Have you had to cut back on spending or make specific sacrifices to “get ahead” or save in Vancouver and make life a little more comfortable and affordable?
If you are making sacrifices to cope with a high cost of living, you’re not alone. But just how much are you cutting back?
We spoke to an East Vancouver resident who is cutting back on many expenses that some might consider necessities for a comfortable life. Tara Barron, who has lived in Alberta and British Columbia, shared her situation with Daily Hive, which might surprise and/or inspire some residents.
Barron, who is nearly 40 years old, currently pays just over $1,300 to rent a one-bedroom basement suite. She also pays around $500 to rent a single-car garage at a different home in the same neighbourhood. She uses the garage to park her truck, which also has a gym. She lives alone and has lived there for over four years. Barron is also an industrial electrician and makes a decent salary.
“I’m originally from BC (Langley), and then I moved to Alberta,” Barron told Daily Hive. She was doing maintenance and service work out in Alberta, but then, at some point, after losing a contract, she lost her job.
Barron lived in Alberta for around 15 years, and then, after bouncing around for a bit, she decided to move back to BC in 2020.
“I couldn’t find work out there.”
She also shared something we’ve seen in other stories we’ve published comparing life in BC and Alberta when she told Daily Hive that “it’s actually not much cheaper to live in Alberta anymore.”
“Food is expensive. Everything is privatized. Insurance is not cheap there anymore, and I don’t know why people think it is.”
The latest Rentals.ca rental report suggests that Edmonton’s rent is increasing year over year, although Calgary saw a year-over-year decrease.
Barron found that in her job hunt, there was more demand for the trades in BC than in Alberta. For her specific line of work in the electrical world, she said she’s making quite a bit more than she would’ve in Alberta.
“So it’s a tradeoff. I pay more to live here, but I make more money.”
Making sacrifices to enjoy life in Vancouver
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After COVID and seeing the prices for groceries going up, Barron found that with the cost of basic things rising, cutting things out that weren’t necessary felt like a wise step. She started cutting back last year.
Barron once attended many events, themed nights, and live music shows. However, many of the events she used to attend are no longer happening or conflict with her schedule. So, while that wasn’t a sacrifice by choice, it ultimately helped. She also doesn’t eat out or go out for drinks as much.
She has also made other changes. For example, Barron used to be with Bell, but because she wasn’t on a contract anymore, she decided to move to Public Mobile, which Telus owns.
“I get the same coverage, which is great because I like to go out into the bush and go camping, but I’m literally paying half [compared to what she used to].”
Another expense Barron has cut is streaming services. Instead, Barron has opted to pick up a library card.
“I don’t watch much TV anyway, so it didn’t really make much of a difference to me. The library card allows me to get audiobooks for free, and if there’s a movie I want to see, they normally have it on Blu-ray.”
She still has Spotify, but she splits a family plan with some friends, which amounts to just around $4 per month.
“I need music,” Barron remarked.
We published a story from the perspective of one BC resident who said he feels no motivation to work hard anymore because the reward is not equal to the amount of work he’s putting in. Essentially, there’s no incentive to work hard in a place like BC, where the cost of living is so high. We asked Barron about this.
“I agree 100%. It’s not worth busting your ass because companies do not give a s**t about you.”
Worth it to move back to Alberta?
Anthony Mance/Shutterstock | GagliardiPhotography/Shutterstock
We asked Barron if she had a rough 10-year plan or just some goals or expectations for the future.
“I’ll never be able to buy a house here. I might be able to get a condo,” she responded.
Even a nice condo in Vancouver isn’t necessarily cheap. For a one-bedroom near central Vancouver, you’re looking at $700,000 easily. Considering the disparity in the cost of housing between Alberta and BC, we asked Barron what it would take to move back to oil country.
“My quality of life here is better now. When I first moved to Alberta, my quality of life was better because I was making more there than I could have here at that age,” Barron said, reflecting on her early 20s.
We asked Barron if a job in Alberta offered her an additional $30,000, would that be incentive enough to move back?
“$30,000 would not be worth it; you’d have to double my salary for me to move back.”
If Barron could change one thing about her decisions in her early 20s, she would have saved up and bought a condo here, a way some early investors have made a killing in Vancouver.
What would it take to consider a move to Alberta if you enjoy your quality of life in Vancouver? Also, what are you doing to cut back to make life more affordable if you’ve had to? Feel free to share your thoughts in the comments or email [email protected] to share your story.