Earlier quoted context omitted.
Shopify is also in Montreal
how is the tech scene at Montreal?
It's not bad, but not great. Some startups, lots of corporate. I've never had trouble finding work, though.
Toronto is poised to become a producer of tech startups
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Re: Toronto is poised to become a producer of tech startups
#72Earlier quoted context omitted.
how is the tech scene at Montreal?
Regrettable Some say it's ok. There are some startups, but most of the environment seems to be "corporate oriented", and .NET is very popular
future? any new policies taking shape to attract more companies?
I read somewhere that due to French clause in Quebec companies stay away from the city. Is it true?
Re: Toronto is poised to become a producer of tech startups
#73Earlier quoted context omitted.
I'm Australian. We have a special visa, the E3, which is very easy to get. Meanwhile almost everyone else is stuck in the H1B shitshow, which has in the past 5 years grown from merely "terrible" to "nuclear-powered self-propelling toxic thunderblob".
I've been curious if the US has a reciprocal visa with Australia? I'm a USian who has a deep affection for Melbourne.
I am not a lawyer, but I think the 457 visa fills a role similar to the H1B or E3. You need to coming in for a job on the "Skilled Occupations List"[1], which currently includes various job titles related to software development.
[0] https://www.border.gov.au/Trav/Visa-1/457-
[1] https://www.border.gov.au/Trav/Work/Work/Skills-assessment-a...
Re: Toronto is poised to become a producer of tech startups
#74Earlier quoted context omitted.
Yeah, the pay here in Toronto is much lower, even when you account for cost of living vs. San Fran. One consideration that offsets that is medical insurance. If your health care is not fully covered by your employer. I ran some numbers once and the "rent difference" was roughly $3k (typical 1 - 2 bedroom apartment at $4k vs. The roughly $1k I spend) and the platinum medical looking like roughly $500/mo Add in a car,…
> Add in a car, ($0 in Toronto, $1000 in The bay w/ parking, insurance, gas & the vehicle) My observation is that's great to not have a car in SF, I prefer not to. But it's impossible not to have a car in Toronto. Why is it $0 in Toronto?
Impossible? I lived in Toronto for ten years without a car and never had trouble getting around.
$0 is a bit misleading, as you will need $130/mo for a metropass.
Re: Toronto is poised to become a producer of tech startups
#75Ultimately if Toronto wants to be the best they will pay the best (adjusted for cost of living). They're best bet is that the bay cost of living becomes so unbearable that they can be competitive in take-home dollars. As it is, the money for developers is in the bay by a huge margin.
Yeah, the pay here in Toronto is much lower, even when you account for cost of living vs. San Fran. One consideration that offsets that is medical insurance. If your health care is not fully covered by your employer. I ran some numbers once and the "rent difference" was roughly $3k (typical 1 - 2 bedroom apartment at $4k vs. The roughly $1k I spend) and the platinum medical looking like roughly $500/mo Add in a car,…
Taxes? Canadians jump very quickly into the highest tax brackets. Goods and Services are taxed in Ontario at... 14% now?
Re: Toronto is poised to become a producer of tech startups
#76Waterloo is far better then Toronto in terms of startups and tech talent. Toronto is riding our coat tails :) Worth mentioning that Waterloo has the world's largest startup incubator/accelerator (physical space wise) via Velocity.
and Sudbury has the world's largest nickel... https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Big_Nickel
It doesn't really follow that they're going to be more successful because of it. World's largest is a bit irrelevant in this case.
Re: Toronto is poised to become a producer of tech startups
#77Who is going to move to Toronto to join the tech scene? If given the choice who is going to choose Toronto over Bay Area or Seattle? Without it having a massive draw it won't even register compared to Bay Area or even Seattle.
After being in the Bay Area for the past 7 years, I'm moving back to Toronto next week. Can't wait.
Congrats! What convinced you to go back?
Re: Toronto is poised to become a producer of tech startups
#78Who is going to move to Toronto to join the tech scene? If given the choice who is going to choose Toronto over Bay Area or Seattle? Without it having a massive draw it won't even register compared to Bay Area or even Seattle.
I did. Toronto is a great city. I've traveled a good deal in Canada, and the US, and while I can't compare it to cities outside of those two, I will say that I still consider the best city I've ever experienced. While the tech scene isn't as hot as the other regions you mentioned, it's still strong. Very strong. It's also starting to be noticed by the bigger players (with Google and Apple both investing in the region…
Are you an American or a Canadian? As an American, every time I talk to a Canadian company they assume there must be something wrong with me. They don't understand why anybody would choose the cold and less pay over someplace like SF.
Re: Toronto is poised to become a producer of tech startups
#79Earlier quoted context omitted.
Yeah, the pay here in Toronto is much lower, even when you account for cost of living vs. San Fran. One consideration that offsets that is medical insurance. If your health care is not fully covered by your employer. I ran some numbers once and the "rent difference" was roughly $3k (typical 1 - 2 bedroom apartment at $4k vs. The roughly $1k I spend) and the platinum medical looking like roughly $500/mo Add in a car,…
> Add in a car, ($0 in Toronto, $1000 in The bay w/ parking, insurance, gas & the vehicle) My observation is that's great to not have a car in SF, I prefer not to. But it's impossible not to have a car in Toronto. Why is it $0 in Toronto?
Toronto without a car is very easy so long as you live and work along a subway line, or less ideally, streetcar lines. Uber fills in the gaps.
Re: Toronto is poised to become a producer of tech startups
#80Not if Toronto keeps hemorrhaging talent. I graduated from the University of Toronto last year and can only name 2 of my classmates who are actually working in Toronto now. The rest are in SF, Seattle, and NYC - including many people who have family in Toronto, like me. All of my friends who were seriously working on a startup have moved it to the Bay Area.
Many of us would love to move back to Toronto 'eventually', for family reasons and because it's a great city overall, but for now the money and opportunities in the States are too good. In SF I'm making 2-3x what I'd make in Toronto and get to work on a globally-relevant system. And 80% of my social network is here now, too.