to give me a jump start. I make good money (middle upper class) but I’m still struggling financially. Not because I spend like crazy or anything, but because taxes are crazy and everything is so expensive. And now with the high interest rates, my monthly expenses went up $4000+ for no reason. Just based on interest rates. I had a pho lunch for 2 last week and it was freaking $70! Crimes are increasing like crazy and the government keeps having talks of handing out money when we are in so much debt. Seriously the government right now is discouraging talented hard working ppl and encouraging lazy leeches to keep being lazy. Our healthcare is also a joke. Doctors know nothing and are only there to write prescriptions. The amount of people I know that was misdiagnosed for conditions so obvious that any 10 year old can figure out by googling their symptoms is ridiculous. \n\nBeing a Toronto native I really hate seeing the city/country crumble like this. I am starting to question if sticking around is the right choice. But I’m so established and embedded here I don’t know how to uproot everything and move elsewhere. And I wouldn’t even know where to go. The states have their slew of issues too

I left Canada six years ago back to Uzbekistan after nine years of life in Canada. It was the best decision I have ever made. Old stock Canadians are the most xenophobic and chauvinistic people I had ever seen. Tired of being treated like a piece of trash and imbecile, although I have MD and MS degrees. For educated people from any middle income country like Uzbekistan, immigration to Canada is a scam and modern day slavery. Toronto looks like a zoo, not a world class city. I don’t understand why Canada accepts so many immigrants if there are already hundred of people applying for a stupid position at Tim Hortons and every third of them have PhD.

Nice and well thought out video. Even though I don't agree with everything, you said it in a considerate way and shared your honest experience. It was just unfortunate that you did not get enough time to settle down. Moving to any new place is extremely tough and especially when you are moving to a completely new city. I live in Germany and I love it here. My wife and I came here to study, but my wife came first and she had a really bad first 6 months in winter. Things got much better later. We Indians miss house help so much in early days, but the fact is you have so much free time here and things are well organized. You don't waste time in traffic, you don't have to go 10 times to a government office to get work done, you don't have to sit with kids everyday to do homework, kids can come and go to school on their own, there is little dust so houses don't get dirty every day, everything is planned and no one is visiting your house suddenly. So in reality, doing the house chores aren't such a big deal because you have a lot of time.

I stopped visiting Canada 40 years ago because of insane or corrupt border control policies. I traveled to Canada from California to record an album for a popular rock star. My crew number 4 people and we had reserves a month for basic tracking in a studio there. We bought our own reels of 3 inch wide recording tape because the studio wanted twice the rate as normal and since my studio was a distributor for the mastering tapes we brought from my own inventory. Each reel of tape was 3 lbs and brought 30 reels. We got to customs and they said we owed money for importing the tape. Normally a reel would have been $180, and customs wanted $38,000 x 20, and would not let us retrieve it to take it back to the US side of the border. How can a tape worth $180 suddenly have duty of $38,000?\nIt was explained to me as the Potential Value of the tape which meant AFTER a hit song was recording in it. Most recordings are total losses and the tape cant used on a new project even if properly bulk-erased. They expected me to pay on the spot $760,000 in duties. I gave up and left the tape with them. I called the artist and said we could not do the project in Canada and we went back to California. The artist came to us a few months later and the result was a minor hit, and probably barely made its production cost since the label only distributed it in Canada. I talked to an international trade lawyer about what happened and he said customs officials were wrong in Canada but they are given full latitude with no appeal so his advice was never take anything over the border that I did not mind being confiscated. Sometimes they would let it in because it was going back out in a month, but likely they sold it off and pocketed the money. The US is corrupt on a federal level but Canada is corrupt on the local level. I moved out of the US 24 years ago have a much higher quality of life than is even possible in the US, and live very cheaply. Total cost of living with a very active social and cultural life impossible to duplicate in the US which as some of the least options for culture. And my cost of living is $1500 a month, less than utilities alone for one house in California, and that is for 2 people. Last month for example I attended world class opera, ballet and symphonies 9 times, and went out to dinner, in jazz clubs or dance clubs, visited12 top museums, and it was still under $1500 for the month. A pair of tickets to the MET in NYC for lower grade performance, sets, orchestra ad theater, was $1800!! $600 for tickets to drama for 2. Here there 237 drama theaters within walking distance of my city center home, and can walk anywhere at any time of day and be safe due to VERY low crime rates. Free medical is good. I am not citizen but still I had an operation and 10 days in a vip single room for $5300 and despite my insurance I had been paying back in California $824.month, it was going to cost me out o pocket $500,000 and one day in a recovery 12 bed room, and require paid nursing attendant for 30 days. The results were great and was treated like king.\nCanadians have lost control of their government but Americas are screwed regardless, with lower than international standards for everything, with crime, corruption in Washington, extreme cost of living, no access to culture, few if any safe parks. My adopted city is not only far more beautiful than any US city, my GF can walk, alone, anywhere in a city of 7mil at any time of day through any of the 600 beautiful parks open 24/7..at 3am. There are no homeless, and 80% of those over 20yo own their home clear of debt. No college debt despite twice the % of people having degrees. The rest of the world caught up and has surpassed the US and Europe in quality of life. \n\nI have only been back to the US 5 times in 24 years and each time I am shocked by how much the entire society has declined while most of the world outside of Europe, Canada, US, UK or Australia have dramatically improved.\nEvery year since 2008 more Americans leave the US to live elsewhere than legal immigrants arrive.

We often hear that there is a labor shortage in Canada. True, but the available jobs are Mcjobs, which would not enable a single person to rent a one bedroom apartment in my city. Lots of young people depressed...

Many recent immigrants I have known have left Canada because the cost of living is too high. From my experience they work very hard, usually working 60+ hours a week. After some time they crunch the numbers and realize no matter how hard they try they will not get anywhere so they leave. For those born in Canada we find ourselves being chased out of our hometowns because it is too expensive to live there. For myself it was either stay in Vancouver, surrendering more than half of your income to rent or move out of the city to buy an apartment. In the major cities there is a mass exodus of young people and the strategy has been to replace that exodus with immigration. The problem is that is not sustainable as now new immigrants, seeking a better life are not finding it in major Canadian cities. For those who already own property in the lower mainland the selfish mentality is to do whatever you can to deny construction, thus maintaining the scarcity and value of what little land/housing there is in desirable areas. Zoning laws are beginning to change but progress is slow and municipalities have failed to keep up with infrastructure so the growing pains is going to be immense. It's beautiful here now doubt but if I had no ties and a solid financial footing I would have left long ago. Generations ago you could show up to Canada with no money and thrive if you were willing to work hard. Now hard work won't get you anything.

I'm Canadian and unfortunately everything in this video is accurately portrayed. The province in which I reside doesn't have it as bad as the ones mentionned in this video, and I can confirm that housing is still somewhat very affordable in a lot of areas if you don't mind a long-ish commute to the city when you have business there.\n\nStaying in a more rural area is fortunately a very valid option for tons of people as a lot of employers adopted telework permanently following the pandemic, but yeah essentially if you wanna live in an urban centre, good luck!

This is how you do it. 1. I came to Canada in April 2001. Toronto. No jobs. 2. What is some other big city, but affordable? Edmonton, AB. Lets go there. After moving through 7 apartments found the place to buy. Very cheap. 2004. 3. Than sold that place and bought the bigger one. Second child was born. 2007. 4. Suck it up and go through... Anyways... Today, 2023, it is a good house. No debt. A little mortgage left. Three vehicles. Retirement plans. STAY HERE! Work hard! This is the best country on earth!

Toronto is disgusting now. I've lived just north of the city all my life and nobody has anything good to say about it. The transit system also isn't safe and ppl get threatened by psychos routinely. Now, we have anti-Semitic protests every weekend in the core with people chanting death to Jews. It's a terrible place to visit and you couldn't pay me to raise a family there.

For housing, something that needs to be and should be discussed is the land base. \nI know some real estate players in BC that laugh when people talk about housing and affordability, they say look at the landbase and who controls it. In BC its a crazy amount to 94% and only 5% available for ownership of the people. No option to apply and buy anymore and only lease. That is why even rural lands in BC 40 to 60 minutes outside of a teir two or three city is still thousands per acre! To the coast to coast to coast average its 88%+ controlled by governments and not the people. Do the math there and you will start to see the connection. \n\nAlso, for health-care, its not free just paid for through taxes by the governments on the people. It is broken in so many ways and most likley too big to fix kr repair now without a full ripdown and build up. \n\nMany orher things but just my initial points.

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!

Born in South Vietnam and raised in Toronto for almost 44 years now I'm still here and Toronto sucks!!! It has become a ghetto! City Toronto leftists' politicians have made it into a shithole! Bike lanes are everywhere and there are not much bikers during the Winter months (something like 8 to 9 months) and summer months I saw few here and there. Rents are totally beyond many peoples affordability. Foods prices are freaking crazy. Reason why this is happening? You have to thank the current idiotic-leftard government under Trutard leadership in Canada. This is thanks to his carbon taxes BS initiative causing high cost in fuel and resulting in major inflations in high food prices, rentals, etc. How can you help refugees and immigrants while Canadians can't even afford to live in Toronto, etc. You need to take care of Canadian first and foremost. Taking in 500 thousands new immigrants and refugees each year isn't going to be help Canada to get this mess we are in. Lower number like 150-200 thousands of new immigrants | refugees is feasible but NOT 500 thousands new immigrants and refugees.

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..!!

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.

My first visit to Canada (the so called Province of Quebec) was in 1972. If you've had asked me at that time where was paradise, I'd have answered to you that it was right here in Quebec and particularly in Montreal. I spent two years and went back home in 1974. I came back five years later in 1979 with the intent of staying and I did. I've spent decades of wonderful years here, and although I will leave next year, I will still remember with nostalgia the lost best decades (70s, 80s and 90s) I'd have spent in Montreal. I will remember the most beautiful city of the world and what it has become in the years 2000 amd counting. I remember how clean and well maintained that city was; how its people were among the most polite and civilized in the World; how life was so easy and affordable; how tolerant as a society the French Canadian one was and so on. Today, all that is gone, and when I take a look at the pile of trashes and garbages on the Ste-Catherine street and Saint Laurent Boulevard, it makes feel sick. In fact, Montreal has become a huge Third World city, and it is not better on a social point of view : you can't walk one block or two without being dragged by a homosexual or a lesbian. Speaking of lesbian and homosexual, you can't keep your work if you don't support the LGBT and or willing to date your boss. I am leaving next year to go back to my country where there is still a seemingly willingness to normalcy, but since the LGBT has managed to sneak its power everywhere, I am not holding my breath of a bright future overthere, but it's my home and I prefer to be there and deal with it.

The problem is canada doesn't let survive the small business and they support only chain business and has all monopoly, small individiual business can't survive in Canada, where ever u go u see same tim horton same walmart same supporstore same mecdownal same wendies same many many, every city looks same its like people are forced to eat what they serve there is no freedom for small business to grow in canda,, all food is full of GMO and organic things they don't import and all people got no choice and all is again monopoly everywhere. Then why people will like canda and and no place to grow,, all everywhere rules regulations no one feels like this country is their. Its hard to grow in canada, racism is on top, if u have a job u can only survive, lots of health issues in canada and taxes so high.

As a Canadian who never lived in the US but visited often, gojng back again. There are p!aces in the US that we love i.e Arizona on the top. Of course I would keep well secured weapons in my house if we retired in AZ. No p!ace is completely safe especially major cities. Keep this in mind as well that Canada is sparsely populated compared to the US. I would not raise my kids in any major city in Canada either. I have no problem with our friends in America. We choose not to hide but experience life even at some risk.

Living in Toronto is the worst part of my life. It has made me extremely negative - I just hate being there and constantly\nComplain. I have been lucky enough to travel for months at a time, and get to see how amazing other countries and cities are. But it has just opened my eyes to how awful Toronto is, and I dread the last few days of vacation because I know I have to go back to my downtown shoebox, listen to sirens and hate my existence again. Desperately want to leave, and hoping to this year, but the day to day is just so bad. I make decent money but haven’t been able to save a thing due to the high cost of living. The winter is coming and I dread that so so so deeply. F this city, I’m sorry.

Canada is a vast country, but all immigrants want to live in the big cities, where housing is the most expensive and the climate is most termperate. I think the rising cost of city housing is in part due to immigration. We have many, many, many smaller towns and cities that need the medical, technical and manufacturing experience of immigrants, but no one wants to go there. I think the government needs to make these places more attractive to immigrants to help build these communities.

As former Calgarians, my wife and I had lived in that beautiful city for 30 years. We moved to the GTA in 2008. We had observed that the last 15 years, the GTA (Greater Toronto Area) has had seen a gradual decline in both affordability as well as crime and safety. The last 5 years or so had been especially obvious with significantly steep jump in living (dwelling & food) costs as well as crime rates.\nAfter a couple of visits to Alberta in the last year or so, my spouse and I had decided to pull up stakes and relocate back to Calgary where housing is still reasonably affordable. We also feel much safer over there. Oh, did I mention that the ring road around the perimeter of the City is very near completion and it is free. Yes, it's free of charge, i.e.: it is not a toll road.\nIn general, drivers in Calgary, are also way more courteous than their counterparts in the GTA.\nOur relocation will happen in the next two to three months. Bye bye GTA (with no regrets) .......

Its funny when people talk about the quality of Canadian health care. For example, BC Cancer is one of the best in the world. Canada is on the cutting edge of many health care procedures. Yes, its hard to get a primary care physician but that is because the US is throwing enormous amounts of cash at Canadian doctors and nurses. Canada still keeps up pretty darn well especially when considering Canada has only a FRACTION of the US population and much fewer resources and funds available. My family has never suffered from our health care system in the past 60 years. 1 family member had a quadruple bypass - no bills 2) cancer - no bills 3) emergency c-section w air transport to city 400 mils away - $360 for air ambulance 4) emergency appendectomy - no bills 5) Heart atttack w stint - no bill 6) MRI and CATscans - No bills 6) 3 ADHD diagnosis w mental health care support - no bills 7) industrial accident with crushed hand - no bills 8) Electrical accident with burns throughout body - no bills 9) burns from an oil fire - no bills 10) fall into fire pit w subsequent 3rd degree burns on leg - no bills 11) leg amputation from type 1 diabetes - no bills. And then there are all the little things that happen day to day. In each event, we received top notch care and services. So, you might earn more in the US but we save more in Canada and very few suffer from it. A lot of complaints? Most bad experiences are shared whereas positive ones are not. I think if people on both sides really looked, the US health care fails many more people per capital on a daily basis than in Canada. US insurers are known to abandoned people when they become overly expensive and its not unusual to not have choices in drugs or care options.

there is really no need for the average apartment to be so expensive except for greed ( profit) and or cost of operation which is a failure of government. Also in the constant influx of immigrants is at a rate that the city cannot cope with and that falls directly on government. This adds to the crime rate as well as homelessness. All of these failures result in bigger government that in hand requires more revenue and the merry-go-round continues. Like it or not Canada must reduce immigration significantly for a period to regain control. Our immigration level should not exceed 250,000 per year for the next 5 years or so.

Great work of yours BUT I really need to say something to most of u making those videos and the ones that go along. I come from a very civilized country with a lot of education and history but awful economy. ?? I am myself educated but my country’s main salary is 700€/month and a descent one bedroom apt is the same price. There are no jobs no future if u don’t come from a rich fam. I am taking the brave decision to leave my country and loved ones and immigrate to Toronto. I Google ‘moving to Toronto’ and I only see videos that are pointing how awful is to leave in Toronto. Like it’s garbage city! \nHave u ever lived in a country like mine? Have u seen the cost of living and salaries in Europe? What about third world countries?? \nHow can u speak down so much on a place just because u have to hustle to start? Does life owes us an easy effortless life? \nYour POV is very Americanized - I have lived also in the USA for almost a decade. \nDon’t discourage ppl that way. I have high standards but I’m not entitled, I can work and u should be more thankful that u can follow your dreams and live from YouTube in Toronto. People hustle big time u don’t seem to understand so I really can’t engage with that even if it’s well made. \nThank u ?

You have failed to mention how difficult it is to land a corporate position- for every 1 vacancy there are 200 applicants applying for that same position. And needless to say the compensation is so poor if it’s not an enterprise organization compare to the cost of living in this city basically you are working full time to pay your monthly expenses with no room to save anything

I moved to the US to upstate NY(not even near NY City nor is the crime), and only last a few months before I moved back. I’ve also been to 70% of US States, and every time I’m nervous as everything is just so different and you don’t feel safe. \n\nYour streets are definitely different than ours, and quite dirty to say the least. \n\nI’d rather live on the streets of Toronto, then live in an State in the U.S. \n\nThe only State I’ve been too where I’ve felt a tad bit safe was Idaho, but even then, I was still uptight! \n\nCanada also has higher standards when it comes to hotels, restaurants, grocery stores, food, etc. \n\nI live bordering Buffalo, NY and am even scared to cross for a sports game or shopping, although It’s not that terrible over there. \n\nYour gun laws are scary, and although I have a license to carry here in Canada, the U.S. needs to be much more stricter and also not allow sales of them on every block! \n\nI have hundreds of friends in the US, and sometimes their wait times for appointments are much longer than mine, and I don’t have to claim bankruptcy afterwards.

I am a Canadian exasperated with the wait times for medical care here. There is a lot of prejudice in Canada against America. Our politicians are ruining our economy and many Canadians are more interested in sensationalism about American politics than they are about problems here. Everyone living in peace and safety can afford to criticise others. But Canada was safer, friendlier and more economically responsible in the past. There are unsafe neighbourhoods here, too. There is poverty here, too. Those who don't see deterioration are not looking closely. We battle the same demons as any people group and are just as vulnerable to calamity as our American neighbours. I don't want to leave my country. The people I love are here. The rising cost of living gives me fears about future homelessness. I grew up as a patriotic Canadian and believed America was our friend. We thought maybe Americans were more prone to bragging while Canadians were more modest. My nearest city used to be vibrant and friendly and now it is colder, more dangerous and there is visible ruin from addiction.

I’ve lived near Toronto for the vast majority of my adult life. Around 2016 I was working there and started to explore the city a little bit more, living there for a short time. I think the draw and attraction was that it always was a little hectic. Always something to look at, so many different cultures. Also such contrasts, walking through the downtown core and then out to a neighborhood like Greek town. With parks and even forests to be found. It went from tense to a feeling of refuge and a sense of a natural oasis within a chaotic machine. I think the sense of calm which could be found has become a little more rare. Also a certain openness that people and cultures had towards each other has been fading. Discourse with other opinions morphed into the near impossible. It’s all by design and sad to see. It’s a tangible and significant change. When you zoom out at the infrastructure, social and economic level. It’s very hard to see a healthy recovery happening anytime soon. Mostly due to those being in charge not caring. Still lots of beauty there. I would never choose to live there again, but if anyone is still living there and reading this. My advice would be to explore the greenways, parks and forests to be found. The juxtaposition of city and nature gives a heightened appreciation to both realities, and really gives a more balanced/peaceful mindset to explore the good which can be found

I prefer the states. \nI've lived in a couple as I've said before and honestly.. it is better down there. \nI live in literally the most expensive city and Provence In Canada. \nI'm born and raised here and sure Americans have there problems but overall it was better everywhere I've lived in the states.\nHere it's just hidden by a smile.. \nWe've been known as a better country and lots of us can't admit it's as bad as it is here. And how much we can't say anything to change it. \nIt seems that you have more logical rights there and people seem to understand that trying to be loud and free to do whatever means something more. \nRight to live means more then follow orders like here. \nWe're falling apart as a country and I'm sick to my stomach knowing that Canada is not what I grew up believing. \nI grew up and seen the world the way it is and we don't live in a dream world like we want you to believe we do. \nThe states are at least able to voice opinions and there are places you can live OK.