Toronto is the 2nd most expensive city to live in in North America

Jason · #1 07-30-2008, 04:30 PM

The annual Mercer's cost of living survey published in the UK, ranked Toronto the 2nd most expensive city to live in North America.

I have a friend of mine who always maintained that Toronto is ridiculously overpriced, but I never took this seriously. Obviously he was right

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I don't understand why is Toronto so expensive though - the weather is terrible, taxes are high, real estate is overpriced, the city doesn't have enough highways for the high number of cars on the road,...

trent · #2 07-30-2008, 04:57 PM

Well this is hardly a surprise, and it's good that somebody finally admitted it. You can eat/drink cheaper in New York, Los Angeles and London. Frankly I like Toronto, but the city is nothing special. I guess the high prices are largely due to the many monopolies we Canadians are very fond of (think Rogers) and the lack of real competition.

Steven · #3 07-31-2008, 02:29 PM

What is the most expensive city in the world according to this report? Is it Tokyo?

investor · #4 07-31-2008, 04:15 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Steven

What is the most expensive city in the world according to this report? Is it Tokyo?

Probably Tokyo or Moscow or some Scandinavian city.
Anyway I am really surprised by this survey. I always thought that Vancouver is the most expensive Canadian city. I'm moving to Vancouver then. The weather is nicer, the Rockies are closer, the ocen is at your doorstep

And I agree that Toronto is very expensive comparing to L.A.
Well the real estate in L.A. is pricey but look at the weather.

trent · #5 07-31-2008, 05:59 PM

Moscow is the most expensive city according to the survey.

Yeah, Vancouver is a really nice place to live, if only properties were cheaper

annof · #6 08-01-2008, 02:30 PM

I don't think Toronto is sooo expensive. What do they take into account to formulate this survey?

Steven · #7 08-25-2008, 04:32 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by annof

I don't think Toronto is sooo expensive. What do they take into account to formulate this survey?

According to Mercer they cover "comparative cost of over 200 items in each location, including housing, transport, food, clothing, household goods and entertainment." This sounds like prettey much everything to me.

ggonzo · #8 12-04-2008, 02:48 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Steven

According to Mercer they cover "comparative cost of over 200 items in each location, including housing, transport, food, clothing, household goods and entertainment." This sounds like prettey much everything to me.

Toronto is pretty expensive. Maybe if you go to one of the Scandinavian countries it will seem cheap but if you travel in Europe and most of US you will see that Toronto is expensive and that we pay too much taxes. In New York for example they don't pay nay taxes on clothing and shoes under $110. And this is New York City I am talking about - this is good for the business and good for the consumer. Here we pay 13% on top of everything. If you are a tourist would you start buying stuff? no you wouldn't, would you go to restaurants all the time - no you wouldn't, because you pay 13% taxes, than you have liquor tax than you have 15% tip and what not. Did you ever notice that our Sightseeing busses are almost empty - there is a reason for that!

Canadian · #9 12-05-2008, 02:31 PM

Yes, Toronto is overpriced for no good reason, and this is about to change dramatically. Falling prices are not as bad as the establishment has led you to believe. Falling prices mean increasing purchasing power for your savings and your salary. I'm sorry, I almost forgot that saving money went out of style long time ago.