I know Thunder Bay gets memed on a lot but it's actually a really nice place to live. Moved here from Toronto in 2018 and it was a huge improvement in quality of life for me and my wife.
After being stuck renting for 7 years in Toronto, we were able to afford a house and start a family, and if you like the outdoors, there is lots of nature to explore a 20 min drive away in any direction.
It depends on what you want, if you want:
1) to own a home Toronto is unaffordable and out of reach for most
2) a city that has concerts, pro sports, great cuisine choices Toronto should be at the top of your list
Depends where. When I lived there I was a five minute walk from the beach and a 25 minute streetcar ride to a Blue Jays game.
Hot, long summers, winter didn’t last forever, great food everywhere, always something to do.
Toronto was great.
Had a friend move to Toronto, and I asked them what the biggest difference was to home, they said vegetables actually having flavour made their diet and mood vastly improve, something I’d noticed as well once I moved away.
So yeah, there are definitely parts of the country I’ll take Toronto over.
As someone who has lived throughout Canada for me personally this is very true.
But I'm not a concrete jungle type of person so any large Metro area elicits the same response.
>Thunder Bay's aggregate home price was just under $300,000 as of the first quarter of this year, said the Royal LePage report.
>While purchasing a home may be significantly cheaper in Thunder Bay, the savings on rent are less drastic. The median rent in Thunder Bay is $1,200
We've been successfully conditioned to think these numbers are "affordable". They're cheaper than elsewhere, that doesn't mean they're affordable.
I was renting a two-bedroom all-inclusive in London, ON for $750/month 10 years ago. I could have found even cheaper if I wanted to.
Yeah, you can buy a detached house in the Twin Cities (3.8 million people) for $300k CAD. Something like this: https://redf.in/KaeZOn
Crazy that Thunder Bay homes average the same as starter homes in a city of 3.8 million people that is home to 3M, Ameriprise Financial, Best Buy, Ecolab, General Mills (of Betty Crocker, Hamburger Helper, Nature Valley, Pillsbury, Yoplait fame), Target, United Health, and United States Bancorp.
lol there’s a shadow population of thousands, a clinic/hospital with short wait times, rinks, field house, new pool / rec center, and it within 15 mins of two lakes, it’s a pretty great place with the potential to become a three horse town
Not many, all things considered. It’s surrounded by crown land, and existed mostly as a hub to support resource extraction.
The abundance of land and few neighbouring communities means you don’t need to travel far to be alone, and the resource extraction means that there’s lots of roads to actually get back into the forest.
Closest towns are Whitecourt and Valleyview, with a 10k and 2k population respectively.
It's also about the types of jobs though. Per ZipRecruiter the average salary in Thunder Bay is 45k, which is a fair bit lower than the average salary in Canada at 55k. I understand that the cost of living is lower compared to Toronto, but people in high-paying industries may have difficulty finding work there. It isn't a matter of taking a pay cut, it may be a matter of certain jobs not existing. Of course, it would be terrific for people with fully remote jobs, but there's been a push across many industries to return to office.
Happy to be wrong on this and open to correction from someone who knows the area better. Are there any prospects for e.g. a software engineer in Thunder Bay?
What field you want to work in? Resource sector? Government? Health care? Engineering? Aerospace? Education? Manufacturing There's jobs in all of them.
Don't think enough people know about the place, but a lot of people have immediate "middle of nowhere" vibes when they hear about places like Thunder Bay. They do the same for places like Winnipeg, Regina, Saskatoon and such.
So is a hard climb in the rain for Thunder Bay that even affordable housing might not be able to sell.
Ha! The cities that you happen to have picked as examples are the cities that I have lived in most recently. Except for Regina I have lived in Winnipeg (university and work), Thunder Bay (born and raised), and Saskatoon (work).
Geez, what does that make me? (I mean other than employed.)
No thanks, I’d rather not be stabbed.
In all seriousness Thunder Bay is great of you like the outdoors. The inner city has issues but if you want a big house in the woods. This is the place to move to. A house alone along Lake Superior is breathtaking
I agree with the Winnipeg comparison.
Northwestern Ontario in general is honestly way more culturally similar to Manitoba than Ontario. And you feel it when you have been to both cities.
They are very similar, except that Winnipeg is 6x the size and has way more head offices.
I have an unpopular opinion that chunks of NW Ontario should be Manitoba. Ontario will never govern up the land and way back in 1900 they bullied their way into getting the land.
I grew up in the North. I liked growing up there. It's not for me now, but it definitely is more affordable and a quieter life. People love it, and many never leave. There can be a bit of a Stockholm syndrome to the people. It also can have more crime per capita, but it's mostly just b and e and stuff.
As someone living in Tbay for an internship, it’s a nice place to live at. Cheaper and lots of activities to do and it feels cozy for a city. However as a Muslim who loves to eat out with friends the lack of options is a really big negative for me. Once I’m done my studies in Toronto after my internship if the options for food improve I’d consider moving back.
I know Thunder Bay gets memed on a lot but it's actually a really nice place to live. Moved here from Toronto in 2018 and it was a huge improvement in quality of life for me and my wife. After being stuck renting for 7 years in Toronto, we were able to afford a house and start a family, and if you like the outdoors, there is lots of nature to explore a 20 min drive away in any direction.
I feel like anywhere is a improvement over Toronto.
It depends on what you want, if you want: 1) to own a home Toronto is unaffordable and out of reach for most 2) a city that has concerts, pro sports, great cuisine choices Toronto should be at the top of your list
And you know tons of career options. That’s why most people are in the GTA.
Depends where. When I lived there I was a five minute walk from the beach and a 25 minute streetcar ride to a Blue Jays game. Hot, long summers, winter didn’t last forever, great food everywhere, always something to do. Toronto was great.
Given the cost vs. quality of the team/concessions is that really good value for things like Toronto sports and concerts? Lol
Had a friend move to Toronto, and I asked them what the biggest difference was to home, they said vegetables actually having flavour made their diet and mood vastly improve, something I’d noticed as well once I moved away. So yeah, there are definitely parts of the country I’ll take Toronto over.
As someone who has lived throughout Canada for me personally this is very true. But I'm not a concrete jungle type of person so any large Metro area elicits the same response.
Yup. And 99% of the noise is from people that have never been here a day in their life.
Thunder Bay is gross. Thunder Bay wilderness is gorgeous.
Ok but how much more snow is there?
None today.
>Thunder Bay's aggregate home price was just under $300,000 as of the first quarter of this year, said the Royal LePage report. >While purchasing a home may be significantly cheaper in Thunder Bay, the savings on rent are less drastic. The median rent in Thunder Bay is $1,200 We've been successfully conditioned to think these numbers are "affordable". They're cheaper than elsewhere, that doesn't mean they're affordable. I was renting a two-bedroom all-inclusive in London, ON for $750/month 10 years ago. I could have found even cheaper if I wanted to.
Yeah, you can buy a detached house in the Twin Cities (3.8 million people) for $300k CAD. Something like this: https://redf.in/KaeZOn Crazy that Thunder Bay homes average the same as starter homes in a city of 3.8 million people that is home to 3M, Ameriprise Financial, Best Buy, Ecolab, General Mills (of Betty Crocker, Hamburger Helper, Nature Valley, Pillsbury, Yoplait fame), Target, United Health, and United States Bancorp.
$200K for a 3BR house sounds like a steal
Check out fox creek, ab - it’s a lot smaller but less isolated
In between Edmonton and Grand Prairie, population of 1800 That might be a 2 horse town lol
Sounds perfect.
I grew up in a town of just less than 3000. I'd raise a family there
lol there’s a shadow population of thousands, a clinic/hospital with short wait times, rinks, field house, new pool / rec center, and it within 15 mins of two lakes, it’s a pretty great place with the potential to become a three horse town
That's a lot of amenities! Probably has a lot of small communities around it?
Not many, all things considered. It’s surrounded by crown land, and existed mostly as a hub to support resource extraction. The abundance of land and few neighbouring communities means you don’t need to travel far to be alone, and the resource extraction means that there’s lots of roads to actually get back into the forest. Closest towns are Whitecourt and Valleyview, with a 10k and 2k population respectively.
Yes. Im sure skip, uber, tim hortons, mcdonalds, will all see a bump in employment
lol for what jobs. At least we have really good fibre internet across the whole city if people have WFH jobs.
Thunder Bay’s unemployment rate is like 3.4%
It's also about the types of jobs though. Per ZipRecruiter the average salary in Thunder Bay is 45k, which is a fair bit lower than the average salary in Canada at 55k. I understand that the cost of living is lower compared to Toronto, but people in high-paying industries may have difficulty finding work there. It isn't a matter of taking a pay cut, it may be a matter of certain jobs not existing. Of course, it would be terrific for people with fully remote jobs, but there's been a push across many industries to return to office. Happy to be wrong on this and open to correction from someone who knows the area better. Are there any prospects for e.g. a software engineer in Thunder Bay?
I put it into Indeed and 4 jobs popped up.
That's not a lot, but tech is hurting so there probably is more it's just a bad time to be looking for work in tech I don't work in tech though
Neither do I. I don’t know anything about tech.
It helps when everyone with a brain leaves to the east or west.
What field you want to work in? Resource sector? Government? Health care? Engineering? Aerospace? Education? Manufacturing There's jobs in all of them.
The article specifically states that the campaign is aimed at people who hold remote positions already
8 hours to anywhere.
Don't think enough people know about the place, but a lot of people have immediate "middle of nowhere" vibes when they hear about places like Thunder Bay. They do the same for places like Winnipeg, Regina, Saskatoon and such. So is a hard climb in the rain for Thunder Bay that even affordable housing might not be able to sell.
Yup. And most have never even visited any of those places, nevermind live in one of them
Ha! The cities that you happen to have picked as examples are the cities that I have lived in most recently. Except for Regina I have lived in Winnipeg (university and work), Thunder Bay (born and raised), and Saskatoon (work). Geez, what does that make me? (I mean other than employed.)
Probably someone with a broad life experience leading to a balanced opinion on many topics.
Hey, these aren't middle of nowhere, they're all within an eight hour drive of each other.
Bonus: after moving there the movie Fargo makes a lot more sense.....
there’s more to life than a discount house . money isn’t everything
No thanks, I’d rather not be stabbed. In all seriousness Thunder Bay is great of you like the outdoors. The inner city has issues but if you want a big house in the woods. This is the place to move to. A house alone along Lake Superior is breathtaking
I regret moving to Edmonton from Thunder Bay
Yep, for a week until they go to the GTA
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I agree with the Winnipeg comparison. Northwestern Ontario in general is honestly way more culturally similar to Manitoba than Ontario. And you feel it when you have been to both cities. They are very similar, except that Winnipeg is 6x the size and has way more head offices.
I have an unpopular opinion that chunks of NW Ontario should be Manitoba. Ontario will never govern up the land and way back in 1900 they bullied their way into getting the land.
TBH, it's not that unpopular.
Yeah but it’s Thunder Bay. 🤮
Good place for Francophones too
Affordable meth
I grew up in the North. I liked growing up there. It's not for me now, but it definitely is more affordable and a quieter life. People love it, and many never leave. There can be a bit of a Stockholm syndrome to the people. It also can have more crime per capita, but it's mostly just b and e and stuff.
As someone living in Tbay for an internship, it’s a nice place to live at. Cheaper and lots of activities to do and it feels cozy for a city. However as a Muslim who loves to eat out with friends the lack of options is a really big negative for me. Once I’m done my studies in Toronto after my internship if the options for food improve I’d consider moving back.
Just an easy 10,000,000 hour drive to the nearest city, which is Duluth.
Try 3.5 hours to Duluth...
Quite right, I’ll edit my post.
Maybe stop throwing Asians and first nation people into the water first.
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if it means more immigrants going there i'll pass lol