# Moving to Halifax, NS from Toronto, ON



## Hopscotch96 (May 2, 2018)

Hi everyone. I am contemplating a move to Halifax towards the end of this year with my husband (and 3 pets). I have been in Canada for almost my whole life and Toronto is the only place I ever lived in. After 20+ years, as much as I LOVE this city, I want to check the coast out because I also love to be near the ocean. So, we are considering the big move. 

We have been doing our research and have a pretty solid idea about certain things but not everything. We know housing is cheaper than T.O but tax is higher, the city is not as large but has a lot of the same things in terms of amenities, public transportation is not as extensive either but it gets the job done, the climate is milder than Ontario, pay is lower than Ontario, Halifax is multicultural for its size, lots of students and young people etc. 

We need some help on other things such as, WHERE in the city to settle? We are torn between downtown/south end and the west end. We live in downtown Toronto (I grew up in the heart of downtown) and don't want to live in suburbs or somewhere that's too quiet and not easily accessible by public transit. We plan on getting a car but for the first 4-6 months at least we have to rely on the public transportation. We love the city life.

Downtown/south end of Halifax is our first choice but we are not sure about the area in terms of crime rates, how safe are certain areas at night (we feel very safe walking around most of downtown Toronto at night) or whether most of the places are worth the similar $$$ as Toronto. 

We have been looking at 1 or 2 bedroom apartments in the $900-1100/month range (do not want to be paying more rent than we do here), but don't know which rental companies we should pick and which to avoid since they are definitely not created the same. There are 3 high rises and low rises on Brunswick Street we are interested in called the "Mckeen", "Scotia" and "Plaza" and there all by a company called QuadReals. Can anyone provide some information on this company and/or the difference between each of the 3 buildings? Also, how is that neighbourhood? If you could also provide some info on west end neighbourhoods, apartment buildings, nearby amenities, what to look out for, what to expect etc, that would be super helpful, too. Thank you! Oh, if it helps: we are in our mid and late 30s, and we have a cat and two rabbits.


----------



## colchar (Oct 25, 2011)

The climate is milder? I think their winters are much worse than Toronto's, at least in terms of snowfall. The Atlantic provinces are also hit by hurricanes.

Those things stop me from making the move. I would love to move from the GTA to the east coast, but am not sure I could handle the weather.


----------

