What is a realistic budget for living simply in OK?

[Hermes]

viewtopic.php?f=23&t=72398

My question above got no replies

In GVRD you need $1000 minimum. More like $1500

Of course it depends on your levels of creature comfort and whether you own your own home. This post I am avoiding getting into great detail.

[WalterWhite]

You've certainly been busy since joining these last couple of days. A half dozen different threads all generally tied to moving/living in Kelowna apparently part time as you're a snowbird. Might have been more beneficial to have all your questions under one topic rather than sparsely spread all over. Just my $0.02.

[Hermes]

You've certainly been busy since joining these last couple of days. A half dozen different threads all generally tied to moving/living in Kelowna apparently part time as you're a snowbird. Might have been more beneficial to have all your questions under one topic rather than sparsely spread all over. Just my $0.02.

I am trying to use the board's system of subject organization. Actually Penticton and Osoyoos are my first choices from afar
but those forum sub-sections are ghost towns.

[WalterWhite]

You've certainly been busy since joining these last couple of days. A half dozen different threads all generally tied to moving/living in Kelowna apparently part time as you're a snowbird. Might have been more beneficial to have all your questions under one topic rather than sparsely spread all over. Just my $0.02.

I am trying to use the board's system of subject organization. Actually Penticton and Osoyoos are my first choices from afar
but those forum sub-sections are ghost towns.

Utilizing subject organization or not - it's kind of flooding the board with a bunch of threads all seeking the same general thing regarding the pros and cons of living/moving here. Try utilizing the search function and you'll find a number of threads over the years covering these subjects and more.

[lightspeed]

https://forums.castanet.net/viewtopic.php?f=23&t=72398

My question above got no replies

In GVRD you need $1000 minimum. More like $1500

A week? Net?

[Hermes]

https://forums.castanet.net/viewtopic.php?f=23&t=72398

My question above got no replies

In GVRD you need $1000 minimum. More like $1500

A week? Net?

If you are not being facetious, this is not looking good. What do you think is a typical working poor single budget for the month - $2000?

[monroe]

I am trying to use the board's system of subject organization. Actually Penticton and Osoyoos are my first choices from afar
but those forum sub-sections are ghost towns.

"afar" is right.

Penticton, Osoyoos - what are your reasons if i can ask?

If youre looking down in those areas, then look at OK Falls. Great place. Close to Penticton if you need anything and more importantly, not close enough to Osoyoos that you can say you dont live near Osoyoos.

[Hermes]

Monroe wrote: "Penticton, Osoyoos - what are your reasons if i can ask?"

All explained in other posts. Short story - I like small towns. I like hot and dry weather. I like to be able to (within 20 minutes) drive to where I can see the star at night. When I worked for CP I liked the aroma of sage brush near Kamloops.

Only going and trying it out will verify.

[GenesisGT]

What is your budget today and do you live in BC already. Costs such as cable, internet, car insurance/payments, utilities, food (may be higher), discretionary budget, will all be about what you are paying now. So the main driver will be housing, all you have to do is check Castanet ads to see what the rental/buying costs are.

Not hard to figure out what your budget needs are, if you are planning to move here or anywhere else. As everyone has different priorities a realistic budget for you and for me are two different things, even though we both believe we have a simply living standard.

[monroe]

Ok, i just noticed yer comment above my last.

Youre referring to budget @ 2k/month? Weekly? Bimonthly? Before after mortage/rent?

[Hermes]

What is your budget today and do you live in BC already. Costs such as cable, internet, car insurance/payments, utilities, food (may be higher), discretionary budget, will all be about what you are paying now. So the main driver will be housing, all you have to do is check Castanet ads to see what the rental/buying costs are.

Not hard to figure out what your budget needs are, if you are planning to move here or anywhere else. As everyone has different priorities a realistic budget for you and for me are two different things, even though we both believe we have a simply living standard.

- My variable monthly budget is $800-$1000 here and now
- I live in suburban Vancouver where I rent a room in somebody else's place that includes all utilities (electricity, internet, etc) for $350 (small room) or $450 (master bedroom). I switch periodically according to my income.
- I use the bus and cycle. But mostly walk, because I like to
- I am thinking of getting a car if I move to OK, but only if necessary to get between towns
- I live on about what I live on the Vietnam eating out and staying in basic hotels (there)
- I do not eat out here
- When my monthly earnings are more, I save that for travel.
- I spend no money in Canada other than essentials.
- I am moving into working online so I can work from anywhere and increase my income
- I have lived a third of my adult life overseas in developing countries and I find Canada very, very expensive if living on modest savings. I might as well be in Norway.

As stated before in this forum, I stay in Canada for family reasons, and soon for legal/financial reasons. I am just looking for my little homebase to semi-retire before I expire. I feel like an alien. When my married friends who own condos tell me what they earn versus what they spend it astounds me. Working for $1000 a month in SEA I saved more money (% and total) per month than they do earning 5-6X what I did. I might just take my measly OAS and leave when the time comes!

[GenesisGT]

Looking at the Castanet shared accommodation ads, it would appear to move to Kelowna your accommodation costs would increase around double depending what part of town you wanted to live in. As so many others find out the cost of housing in Kelowna may be the driving force whether or not you move here.

[Hermes]

Looking at the Castanet shared accommodation ads, it would appear to move to Kelowna your accommodation costs would increase around double depending what part of town you wanted to live in. As so many others find out the cost of housing in Kelowna may be the driving force whether or not you move here.

Thank you for your seasoned advice.

My experience has been that those who advertise are not the best deals. That's never how I found a place to live, a job or a girlfriend! BTW, I recognize that I have a very good deal here in the TriCities of GVRD. It is normal to pay 25-50% more. And anyway, if I stay in the OK it will likely be in one of the smaller towns.

Are you sure a shared accommodation is so expensive, that a *room* in a Kelowna house or condo is $800-900? Wowzer!

[fluffy]

Housing expenses are a pretty big variable. If you want to live on your own and can afford to buy a property outright I'd guess you could be pretty comfortable on $2K/month, maybe even put enough away for that trip south.

I commute to the oilsands for work and it's been alittle spotty since the oil price crash. It's work for a while, laid off for a while, and around we go again. I try to live on EI payments alone when I'm laid off, sort of practicing for retirement, and that amounts to about $1900 a month. Week to week that keeps me pretty comfortable, but my housing cost is low, being near the end of a mortgage I started twenty-some years ago. If something big comes along, house insurance or taxes and such, I have to dip into the cookie jar. With the way it's gone so far, and with the mortgage will be gone by pension time, $2500 to $3000 a month should keep me pretty cozy.

Of course I've always got my eye out for a rich widow.

[GordonH]

^^^ Castanet classifieds
https://classifieds.castanet.net/cat/re ... ?sortby=lp