Edmonton or Vancouver??

[rdecartus]

I have to decide between 2 job offers - one in St. Albert and other in Vancouver. I will be relocating from California with wife and preschooler kid.

St. Albert offer is 15% lower than Vancouver one. I plan to buy a detached home wherever I am looking to move. I found that Vancouver properties are 2x in price compared to those in Edmonton.

Edmonton positives:

- lower house prices
- managerial role (higher than my current role)
- govt. job (steady, predictable load, better work life balance)
- lower taxes?

Edmonton negatives:

- cold weather
- slow pace of life
- 15% lower salary
- worse future job prospects in my field

Vancouver positives:

- Better weather
- more vibrant and fast pace
- slightly better future job prospects in my field
- 15% higher salary

Vancouver negatives;

- insane home prices
- higher taxes?
- job level same as my current role
- less work life balance due to client facing role

My mind says Edmonton but heart says Vancouver.

Is there anything that I am completely missing out in my evaluation? What do you guys think I should do?

 

[Pippin]

Look at house prices just outside Vancouver. Edmonton winters are long and cold and it is very windy. Bugs are also bad there. Hmmm. Think you can guess which one gets my vote in a heartbeat!

 

[Leon]

The taxes are lower in Edmonton. There is no provincial sales tax and no health care premiums.

However, Edmonton is not the Metropolis of the world. St. Albert is a nice quiet community. You can go to the farmers market every Saturday

Winter in Edmonton is long with a lot of snow to shovel. I never noticed a big bug problem in Edmonton but I've never lived in Vancouver to compare. Mosquitos in the garden maybe in the evenings.

However, I did hear from a handyman that came to fix something in my house that he previously worked in Vancouver and that a lot of houses there are in a bad state due to the price being so high that the people can just afford to buy the house and not to renovate or keep it in good shape. He said there was a rat problem in many basements there. There are no rats in AB. In any case, whether you buy a house in Vancouver or St. Albert, you should definitely get a home inspection or two before you buy so you know what kind of problems the house has, if any and can figure that into your offer.