moving to Nanaimo from Florida!

[glacierfire]

hey folks my name is Tia and I'm an artist who's moving from nice warm sunny Florida to Nanaimo to be with her husband who's Canadian. I managed to drag him away from Edmonton to Nanaimo mainly because we agreed the cost of living, activities, and life style were more our speed. Which is extremely exciting for me since I've participated with the Salish Sea Hydrophone Network (and have been an active member of a widely known marine wildlife conservation group) for a number of years. I know we're a fair bit north of San Juan Island and Victoria where it's common to see J, K, & L Pod (Southern Resident pods of Orcas) but I'm hoping to have some luck seeing Orcas in the waters near Nanaimo. I'm absolutely in love with an fascinated by them and can usually pick family members out of photos I see.

Other then that? I show Chinese Crested dogs, love horses, and eventually am hoping to either contribute to or open up my own art gallery/bistro somewhere along the line. I love the water and boating and all things to do with the outdoors so I look forward to learning about local hiking hot spots and camping areas. This is a great new chapter and everything I've read about Nanaimo is saying it's going to be a fun one!

[limbery]

...Hi and I guess I'll just say that at least Nanaimo will be less of a shock weather-wise for you than Edmonton would be....and since you're into nautical persuits I think you'll be happier here too!

[Wyatt Earp]

Sounds like anything on your list will be able to be accomplished. Be warned about the price of realestate and the amount of tax we pay though... (Edmonton, like the rest of Alberta, doesn't have a sales tax or personal income tax).

Cheers,

[limbery]

Be warned about the price of realestate and the amount of tax we pay though... (Edmonton, like the rest of Alberta, doesn't have a sales tax or personal income tax).

Cheers,

....and they don't have that stupid 2% real estate tax too!

[glacierfire]

in Florida we have a 6.75% sales tax and a personal income tax take rakes a good %10 out of every hundred bucks or so that you make money out for social security/medicare that you're not eligible for until you're 65. I can't imagine it's anything like that? If so? Happy happy joy joy LOL!

[Nostradama]

in Florida we have a 6.75% sales tax and a personal income tax take rakes a good %10 out of every hundred bucks or so that you make money out for social security/medicare that you're not eligible for until you're 65. I can't imagine it's anything like that? If so? Happy happy joy joy LOL!

Oh no, it's nothing like Florida! BC actually stands for "Bring Cash." Examples:

We have, last I heard, the highest provincial personal income tax rate in Canada. Last time I felt like having a good cry, I estimated my income tax rate, federal and provincial, and it was around 41%.

Right now, we're paying a provincial sales tax on many items and a federal goods and services tax, also many items. "Around" July 1, 2010, the two will be blended into one called "Harmonized Sales Tax" (HST), which will be twelve percent. And the provincial government is expanding its list of taxable items.

Then there's "carbon tax" which is applied to gas, diesel, natural gas, heating fuel, propane, coal and, I discovered, even tires if you're burning them for heat, etc. Must remember to pay my carbon tax the next time I decide to BBQ using old tires. It may come to that.

And another, "motor fuel tax", which I suppose is mostly gas and diesel, although God knows if someone were to power a car by solar, they'd probably get taxed on sunlight, too. Part of the motor fuel tax goes into the government's general revenue and the balance goes to other government programs, like education (they say).

There's a five cent "bottle deposit" for a can of soda, which you can get back if you drive using your overtaxed gas to a return depot. Plus a two cent "enviro fee" on each can. No, you don't get this back.

If you're a good citizen and you dispose of old electronics the way you're supposed to, I'm told that they charge you for this, too. Not that I'd know. I'm not a good citizen.

If you're employed, your payment into the Canada Pension Plan is partly paid by your employer, partly paid by you, and pays out at (your choice) ages 60 or 65. What you get depends upon what was paid into your account. When you hit 65, whether you worked or not, you receive Old Age Security, and that's $516.96 per month.

On the other hand, our prescription drugs are much cheaper. A prescription that I would have paid $12 and change for in Canada a few years ago cost me in Seattle, for exactly the same item (not a generic), same time period, $33 and change. And our "socialized" medical system does cost us, even 'tho I've found some American folks who don't realize that. But, at least, it's far, far less than in the US, and it can vary according to income level. Can't find the notification I received a couple of weeks ago that mine had increased, but it runs me around $90 a month. And I'm guessing that's the maximum rate for a single person.

Electrical power (we call it "hydro") is certainly far less expensive in BC than it is in Washington state. For example, I'm heating and air conditioning (three ACs--I'm on the "sunny side", great in the winter if we get sun, but would be an unliveable oven in the summer without AC) around 1,100 square feet for around $80 a month (an apartment, but because my laundry room is in my apartment, I pay my own hydro bill, so that cost also includes a washer and dryer) but I have friends in Washington who are paying $700+ a month. All of the usual household power consumption is included in my average $80 per month. Granted, theirs is a much larger area, but I suspect that taken by the square foot, my bill is seriously under theirs.

[Tenspot]

that the government here has even found a way to tax the air we breathe. It's called the "carbon tax".
A question: If carbon dioxide is heavier than air, how does it get up into the ionosphere?

[Wyatt Earp]

Bring Cash... I like that.

[Wyatt Earp]

I just figured I post this for clarification:

British Columbia (BC)
Personal Income Tax Brackets and Rates

2010 Taxable Income
2010 Tax Rates
first $35,859 5.06%
over $35,859 up to $71,719 7.70%
over $71,719 up to $82,342 10.50%
over $82,342 up to $99,987 12.29%
over $99,987 14.70%


2009 Taxable Income
2009 Tax Rates
first $35,716 5.06%
over $35,716 up to $71,433 7.70%
over $71,433 up to $82,014 10.50%
over $82,014 up to $99,588 12.29%
over $99,588 14.70%

British Columbia (BC) combined federal & provincial tax rates

2010 Taxable Income
2010 Marginal Tax Rates
first $35,859 20.06%
over $35,716 up to $40,726 22.70%
over $40,726 up to $71,433 29.70%
over $71,433 up to $81,452 32.50%
over $81,452 up to $82,014 36.50%
over $82,014 up to $99,588 38.29%
over $99,987 up to $127,021 40.70%
over $127,021 43.70%

2009 Taxable Income
2009 Marginal Tax Rates
first $35,716 20.06%
over $35,859 up to $40,970 22.70%
over $40,970 up to $71,719 29.70%
over $71,719 up to $81,941 32.50%
over $81,941 up to $82,342 36.50%
over $82,342 up to $99,987 38.29%
over $99,588 up to $126,264 40.70%
over $126,264 43.70%

BC Basic Personal Amount
2010 Tax Rate
$11,000 5.06%

2009 Tax Rate
$9,373 5.06%

Federal Basic Personal Amount
2010 Tax Rate
$10,382 15.00%
2009 Tax Rate
$10,320 15.00%

[Geoff]

Welcome Tia.