151–160 of 247 posts
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Perhaps Montreal can do the same, if the city finds some way to sidestep the provincial language laws.
Unfortunately the software industry in Montreal has decided that developers are not valuable. Salaries are hilariously low compared to american counterparts.
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Yes, until you have a family. Then suddenly you need a good school nearby (and good luck bringing children to school in car if they have serious case of motion sickness).
I walked to school back when I was in elementary school. In grade 2, my mother confirmed that I remembered the stranger rules, and stopped walking with me. It was about a 2km walk. Why is it ok for this to not be the norm? Why do people just accept that their kids are growing up in a city where they can't be allowed to explore their environment?
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Learning a second language is a great thing - your mind becomes more flexible and you get access to movies, books and songs which you wouldn't be able to enjoy otherwise - having to cope with language laws, though, sucks big time.
Yes, I know mandarin and English. Wait, I have to learn French also? Pass. I had the same problem in Lausanne, though French wasn't required for my job. I just couldn't completely devote myself to my research AND learn another language concurrently.
Is there a government that makes it mandatory? Because otherwise we're not talking about the same thing. I speak 4 languages and I learned each of them for different reasons... None of which was "because otherwise I would be breaking the law".
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Probably about as many parents who are fighting to get their kids in French Immersion in the rest of Canada. I can't speak about anywhere other than Toronto but here it's quite sought after, second language for children. Especially amongst first generation immigrants like myself.
That's not because of French language, they would try even if it had Zulu immersion. It's just that it's cheaper than private schools, but you still get good students and quality environment
As a vancouverite, and a person that's lived in Toronto for over a decade, I can say that while vancouver has about half the population (of T.O.) it has maybe 1/4 or 1/8 of the tech jobs. Also Canada is not like, say, the US, where there are many different industrial centers (ie Entertainment in LA or Finance in NY). In Canada, most corp headquarters are in Toronto and a small fraction are in Calgary and that's it. V…
Secondly Chinese cash coming to Vancouver is almost by definition illegal because of the $50k cash limit Chinese can take out of the country.
As a vancouverite, and a person that's lived in Toronto for over a decade, I can say that while vancouver has about half the population (of T.O.) it has maybe 1/4 or 1/8 of the tech jobs. Also Canada is not like, say, the US, where there are many different industrial centers (ie Entertainment in LA or Finance in NY). In Canada, most corp headquarters are in Toronto and a small fraction are in Calgary and that's it. V…
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Introduction of a gradual increase in property taxes, as well as a gradual decease in income taxes, even lower than zero if appropriate, would be the naïve, straightforward economic policy recommendation if the problem has been accurately described. Some details yo resolve would be the numerous people who were using their primary residence as their main investment for retirement, and deciding how to handle people who…
Is there any reason that property taxes couldn't be increased solely on homes without residents? It would at least encourage putting foreign owned homes on the rental market.
http://www.straight.com/news/735161/revisiting-real-estate-r...
Study finds foreign buyers impact Vancouver real estate but likely can't account for sky-high prices:
http://www.straight.com/news/720471/study-finds-foreign-buye...
What isn't talked about in this article is the effect this is having on the other industries in the city aside from real estate. I believe that Vancouver has potential to be THE tech hub in Canada. Unfortunately, wages are very low compared to the cost of housing, and so the cost of living is super high. Combine that with extremely low vacancy rates, and it is very hard to attract talent from out of town. In fact, ma…
As a vancouverite, and a person that's lived in Toronto for over a decade, I can say that while vancouver has about half the population (of T.O.) it has maybe 1/4 or 1/8 of the tech jobs. Also Canada is not like, say, the US, where there are many different industrial centers (ie Entertainment in LA or Finance in NY). In Canada, most corp headquarters are in Toronto and a small fraction are in Calgary and that's it. V…
A couple of issues here. Firstly US does not dictate Canadian rates, sadly. The fed raised interest rates recently and likely will raise then further if the conditions are right. In Canada many people, especially young people, have dangerously high mortgages for their income. They bought into property because of fear of missing out, often aided and encouraged by their parents who made out like bandits and assume the…
Of course not, but 5 year-fixed rate mortgages are set according to the bond market, not BoC overnight rates.
If interest rates set by the US Fed are high, then lenders are going to securitize Canadian mortgages with US bonds, due to the higher yields found there.