Castanet

We moved to the Okanagan in April 2011 and thought Peachland would be home. Thankfully we had the opportunity to rent for a few months prior to finding a home to purchase. Peachland, while a great little village, just doesn't have enough amenities. There is also the highway noise to consider. We lived a fair bit above Hwy 97 and couldn't sleep with the windows open. Big trucks don't hesitate to use their jakebrakes as they drive through.

We chose a newer community in Westbank and find it much more convenient, and so much quieter!

We will be renting, and by the looks of it, rental prices for a house aren't really ridiculous. The prices are almost the same as they are here. (But with a BC house you get a gorgeous view. A view here would be living at the top of a small hill.)

Queen K wrote:Look carefully at the taxes levied on housing in Peachland and ask to see utility bills, esp. water bills. I believe they are higher.

That's a fallacy that has been around for a long time. Peachland's property taxes are toward the low end compared to other Okanagan communities.

We moved to West Kelowna in April 2011 from Edmonton. We'll never go back to AB...The winters are MUCH more enjoyable...You can play in all the snow without getting frostbite
We have everything in West Kelowna that any other city has.. The big Wal Mart, Home Depot, Superstore, Save On, etc...Doctors, Tim's Horton's, Starbucks, etc...Kelowna is close enough if you need anything from over there...Peachland is only about a 5-10 minute drive....Be sure to go see Hardy Falls there...I am kind of biased as my fiance proposed to me there in March this year But its a beautiful walk...
Health care is a little expensive if your employer doesnt cover it...For one person it is $54. For a family (2 or more I believe), we pay $116 every month...
We also decided to rent for a while...Gives us a chance to check out different areas...See what each neighborhood is like, etc...
I know we'll never go back home to AB...I can't wait to raise our future kids here You'll love it here!

The wife used to live in Brandon and has family in Carberry ... she says West Kelowna: small and friendly enough (most neighbourhoods), and yet close enough to amenities (similar to the 15 min drive from Carberry to Brandon).

while Peachland is a GREAT place, and we spend lots of time there, I'm not sure I would chose to live there if I had small kids. There's not much to do there for kids, (ice rink etc), and there is only an elelmentary school there. Kids in Peachland have to go to hight school in Westbank.
Also, taxes and levies etc are much higher in peachland than Westbank. Hope this helps.

Upandaway ... just wondering? Since you have a young family, have you given any thought to moving alittle further south to say Summerland or even Penticton? IMO Summerland or Penticton are by far alot better communities to live in than Peachland or WK. (Sorry Peachland and WK not a shot just my opinion) since I live here in Penticton. You may want to check out the following link for Penticton: http://www.penticton.ca/

Good luck on your decision and move and welcome to the Okanagan.

sassybee wrote:Also, taxes and levies etc are much higher in peachland than Westbank.

Not true.

sassybee wrote:while Peachland is a GREAT place, and we spend lots of time there, I'm not sure I would chose to live there if I had small kids. There's not much to do there for kids, (ice rink etc), and there is only an elelmentary school there. Kids in Peachland have to go to hight school in Westbank.
Also, taxes and levies etc are much higher in peachland than Westbank. Hope this helps.

But but Nebula just told me this is a myth!
Is he right or are we right?

Just bite the bullet and move right into Kelowna.

Edited to add: Kelowna has a Hospital. Neither Peachland or West Kelowna has one.

Queen K wrote:But but Nebula just told me this is a myth!
Is he right or are we right?

Nebula is right.

Kelowna 2012 tax rate 6.4086
Peachland 2012 tax rate 6.0139

2012 tax rates for BC
http://www.cscd.gov.bc.ca/lgd/infra/tax ... es2012.htm

From least expensive to most expensive, here’s the list of average property taxes for Okanagan communities in 2011:

Oliver – $2,619
Osoyoos – $2,658
Coldstream – $2,854
Penticton – $3,123
Peachland – $3,421
Summerland – $3,516
Kelowna – $3,523
Vernon – $3,610
West Kelowna – $3,767
Lake Country – $3,849

And how will Peachlands taxes be when they have to start paying for their own police force?

And just how high will the taxes be in West Kelowna When the transition to incorporation money runs out very soon????

Brace yourselves guys!!

We moved from Westbank to Manitoba and returned after about 14 months out there. We had moved to BC from Manitoba about 20 years ago. To make a long story short, from a provincial tax perspective at Income Tax time, it was more expensive living in Manitoba than it was here in BC. Yes you pay for healthcare here.. so much a month. The difference in Manitoba is the healthcare charges are included in your provincial tax. Depending on where you live in Manitoba, the cost of living can be less than you have here, but if you happen to be living 100 kms out of the city in a place like Winnipeg Beach or Gimli for example, the cost of groceries is closer to the same. We moved back to Manitoba because my spouse thought she would like to move back closer to family and friends... she changed her mind after being there a year!! We moved back to West Kelowna for the beautiful invironment here, the lifestyle and the climate.