B.C. Best Places to Retire Thread.

Us Riverites are flattered you should think so. I moved here from YVR over 20 years ago after growing up there. No regrets other than not seeing some old friends often enough.

Backroads suitable for all biking styles. My old Tiger & the DR have seen many miles of gravel here. 3 hours to Victoria & lower Island back country, Tofino surfing a bit over 3 hours away. Bikes are MUCH cheaper than cars on the ferries & still get priority loading.

Within 50 miles of here we have over 100 lakes with logging roads & trails to most. Open ocean, channels, & inlets great for fishing & kayaking. Maybe not this year, but usually great skiing, along with alpine hiking, lake & river fishing, & more. New hospital under construction & real estate still reasonable. Costco gas in Courtenay now at $1.01. Has been consistently lower in the area since the store opened several years ago. Great community sprit with live theatre, museums (Campbell River Museum rated top 5 small ones in Canada), hockey team, wineries, a distillery, farmers' markets, etc.

I retired early, giving me more leisure time, but still, there's not enough time in a day to enjoy all my surroundings to the max. Give me a minute, I'll think of more ...

I agree with Youbou being pretty isolated. Qualicum is pretty active though and hundreds of folks walking around the streets and beaches every day. It's a pretty town and growing with +55ers, being a popular retirement destination. Far from anti-people from what I saw.

The riding (street) on the Island gets old quick. Some nice roads, but one can ride them all, a couple times in a weekend.

Need to have a mid size dual sport to get the most of the the riding/scenery. My type of riding is going to other places/towns/sites, so it wasn't ideal for that.

I have found that most of the FSR roads on the South Island are gated.
Not much off-road riding to be had. Comparatively speaking.
The North Island is a different story.
The interior of B C is wide open. Trails and twisty pavement in every direction. The ferries are free.
It is a "dry" cold.

If the ferries do not bother you this is a great option. The recreation possibilities are endless and with new hospitals now being built the health care will be good. For travelling the International Airport at Comox offers lots of direct flights to various destination points. For shopping there is a Costco in Courtenay and Nanaimo has lots of malls on the north side of the city only a short trip away. For getting to the USA the MV Coho out of Victoria is an excellent way to get to Port Angeles and Washington State.

Although it is not as dry as Kelowna the vegetation is green throughout the year and generally does not experience the haze caused by the wildfires in the summer.

I'd say it's the people not the place. Family and friends are what life is all about. You can move to a geographical paradise but if you don't know anyone...well it will be a lonely life.

Sadly for me this means somewhere cold and snowy.

Me too, and that is why we live within 20 minutes of our daughters and their families. You just can't beat being directly involved in the lives of your grand kids.

This is true for me as well but not for some married, no kids, couples.

I'm from the Rock and spent 4 yrs on Van Isle, liked it there, but would never go back. Just like many Van Islanders will never leave.

Wife and kids like the Barrie area (even if it is -32), over being out West.

My plan is to move to back to the Rock and find a place in Fla for the winters.

Nice to have choices... where ever that may be..

If you have lived in Penticton for a while you must not mind that weather compared to the coast, Kelowna definitely has a lot to offer.
Myself I might miss the weather along Georgia Strait (Salish Sea) where today it is absolutely incredible especially for the middle of February.



Crocus Feb 18, 2015

As pretty as this looks.........



I am afraid that this this satellite image makes it look less desireable


Read about how PEI can almost disappear from satellite here: http://news.nationalpost.com/2015/0...n-satellite-photo-after-massive-winter-storm/

That satallite pic is similar to any place that snow flies... And I've shovelled 3ft snow drifts in Victoria..

Oh, and that image wouldn't show the house in the pic... its further south.

Very nice... but you pictured one area during the worst storm of the year and another town where it's in the best possible light..

Different dates and times and the opposite can be true. I'm sure most of the folks in South East NS like it there too.

Another great area to retire. Hospital in Nelson but not in Kaslo a lovely little spot. They do get some serious snow in winter though sometimes. Awesome riding all round. Fabulous scenery. May sometimes smell a strange aroma around Nelson. Real Estate can be pricey.

Not really.
Very little snow down low in the Okanagan, in the winter.
They do however experience fog from the lake.
The golf course has been open for a couple of weeks. Hogs prowling the streets.

Just saying two pics of what could be extreme don't tell a whole story.

Someone posted pics of flowers above that are blooming right now. My wife planted flowers in feb when we were there. She loved that.

One thing that stands out to her though was the 45 days of continious grey skies/rain and not seeing sun the whole time. 45 days of that is depressing (especially for kids) no matter what the temp.

Professionally our firm consults on Health and Welfare and Retirement plans. We do some Executive comp work as well.

I have come to the conclusion that maintaining a lower mainland address (Vancouver) is critical for quicker access to higher quality healthcare and specialty services. (i.e. BC Cancer Agency, etc). We have had some wealthier executives who move away after discussion buy a low cost one bedroom condo in Vancouver just to keep as a home residence for access to better medical services

Economically we could retire years sooner if we decided to live outside of the the Lower Mainland but my wife's friends are important to her, and that is important. My first (deceased) wife and I moved to Whistler in the 90's before she died and while it was a nice place to live, I realized that living in a tourist town is not the best choice for me/us.

I was doing some calculations last month on the cost of operating our 1/2 duplex and my calculations show that our property taxes and home operating costs will consume almost 100 % of my CPP at retirement. I will get the Max CPP and I find this to be a very sobering thought, both for my family and future retirees in the lower mainland.

We don't have kids and as a result have more freedom but still need to find some balance in costs and accommodation.

I work downtown so the commute and quality of life issues (lesser commute)also play a big part in where we live now.

Great thread

^^^ situations like yours are the reason many folks move from larger centers to smaller places, as long as those smaller cheaper towns still have reasonable access to the needs as one gets older.

Pretty common for people to sell their million dollar home around TO and move to a town of 30-150k and buy a home that's 200-400. Freeing up money to live a nice retirement and still have resources close at hand.

good luck..

If you don't mind a small town have a look at Creston. Close to Kootenay Lake, great weather and right on the border with USA. Spokane, Washington only 3 hours away.

My wife and I are interested in Creston as our possible next location to live. You mention the great weather... I have only seen it on gorgeous summer days, what are the winters like? Specifically - does it suffer from the low clouds blotting out the sun all winter long (as you get in places like Kaslo & Nakusp)? We need sunshine all year long (which Calgary has lots of)... but I really like the looks of Creston.

Bill 310; There are some great things on the horizon, health care wise, in Kelowna. It is, after all, Premier Clark's riding. Big hospital addition, new Cancer Center. Even a doctor could barely afford to purchase a home in Vancouver, these days.

Some companies are planning their escapes(from Vancouver), they are not able to attract quality employees, due to the overpriced housing market.
People want to own their own homes. A million dollar shit-hole in a bad neighbourhood does not appeal to most folks.

We toyed around with purchasing a studio in the west end, the longer we are away, the less we miss Vancouver. We certainly look forward to visiting the big smoke.

I know that there are other great place to retire in Canada. This is the best places IN B C thread. You pesky easterners should start your own thread.

I moved to Vancouver, from Manitoba, 28 years ago. I always wanted to. My father was from Vancouver, my mother was born in Kitsilano.
B C has not disappointed. Unbelievable recreation opportunities. Endless motorcycling, really.

Anywhere else to recommend?
Creston is a great place, it was on the horizon for us at one point. We decided that we wanted more of an urban environment, and as well wanted to be within a reasonable distance to Vancouver, the ocean and the Island.