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Originally posted by rozebuds

Hello:

We are a family of 4 (husband+wife+ 2 children age 8 & 4) We are going to land in June'09.

I would like to know the avg price of houses in Surrey / Burnaby Vancouver in Indian area for buying so as to save on rent. While I search for Jobs.

I would really appreciate advise from CD's

Regards
RB (we are from Bombay)

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It is a good time to buy a place. It might even get a little more easier and slightly cheaper after you land here and get a job.

Not all of us can afford to pay for a house 'Fully' in cash, as most of us landed here with limited amount of resources. Also we moved about to different locations till we found a suitable job and a location nearby which suited our needs and the children's education and their activities. So, one moves to a location where the jobs are and then decide upon a location to suit the other needs. The needs that you may have may be different to the ones that I have given here. So, you be the judge of it.

Canada has a large land mass and when you move into a town you will find the architecture of the buildings change and blending in of the new and the old constructions and the subtleties of each as you explore and it will become difficult to decide what it is that you want. By the time you find a job, a few friends and a school nearby and all of the other things that you want in your 'backyard', you will find that it is an arduous task. After you find the place, you will have to find the appliances, furniture and other things that go with the decor, will be a nice project to do. It will keep on going and will never end. So, enjoy the exploration and the shopping spree that goes with it. First the basics and then the dream house.

Most of the lending institutions look for the stability of the purchaser and some might ask for a letter from your employer while extending the loan to you. In this current economy, you might need a slightly longer period in settling down comfortably in a suitable post/job. So, be prepared for it and have a lot of resources at hand for the lengthy period of search and settling.

Initially if you get into a guest house for a couple of days, you will have enough time to do the search and see the available openings first and then decide to rent a place for a month or two as the schools do not restart here till after the labour day weekend. Our spring here just got stated and you have good six months do all of the exploring that you want to do and I am sure that is quite a long period during which you can decide upon where to settle down and root yourself. Most of the people decide to move out in May and they list the properties for sale then.
You will have a good choice to pick when the time arrives.

Now for the costs: Burnaby and Surrey are a good place to settle, only if you can find a nice job to go to, close by. Otherwise you will have a long commute and the transportation and the infrastructure from and out of it is so so. You will have a long commute if you do not have your own transportation. That takes time.
Now to the purchase of a property: The cost when you buy, includes the commission of the person through whom the property got sold. It could range from 3-5% of the total value. There is a similar cost added to it when you buy for the purchasing agent. So, the value of the house gets padded upwards by that amount. To recover the same, it might take five to ten years. And in the current market conditions, it could take forever. By then you will be ready to retire. The savings that you are anticipating will actually evaporate and if you invest such an initial sum for a paltry interest of 2.5% will appreciate a lot more than you would gain in the value of the appreciation of the property.

Hope this guides you in your initial start and in your settlement here in Canada.

Welcome to Canada.

Wish you and your family all the best.

Freddie.

Quote:

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Originally posted by rozebuds

Hello:

We are a family of 4 (husband+wife+ 2 children age 8 & 4) We are going to land in June'09.

I would like to know the avg price of houses in Surrey / Burnaby Vancouver in Indian area for buying so as to save on rent. While I search for Jobs.

I would really appreciate advise from CD's

Regards
RB (we are from Bombay)

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Surrey is the cheapest place to live when compared to Burnaby or Vancouver. I live on the outskirts of Surrey. I would suggest that you first rent a place (get a month to month if possible rather than locking into a year lease) and then once you have not only secured a job but also are sure this job is long term and stable, then look at buying. You will have a sense of the area you feel safe in (not all parts of vancouver, burnaby or surrey are desirable or safe to live in as others). Secondly if u secure ajob in surrey, you would have a headache of a commute if you lived in burnaby or vancouver, because of having to cross bridges, which are always very busy.

If you rent a basement suite, you are looking at $500-700 for 2 bedrooms which usually includes utilities, but not necessarily laundry.

If you can afford it, think of the rent as an investment while you are exploring the best neighborhood for yourself and your children.

ps- once u have landed and have chosen an area of the city to start in, let me know ill give you the contact information for local employment resource centres that will help you in your job search free of charge.