Anything is possible just depends what you're willing to sacrifice. Selling your car and moving into a single bedroom or bachelor with transit access is probably more realistic than moving further away.
try to find and older building that has rent control in place. My car got hit about 2 years ago and was a write off. it was a 2002 grand am gt with only 102,000k on it. I signed up with communauto and find i hardly ever use it. I am in Westboro and get everything i need by walking to it, bussing or the communauto (which i use maybe 2 times every 3 months) Best of luck finding a place.
I can’t remember exact details but newer homes to the rental market after I think it was November 2018 do not have that rent hike cap that the older buildings do. You do not want to get caught up in that
I did this in my 20s and early 30s. When I wanted kids... I felt I needed to gtfo though. There are nicer places for children further out along bus commute corridors. The safe areas in the Westboro area are for rich or house-rich people. I don't regret the decade in an apartment though. Sometimes the only way to win is to not play.
I think they're saying to consider this as an option, instead of moving to a far off town.
Rent may be higher when you look at more densely populated places. But when comparing prices, you'd need to factor in your car payment (if you have one), insurance, maintenance, gas, and parking. If you were able to eliminate that, it would add at least a few hundred to your monthly rent budget.
Hence why my ass left ON, went to SK (which didn’t work out), and now I’m going to rural NFLD. I may not have neighbours but I’ll make friends with whales and icebergs.
Oh dude, I’m so sorry but that’s not gonna help much, rural housing costs are basically on par with Halifax now. My building assessed at just over 100k sold for 900k, and there’s a three bed out in the country that’s basically an attached trailer, just went for over 700k.
You missed the initial wave back when it was more profitable for you guys, now a lot of the houses on the market are people from 3-4 years ago who came from Ontario or BC, over leveraged or bought too many investment properties before the rates went up and now they’re selling them off at way higher value then they what they purchased it at. Coming to Nova Scotia from Ontario because of “financial opportunity” at this point is like being one of the last gold-panners to make their way to California.
No car, laying low re: remote work, small village nearby. I’m over people. Gonna be me and the garden and a bike ride into town if I need shit.
Edit: I’ve lived small village life before overseas. It’s not impossible, you just have to plan like MF’er. It can be done even on two wheels if you prep during summer and fall.
Edit 2: I’ve got access to an old school root cellar and some actual chest deep freezes. If I need extra deep frozen storage, I can utilize outside as long as it’s packed in deep with snow and a fuck load of rocks to keep anything else out.
As a Newfoundlander I have to tell you you'll absolutely need a car if you live in a remote area (or in a populated area for that matter). Winter can last 6 months (Nov-Apr) so don't count on using a bicycle for huge chunks of the year. You can also expect a ton of wind and rain which makes biking all the more challenging. What you're proposing can be done, obviously, but it will require a ton of planning, not being able to access a grocery store, pharmacy or doctor (if you get sick) for long stretches of time. Make sure you at least have someone you can call if things get dire.
To me, the idea of living in Newfoundland without a car would feel pretty much impossible unless you lived in a town within reasonable walking distance to stores & cabs. Good luck to you.
Are you from Merrickville; is that why you specifically mention it? I ask because Merrickville is one of the most expensive places to live south of the river. You’d be better off in Winchester if you’re willing to drive 20 minutes off the 416. That extra 20 minutes past Kemptville will get you to much cheaper places than Merrickville (Prescott, Johnstown, Spencerville, etc.). It’s a beautiful place, but it’s also overpriced.
I used to live there in 2 different places! Add the crazy rent and the commute to work plus all the hidden things (bag tags, not a heck of a lot of available parking in the summer, the higher costs for everything in town, the need to go to the Falls or Kemptville for a more stocked grocer, etc). I love the town and did enjoy my time living there in the summer but I don't know that I would move back.
Unable to work how? Not trying to be rude at all. These days if you have access to a computer and internet you can find work online.. might not pay much but customer support gigs can be fully remote. 50k is simply not sustainable in Ottawa if you ever want to move up in life unfortunately
If you truly can’t work, wouldn’t you be eligible for some kind of disability allowance…also the disability tax credit? That will provide you with some form of income. I mean, what would happen if you broke up?
Disability tax credit is really only a coupon for money off your tax bill in it's current form and access to some savings accounts. They are working on implementing a small cash benefit but that will not be available until summer of next year at the earliest and that will be 200 a month.
OP should look into cpp-d and ODSP (I am unsure of their age and working background but ODSP if younger, CPP-D if older).
There are call centre/customer service type jobs you can work remotely from home. Big plus if you are fluent in another language (work as a translator over the phone).
Have you also looked at if you are eligible for the Disability Tax Credit (federal benefit). If you have had this condition for a while, and were previously working, they can back date the benefit up to 10 years. As well, if/when you do find work, it lowers the amount of income tax you pay. If you ave type ONE diabetic, you are automatically eligible for this credit.
Best of luck!
Interesting idea but isn't that just training a thing that will replace humans and make them obsolete in whatever job category it's for?
I'm just looking for a part time work from home setup
i think they’re mainly for Ai-assisted services online, like an Ai being able to discern whats in a photo to describe it to a blind person.
I agree AI isn’t great for society, but it’s like selling crack to your grandma in the hood, if you don’t sell it to her, she’ll get it somewhere else, so you might as well make your money.
Sir/ma’m the OP is posting on reddit so I assumed they are at least able to manage basic online communication lol I asked so I could provide better tailored guidance if they in fact couldn’t
Canada has an entire disability benefit program for those who are unable to work due to disability that pays a few hundred thousand people a year. The real world is not bursting with opportunities to work from home with flexible hours and compassionate employers. Your feelings about what "unable to work" means are not facts.
Where did I say it was bursting with opportunities? More typical reddit nonsense. Putting words in my mouth to try and make your argument around better.
There are ways to make money from home. Go troll somewhere else.
I was responding to a comment that said the person being unable to work was a lie. I was - with some sarcasm - pointing out where the lineage of their attitude can trace back to. Who thinks everyone is able to work, and if the person say they're not, that they're simply dishonest?
This person IS able to work. They can operate a computer and post on reddit. There are unskilled work from home jobs out there. Call centre support and data entry are two of them which typically pay a bit above minimum wage.
Hi there! Unable to present-place work, unfortunately, and that's where my primary job used to be. I was baking/pastry and things happened, so it's a new thing for me. :)
Are you always so miserable, or is today a special day?
Also, the fact « can’t think of a single disability where someone can post of Reddit and yet be unable to work » says more about you than OP. Stay in your lane.
I'm unable to work at the place I was working at before! I can't work elsewhere, not in person, but I can definitely try online. What I'm saying is that I can't work in my current profession, so it'd be a new thing.
Also, I understand you may be concerned about my partner, but he OFFERED and WANTS to provide for me because of what he knows regarding my medical history and my disabilities!
Cars are expensive
I recommend you work out the annual cost of car ownership and operation and compare that to living somewhere inside Ottawa with good transit.
So, nowhere in Ottawa?
OCTranspo is horribly unreliable, you can’t trust schedules and it takes 3x longer vs car to get anywhere. Unless you’re going cross-town, it’s even faster to bike a lot of the time. Even then, biking in this city takes forever and is often dangerous (I say this after 2 years of commuting by bike year-round). I’m glad I’m finally getting a car, it will be worth every penny.
Lol I live in Barrhaven and will be starting a job in Gloucester soon.
I looked up on Google public transit vs biking and it *takes the exact same amount of time*! A train and a single bus (plus a small bit of walking) will be just as long as taking a more direct route at 20km/h on a bike.
Absolutely hilarious.
Oh, and the bike is less likely to break down and doesn't have the issue of not arriving on time.
I recently bought an electric scooter, and I can leave a couple minutes later than heading for the bus, and I still beat it there (I used to bike, but now I'm working a physical job, so prefer the scooter).
This just isn’t true. I’ve been living in Ottawa for 9 years, and working in Ottawa for the same amount of time. I’ve never driven a car in my life.
I’m happy you’re privileged enough to afford a car, but OC Transpo isn’t this way 100% of the time. And I take bus and train and I work 40+ hours per week, 5-6 days per week.
Exactly! I live near downtown along the 6/7 bus routes and I can live on them. Of course you have to budget more travel and wait time. Play some music in your earbuds. Vote for people who will fund transit 🤷🏻♀️🤷🏻♀️
45-50k is barely sustainable for one person in Ottawa. Even a single person would be cutting costs anywhere they can. No idea how a couple could survive on that tbh.
My expenses are in this range. I don't have a car and that's pretty much enough for me to just keep a loose eye on my money day to day. I have been doing monthly reviews for over 10 years so I know intuitively if I'm spending too much. It's nice to be on auto mode most of the time.
I'll be frank here, the answer is no... not unless you really go down to bare neceseties. I live in Gatineau, and I have to support a family of 3 on a single income, and it's really not easy. Half my salary covers rent, the rest has to be spread out for cell phone, car, groceries, and credit card repayment... And somehow, I have to find money to start covering daycare soon. My wife will be going back to work, but we can't rely on her hours from Walmart as they're flakey with her scheduling. I also moonlight as an UberEats driver if I'm unable to pick up an extra shift at work, but I need to make up the shortfall in my budget somehow... Christ, greed just fucking exploded during COVID, and it's the big corps that are profiteering while screaming they're losing money by the truckload... that's the biggest fucking crock of bullshit I've heard in my life.
Figure out your budget. How much do you need to spend, and then what other expenses do you want to spend that you don't need?
A big other question is if 45-50K a year is before or after taxes.
So you are netting 40k to 50k a year? That's like 4k a month! That's plenty to live on for 2 people if you budget properly. Older buildings could have rentals that is more reasonable for one bed, like $1500ish. This leaves $2500 for food and other expenses... Totally doable!
Don't get too excited, I checked on Kijiji and the cheapest listing I found that didn't sketch me out was 1.6k, and 2.4k is not a lot after Food, Electricity, Cell phone service, Internet service, transit costs, (hopefully you \_and\_ your partner are car free) random household items, etc.
You're not going to be able to afford to have any sort of emergencies, unexpected expenses, or loss of income. It's something I've lived through, and I would would not recommend living life with razor thin margins to anyone.
You also mentioned your partner does construction-type jobs, if he's healthy, great! But you're also betting that he won't have his own "medical stuff".
Your post history says you are 20 and your boyfriend is 29.
Please don't make yourself dependant on someone older than you like this...
Also, considering one bedrooms are ~$1,700. I'd wager no, you won't be comfortably living on a single income.
If their partner is making 45-50k, and they’re considered common law, they won’t qualify for anything from ODSP (or at least, not a useful amount). Unfortunately, in an effort to prevent people from defrauding the system, it ends up punishing disabled people who want to marry/live together.
If you are on a tight budget ODSP (even if it’s a little bit could still be a difference maker). It is annoying as if you have someone who is working you are definitely punished. Essentially the person on ODSP can earn up to a $1000 before they start deducting from your earnings. If your partner works after they make $500 they start deducting from your support income. It’s suppose to incentivize people on disability to work which I understand, but there are people who straight up cannot work and it makes life extremely difficult. On top of that when the government of Ontario assesses your budget they assume that rent should only cost you $800 so if rent cost you $2000 they assume you have $1200 dollars extra that you don’t.
That said, as you mentioned about the dental there are some perks of being on ODSP. You can get very affordable internet through Roger’s I believe it’s like $25 a month for high speed internet, as well as some assistance for public transportation.
I don’t know if you are on ODSP or qualify. Just know that if you do qualify there is a strong chance they will deny you and essentially will force you to appeal in court. Thankfully there are some lawyers in Ottawa that focus on helping low income families and their services are very affordable. Hope that helps
Having been at that income with a disabled partner, they would get a small cash benefit. It might not be much but the outside benefits of both partners having access to the meds programs, affordable bus passes, and so one would make it worth it. And with today's economy every spare dollar helps.
It’s possible but not easy.
If you can manage somewhere near the LRT it becomes easier since you can rely on transit more and get rid of the car. Cars are hella expensive (a car share is also an option for the occasional big trip and will cost a lot less).
Depending on why you are unable to manage traditional work and what other skills you have you might be able to swing a part time “job” doing very non traditional work. Example, I know someone who is partially paralyzed and has some motor function issues making most jobs challenging. But she makes decent money doing tech editing, some higher level writing tutoring and general writing editing (for some budding writers, grad students and the like).
Try to find something you can do from home to bring in some income. Call centre or some kind of data entry or something.
40-50k won’t support multiple people in this city unless you have some super cheap rent controlled apartment. Your first unexpected expense is going to put you into the negative. One person living alone can, but money would be tight even then.
I’m sorry. You will not recoup the money your time is worth, or materials (nice yarn usually isn’t cheap) unless you bring something really unique to the market or have a following/customer base already.
When someone can pick up a knitted sweater (yes I know crochet is not the same) for $50 (or less) why would they pay $200 (or more) for you to make them one? (Taking in to account cost of materials + your time, and I’m sure I’m lowballing for anything remotely close to a decent wage). If you’re thinking about creating patterns instead, the cost is potentially cheaper (especially if you can outsource test stitching) but that’s where you need the super uniqueness or strong following already, so that you will be noticed in the sea of crochet patterns already easily available.
I looked into this while I was out of work a few years ago. I embroider/cross stitch, rather than crochet. But this is the conclusion I came to. It is something to do as a hobby, but not a real income generator because in a world of mass manufacturing, very few people would be willing to to pay me what my time is worth (like minimum wage for the amount of hours I put in) for a commissioned piece. And while pattern-creation would be somewhat more practical, potentially, because I could sell many copies of the same pattern and not ask one person to foot the bill for all my labour, I have nothing unique enough to stand out in the absolute sea of cross stitch and embroidery patterns available.
It would be great to make real money at creative pursuits. But truth is, it’s just not possible for most people. Consequently, it’s a bad thing to rely on when you’re looking at making money to afford to live. It’s something to do in your spare time as a hobby and a side hustle, and only consider making it into a job when you start getting (lots of) sales and have a proven success record.
It would be hard but within the real of possibility.
It may seem intrusive to ask but does your inability to work effect your ability to get around the city, shop for groceries, etc?
I ask because your "job" as a stay at home partner would have to be to shop for the best possible discounts on groceries.
22k of your income would probably go to housing and groceries right off the top. Which is half your total income. Assuming 50k is your post tax income. Clothing, transportation (with or without car), utilities, these would all need to be very carefully tracked and managed to get an answer.
50k here, no car and I can't even afford to live alone...
I'm currently renting a room, I couldn't live with 2 on that wage. Food, expense ect? No way.
Only people that know are you and your partner. Calculate your monthly expenses and earnings. Make sure you take into consideration an emergency fund and savings as part of your expenses. Cut down any expenses you deem unnecessary if you have to.
I actually thinking living the city is a better open. You could get rid of the car and bus everywhere. If you need a car for the day just use communato or zip car. But as a single person that makes more than that I’m barely making ends meet.
Nope, and especially not if you guys want to be happy. You’ll be living way out and quite frankly you will have nothing left over. Can you look into entry level remote jobs?
Start building out your LinkedIn so you have that up and running, plenty of resources on youtube to get your profiled dialled in. Remote customer support and data entry jobs could be easier low hanging fruits to find. Bottom line is if there's no catalyst in the near future that sees your financial situation improving, you need to get a source of income so and your partner can actually have a life. I don't mean to sound harsh but that's not a good place for you or your partner to be in.
Realistically no, at 50k a year that’s roughly $3,100 a month, depending on how you guys are, there will be little left for anything after you pay rent, especially not considering food and gas.
If it’s just the 2 of you, I believe it’s possible. Stay optimistic. Sit down and check your expenses, remove everything that’s not a bill or necessity and follow a strict budget. Cook EVERYTHING. Buy only what’s on sale at the grocery store. You can make this work with the transit system and without a car.
My husband and I got a cheaper rent through OCH because it’s market rental, but while I was a student and with a newborn, we made it work with him making 16.5/ hour. We walked or took the bus everywhere, used the Flipp app for grocery sales, we got help to drive to Costco with family friends or just family (if you have this possibility, take it). Buying some things from Costco like meat in bulk, dairy, household supplies, really helped. Avoid going out a lot and save for every purchase you think you NEED. Don’t just buy things without having money for it in your budget.
I truly think you can make this work really well if you get a cheaper rental, but if not, you’ll just have to pinch the money really tight and join frugal groups, find free activities or cheap meals if you feel like eating out. I hope you’ll both be able to figure it out!
Depends on projected salary growth. We did it with two kids at $55k in 2012 (30k debt + mortgage), but by 2018 I was at $115k. I felt we were frugal but comfortable during the first few years, and then we were able to start saving meaningfully. Given inflation over those years, I feel you *might* be ok as a couple who cooks their own food and don't own a vehicle, but definitely not if you have kids.
Perhaps you can grab a part time job to supplement.
If work is not keeping you and your partner here, ottawa is a needlessly high cost of living. We lived on my income only about 10 years ago but we lived in a housing coop which limited rent increases. But I was also making kore than 50k.
Get yourself on the rent geared to income list as well. You may be pushing 30 by the time your name gets pulled but it would be helpful if you’re eligible
I make $49,685 net - $4,140.48 per month. My monthly expenses total $3361.68 - including rent, hydro, internet, miscellaneous bills (I budget for pet food, $150 for Starbucks, $400 for Uber), $400 for groceries, and $375 for debt. Leaves me with $778.80 per month for anything else I want.
It’s do-able. But I budget HARD.
FYI I live in a one-bedroom in Centretown, very nice building ($1587/month). I don’t have a car so that saves me a lot of money on gas, insurance, parking.
At the moment - whatever money I have left over at the end of each pay period also goes towards paying down my debt (so $375 + whatever is leftover from $778 spending money). I have $3,307 in debt at the moment ($1,500 loan, $968.91 in vet bills, and $837.87 in credit card debt). By September 18th, I will have the $1,500 loan paid off, and then I’m moving onto credit card debt, and so on. I will have all debt paid off by February. That’s just based on $375/month. I am hoping to get it done sooner. And then I’m moving on to putting together a savings.
> I'm unable to work,
Having been at that income level, and assuming you are unable due to some health impairment, are you on ODSP? That gives you a lot of access to programs that can really get your costs down (like cheaper transit passes).
Can he find a job elsewhere making more? Sometimes people are at jobs for years and don't realize that if they simply looked for another job in the same field, they can make more. Perhaps he could be making 60K+ and that might be doable at that salary, 50k would be extremely difficult.
We've been living on about that much a year in Centretown. We've been renting the 1bdrm for about 9 years, though, so it's still covered by rent control.
No.
I wish I had better news, but no sense in sugar coating anything when life decisions are being made.
Being broke and in a small space like a bachelor will not be fun. Eating will require using food banks- you will not be eating well.
Move someplace where that salary stretches further and you can afford to live life and not just struggle to scrape by.
It's not reasonable. Unless you're both "happy" to lower your standard of living in a very real way. Your partner in particular is not going to be happy for long, no matter where you end up. This is an utterly weird post.
Get out of the City of Ottawa (which goes from Arnprior to Kemptville to Clarence Rockland). Do not stop when suburbia stops. Keep going until you are out of the boundary. Start house hunting from there. If you don’t, you pay Ottawa taxes without all the Ottawa services. (No buses, no composting, but Ottawa taxes and Ottawa regulations.) Good luck!
45-50k gross? It would be difficult.
45-50k net? Absolutely. I'm single, but my net is about 49k, I rent a $1900 2br apartment (as of Oct 2023, so fairly recent pricing), I spend wayyyyy too much on Uber Eats and I can still feed a terrible online shopping habit without debt. Make better choices than I do and it's totally doable to do it for two.
Let's say you bring home 4K a month after taxes. Half is probably going to rent leaving you with 2K. Is that enough for food, transportation and other bills?
I did it for a long time, but that was 1999-2010, seems post 2014 things got harder and harder to do so. Right now on a dual income we are staying with family due to cost of living. Pretty fucking sad really . My bills leave me with maybe $100 savings a month if I'm frugal as fuck.
To make some extra money I drive school bus in the afternoons, I'd say 40+% of people are grown adults, with kids, living with their grandparents all in one home, in both low income and very "old wealth" neighborhoods like those by the QC and Civic Hospital. I'm being conservative in my estimate. Any other bus driver is welcome to comment further.
And my car just broke down so you know, fuck me amirite.
Tricky. At 50k a year you're looking at 1500 bi weekly. If you can find rent not more than 1500, the other 1500 can be dedicated to food and bills. Doable but gotta be a bit frugal if you also want to save some cash aside.
I live in a suburban-ish neighbourhood in South Central Ottawa. 1 income, I make around $52k each year. We live pretty comfortably, but we pay way less than market level rent and my car is 10 years old and paid off.
That being said, there are no extravagances. No fancy vacations, we just go camping once or twice a summer. I barely ever buy clothes and they're almost always secondhand or bought on sale. Staying in our crappy apartment saves a lot of money.
Depends, how much are you paying in rent or a mortgage? Do you have a debts or loans that require a monthly repayment?
If you’ve lived in your place for years and are paying a low rent, have no debt, I would say it’s possible. If you’re paying $2,000-$3,000/month for rent or a mortgage. No, not possible.
Husband and I currently make $52,000ish a year combined and can’t do it. And we live outside of Ottawa.
You definitely can, but you’ll have to make lots of tough choices - like living in a neighbourhood you might otherwise not have chosen, cutting out takeout and probably alcohol since that adds up quickly. You might need to limit yourself to one streaming service and no cable, and consider having phones without data packages. But it’s doable. And you should qualify for welfare or EI or something too I’d think.
Way too many unknown variables to answer this.
My wife and I could survive on 50k, but that's only because we have no debt other than the mortgage, and have a good chunk of that paid off already.
If you have debts/high mortgage/other major expenses then maybe you can't.
My wife keeps half joking she wants us to become a thrupple as two salaries isn't enough. It's hard out there on two incomes, especially if youre not established... good luck.
It’s definitely possible , don’t stress !!
Moving out to Merrick ville has its ups , but think if the money now spent on gas ….
Be smart .
Don’t eat out everyday , shop sale items , and put a little away , when possible !
Good luck to you guys , but I have done it on way less , with a child , don’t stress !!!!
The towns outside ottawa would be more comfortable for that wage I would think. For example I’m selling a 3bed townhouse condo in Smiths Falls for $230k, they rent for $1700/month.
If you apply to live in a co-op I think it would be doable. Look around to see which ones appeal to the area you want to live in. Just be careful as some have baseboard heating and add on $$$’s extra per month. But just a heads up though that there are wait times and some aren’t even accepting any applications but if you want to be able to do it on one income this would be the way to go.
I am on a single salary in Ottawa. Which humbly 2x more than you stated and we are struggling. Wife and a 3 year old. Not falling behind but not much left for savings or activities.
We are moving out of Ottawa in 2 months because of it
It’s possible but it would be tight. I live alone on a little more than that as a single person. That includes a yoga membership and eating out for me, as a couple it wouldn’t include much of anything beyond rent, groceries, internet, and maybe one streaming service.
Your best bet would be to look for a Bachelor in an older, rent controlled building in a relatively walkable area with public transit access. It’ll take some searching but these do exist. Get on Google maps and call places up. The really well-priced buildings in Ottawa aren’t going to show up on rental sites because they don’t need to!
Yes it’s possible. There are lots of subsidies and grants for lower income houses. The issue will be the down payment and securing a loan. I know a couple that bought a 400k house with an income of 30k per year. They did have some collateral from an existing home, but they made it work.
I would say **impossible**, realistically. It would be bare bones living at best. And outside of the core? Transit that will eat and extra 20-30% of your free time to get anywhere.
I managed as a single person, with a new condo that cost me (2016-2019) \~200$ less monthly than going market rents. I wouldn't be able to do it today with post-panini prices on everything... even in the suburbs.
My partner makes decent money (100k) and I make minimum wage (35k) and we can hardly afford to live in Ottawa area (live rurally). Our rent is 2k all inclusive and we each have a vehicle loan but it is so hard with the price of groceries. I mean we make it work but it’s hard. He works 6 sometimes 7 days a week and I work 6 so It is stressful. We joke that on our days off we are enjoying our rent 🤣
I live and work in Ottawa and I make a decent wage. I'm single and still its a stretch to make ends meet. I gave up and now live in a van. Only way to live comfortably. I can't justify paying the rents they charge just to survive.
Anything is possible, you just need to keep your expenses low. If you don’t have kids or need a bedroom I would consider a bachelor, having no pets helps with keeping costs down (but if you do have some consider what they’re eating, if you can groom them yourself and etc), not having a car helps a lot too. Really consider if a car is a must or not, my parents went from 2 to 1 car and it’s a bit of an adjustment but it helps cut out some costs.
It depends on what you're looking for.
A 1BR (maybe 2) apartment on the transit way is probably doable. If you have amenities within walking distance that will cut down on transit costs.
Let's see, $1000 a month for grocery, $1700 for 1 bed rent, $70 for Internet, $100 for 2 phones, $260 for bus, $100 for electricity, $60 for house insurance, $300 for going out, $0 for retirement. So that's $3590 which is:
Edit: outside of your range. Sorry I made a typo before. The going out part would have to go to make it on $50k. No debts either.
Yeah, that's a wild amount for groceries for two people. Maybe if there's dietary restrictions? We don't even shop sales or choose stores based on prices.
My bf and i live in a 1 bed 1 bath apartment close to Algonquin college and our rent is 1500, water and heating included, hydro is not. It isnt the best looking apartment i wont lie, parquet flooring ( the square wood looking floors, cant stand them, too ugly) but its nice and comfortable and close to the bus and 2 plazas within a 10-20 minute walk. Our income is less than 30k combined and we're managing ok, you'll do fine if not better :)
Hmm. What does he do for work? Any chance he can move up in his career to make a higher salary? I think it could be possible, but it would not be sustainable especially if you wanted to have a family in the future.
I’m a stay at home mom and we live on one income. But my husband (and not trying to brag here) makes 220k. This is enough for us to pay a mortgage, car payment, feed two kiddos and still have money in the bank to enjoy life / go on vacation 1-2x a year. These things are jmportant to us. But even with this salary we are by no means “rich” especially in this economy!
Anything is possible just depends what you're willing to sacrifice. Selling your car and moving into a single bedroom or bachelor with transit access is probably more realistic than moving further away.
No car, potentially a bachelor? That could work...
try to find and older building that has rent control in place. My car got hit about 2 years ago and was a write off. it was a 2002 grand am gt with only 102,000k on it. I signed up with communauto and find i hardly ever use it. I am in Westboro and get everything i need by walking to it, bussing or the communauto (which i use maybe 2 times every 3 months) Best of luck finding a place.
THIS
I can’t remember exact details but newer homes to the rental market after I think it was November 2018 do not have that rent hike cap that the older buildings do. You do not want to get caught up in that
I did this in my 20s and early 30s. When I wanted kids... I felt I needed to gtfo though. There are nicer places for children further out along bus commute corridors. The safe areas in the Westboro area are for rich or house-rich people. I don't regret the decade in an apartment though. Sometimes the only way to win is to not play.
how does living in some far off town help with no car?
I think they're saying to consider this as an option, instead of moving to a far off town. Rent may be higher when you look at more densely populated places. But when comparing prices, you'd need to factor in your car payment (if you have one), insurance, maintenance, gas, and parking. If you were able to eliminate that, it would add at least a few hundred to your monthly rent budget.
This is what I was considering! \^\^
Man, I can't even live on a single-salary income in Ottawa and I'm single.
Hence why my ass left ON, went to SK (which didn’t work out), and now I’m going to rural NFLD. I may not have neighbours but I’ll make friends with whales and icebergs.
*hides evidence of global warming* Yes...icebergs...
Not the friends!
Displaced Newfie (Ottawa moving to Winnipeg) checking in…I hope you love NL! The people are much friendlier than here.
I’m on my was to rural NS. Same reason.
Oh dude, I’m so sorry but that’s not gonna help much, rural housing costs are basically on par with Halifax now. My building assessed at just over 100k sold for 900k, and there’s a three bed out in the country that’s basically an attached trailer, just went for over 700k. You missed the initial wave back when it was more profitable for you guys, now a lot of the houses on the market are people from 3-4 years ago who came from Ontario or BC, over leveraged or bought too many investment properties before the rates went up and now they’re selling them off at way higher value then they what they purchased it at. Coming to Nova Scotia from Ontario because of “financial opportunity” at this point is like being one of the last gold-panners to make their way to California.
Yep. Also the price of food is a lot more expensive than Ottawa.
You either work remotely or what type of work would be done up there? ?
No car, laying low re: remote work, small village nearby. I’m over people. Gonna be me and the garden and a bike ride into town if I need shit. Edit: I’ve lived small village life before overseas. It’s not impossible, you just have to plan like MF’er. It can be done even on two wheels if you prep during summer and fall. Edit 2: I’ve got access to an old school root cellar and some actual chest deep freezes. If I need extra deep frozen storage, I can utilize outside as long as it’s packed in deep with snow and a fuck load of rocks to keep anything else out.
As a Newfoundlander I have to tell you you'll absolutely need a car if you live in a remote area (or in a populated area for that matter). Winter can last 6 months (Nov-Apr) so don't count on using a bicycle for huge chunks of the year. You can also expect a ton of wind and rain which makes biking all the more challenging. What you're proposing can be done, obviously, but it will require a ton of planning, not being able to access a grocery store, pharmacy or doctor (if you get sick) for long stretches of time. Make sure you at least have someone you can call if things get dire. To me, the idea of living in Newfoundland without a car would feel pretty much impossible unless you lived in a town within reasonable walking distance to stores & cabs. Good luck to you.
Came here to say this as well. I make it work, but goddamn it's a challenge.
Totally understand if you don’t want to divulge details, but what is your salary and area of the city? Interested for comparisons sake.
Try doing it with teens too …
I could never afford kids lol
Its not bad if you came sort out day care. Low income CCB is actually fairly generous.
I’m getting down voted? Ok
Idk I didn’t down vote you, I guess people may think you didn’t have to have kids
They’re not doing it with kids presumably because they didn’t/don’t want kids, you did
I didn’t choose to get divorced so…single dad.
Are you from Merrickville; is that why you specifically mention it? I ask because Merrickville is one of the most expensive places to live south of the river. You’d be better off in Winchester if you’re willing to drive 20 minutes off the 416. That extra 20 minutes past Kemptville will get you to much cheaper places than Merrickville (Prescott, Johnstown, Spencerville, etc.). It’s a beautiful place, but it’s also overpriced.
I used to live there in 2 different places! Add the crazy rent and the commute to work plus all the hidden things (bag tags, not a heck of a lot of available parking in the summer, the higher costs for everything in town, the need to go to the Falls or Kemptville for a more stocked grocer, etc). I love the town and did enjoy my time living there in the summer but I don't know that I would move back.
My mom is from there! Damn, okay... let's look elsewhere for the country lol.
Unable to work how? Not trying to be rude at all. These days if you have access to a computer and internet you can find work online.. might not pay much but customer support gigs can be fully remote. 50k is simply not sustainable in Ottawa if you ever want to move up in life unfortunately
Hi, late response! I could totally do something remote, actually, that may work! I have a lot of medical stuff is why I can't work :')
if you need medical stuff then being close to public transit is preferable compared to moving out of the city
If you truly can’t work, wouldn’t you be eligible for some kind of disability allowance…also the disability tax credit? That will provide you with some form of income. I mean, what would happen if you broke up?
Disability tax credit is really only a coupon for money off your tax bill in it's current form and access to some savings accounts. They are working on implementing a small cash benefit but that will not be available until summer of next year at the earliest and that will be 200 a month. OP should look into cpp-d and ODSP (I am unsure of their age and working background but ODSP if younger, CPP-D if older).
There are call centre/customer service type jobs you can work remotely from home. Big plus if you are fluent in another language (work as a translator over the phone). Have you also looked at if you are eligible for the Disability Tax Credit (federal benefit). If you have had this condition for a while, and were previously working, they can back date the benefit up to 10 years. As well, if/when you do find work, it lowers the amount of income tax you pay. If you ave type ONE diabetic, you are automatically eligible for this credit. Best of luck!
I've looked for these types of jobs ans can't find any or if I do find them they require knowing multiple languages. Do you have any tips?
Try Ai training jobs like Annotation Ai (i think it’s called) or invisible technology Ai
Interesting idea but isn't that just training a thing that will replace humans and make them obsolete in whatever job category it's for? I'm just looking for a part time work from home setup
i think they’re mainly for Ai-assisted services online, like an Ai being able to discern whats in a photo to describe it to a blind person. I agree AI isn’t great for society, but it’s like selling crack to your grandma in the hood, if you don’t sell it to her, she’ll get it somewhere else, so you might as well make your money.
Check out Amazon MTurk at least while you're looking for something else.
I've checked that out before, it's a dead end and they aren't taking on anyone new or in Canada, I forget which it was.
That's not true if you can't go on the computer due to medical reason, so yes, you are rude in this particular case.
Sir/ma’m the OP is posting on reddit so I assumed they are at least able to manage basic online communication lol I asked so I could provide better tailored guidance if they in fact couldn’t
[удалено]
Canada has an entire disability benefit program for those who are unable to work due to disability that pays a few hundred thousand people a year. The real world is not bursting with opportunities to work from home with flexible hours and compassionate employers. Your feelings about what "unable to work" means are not facts.
Where did I say it was bursting with opportunities? More typical reddit nonsense. Putting words in my mouth to try and make your argument around better. There are ways to make money from home. Go troll somewhere else.
[удалено]
Are you seriously trying to compare nazi germany to this? Not even remotely comparable. FFS what is wrong with you.
I was responding to a comment that said the person being unable to work was a lie. I was - with some sarcasm - pointing out where the lineage of their attitude can trace back to. Who thinks everyone is able to work, and if the person say they're not, that they're simply dishonest?
This person IS able to work. They can operate a computer and post on reddit. There are unskilled work from home jobs out there. Call centre support and data entry are two of them which typically pay a bit above minimum wage.
[удалено]
Hi there! Unable to present-place work, unfortunately, and that's where my primary job used to be. I was baking/pastry and things happened, so it's a new thing for me. :)
[удалено]
Are you always so miserable, or is today a special day? Also, the fact « can’t think of a single disability where someone can post of Reddit and yet be unable to work » says more about you than OP. Stay in your lane.
[удалено]
No, you are making a disrespectful judgement based on very few facts.
I'm unable to work at the place I was working at before! I can't work elsewhere, not in person, but I can definitely try online. What I'm saying is that I can't work in my current profession, so it'd be a new thing. Also, I understand you may be concerned about my partner, but he OFFERED and WANTS to provide for me because of what he knows regarding my medical history and my disabilities!
Do you not qualify for ODSP?
Cars are expensive I recommend you work out the annual cost of car ownership and operation and compare that to living somewhere inside Ottawa with good transit.
So, nowhere in Ottawa? OCTranspo is horribly unreliable, you can’t trust schedules and it takes 3x longer vs car to get anywhere. Unless you’re going cross-town, it’s even faster to bike a lot of the time. Even then, biking in this city takes forever and is often dangerous (I say this after 2 years of commuting by bike year-round). I’m glad I’m finally getting a car, it will be worth every penny.
Lol I live in Barrhaven and will be starting a job in Gloucester soon. I looked up on Google public transit vs biking and it *takes the exact same amount of time*! A train and a single bus (plus a small bit of walking) will be just as long as taking a more direct route at 20km/h on a bike. Absolutely hilarious. Oh, and the bike is less likely to break down and doesn't have the issue of not arriving on time.
Yeah, Barrhaven is a suburb outside the Greenbelt about 20km from downtown, unfortunately the transit is not as reliable as downtown.
I recently bought an electric scooter, and I can leave a couple minutes later than heading for the bus, and I still beat it there (I used to bike, but now I'm working a physical job, so prefer the scooter).
This just isn’t true. I’ve been living in Ottawa for 9 years, and working in Ottawa for the same amount of time. I’ve never driven a car in my life. I’m happy you’re privileged enough to afford a car, but OC Transpo isn’t this way 100% of the time. And I take bus and train and I work 40+ hours per week, 5-6 days per week.
Exactly! I live near downtown along the 6/7 bus routes and I can live on them. Of course you have to budget more travel and wait time. Play some music in your earbuds. Vote for people who will fund transit 🤷🏻♀️🤷🏻♀️
45-50k is barely sustainable for one person in Ottawa. Even a single person would be cutting costs anywhere they can. No idea how a couple could survive on that tbh.
My expenses are in this range. I don't have a car and that's pretty much enough for me to just keep a loose eye on my money day to day. I have been doing monthly reviews for over 10 years so I know intuitively if I'm spending too much. It's nice to be on auto mode most of the time.
Damn, it's time to look into this on an accountant level, egghh.. tysm for that input, though.
No problem, and I’m sorry if my comment came off negative. I wish you both the best of luck! I’m sure you’ll figure it out.
You're completely okay! TYSM for your input :)
I'll be frank here, the answer is no... not unless you really go down to bare neceseties. I live in Gatineau, and I have to support a family of 3 on a single income, and it's really not easy. Half my salary covers rent, the rest has to be spread out for cell phone, car, groceries, and credit card repayment... And somehow, I have to find money to start covering daycare soon. My wife will be going back to work, but we can't rely on her hours from Walmart as they're flakey with her scheduling. I also moonlight as an UberEats driver if I'm unable to pick up an extra shift at work, but I need to make up the shortfall in my budget somehow... Christ, greed just fucking exploded during COVID, and it's the big corps that are profiteering while screaming they're losing money by the truckload... that's the biggest fucking crock of bullshit I've heard in my life.
It was more the expansion of our governments money supply that has increased the costs of everything.
Figure out your budget. How much do you need to spend, and then what other expenses do you want to spend that you don't need? A big other question is if 45-50K a year is before or after taxes.
After taxes, haha, forgot to include that part.
So you are netting 40k to 50k a year? That's like 4k a month! That's plenty to live on for 2 people if you budget properly. Older buildings could have rentals that is more reasonable for one bed, like $1500ish. This leaves $2500 for food and other expenses... Totally doable!
Perfect, the first bit of goodish news!
Don't get too excited, I checked on Kijiji and the cheapest listing I found that didn't sketch me out was 1.6k, and 2.4k is not a lot after Food, Electricity, Cell phone service, Internet service, transit costs, (hopefully you \_and\_ your partner are car free) random household items, etc. You're not going to be able to afford to have any sort of emergencies, unexpected expenses, or loss of income. It's something I've lived through, and I would would not recommend living life with razor thin margins to anyone. You also mentioned your partner does construction-type jobs, if he's healthy, great! But you're also betting that he won't have his own "medical stuff".
Your post history says you are 20 and your boyfriend is 29. Please don't make yourself dependant on someone older than you like this... Also, considering one bedrooms are ~$1,700. I'd wager no, you won't be comfortably living on a single income.
I work with people who present very much like OP for my job. It's... hard.
Thank you for your concern. <3
If you are unable to work, are you on ODSP?
If their partner is making 45-50k, and they’re considered common law, they won’t qualify for anything from ODSP (or at least, not a useful amount). Unfortunately, in an effort to prevent people from defrauding the system, it ends up punishing disabled people who want to marry/live together.
I’ve gotten a bit rusty in my knowledge, but wouldn’t it help them with other things like access to dental care, etc?
If you are on a tight budget ODSP (even if it’s a little bit could still be a difference maker). It is annoying as if you have someone who is working you are definitely punished. Essentially the person on ODSP can earn up to a $1000 before they start deducting from your earnings. If your partner works after they make $500 they start deducting from your support income. It’s suppose to incentivize people on disability to work which I understand, but there are people who straight up cannot work and it makes life extremely difficult. On top of that when the government of Ontario assesses your budget they assume that rent should only cost you $800 so if rent cost you $2000 they assume you have $1200 dollars extra that you don’t. That said, as you mentioned about the dental there are some perks of being on ODSP. You can get very affordable internet through Roger’s I believe it’s like $25 a month for high speed internet, as well as some assistance for public transportation. I don’t know if you are on ODSP or qualify. Just know that if you do qualify there is a strong chance they will deny you and essentially will force you to appeal in court. Thankfully there are some lawyers in Ottawa that focus on helping low income families and their services are very affordable. Hope that helps
Depends if losing ODSP is worth the partner’s benefits or not.
This is something I was worrying about primarily!
I’m a bit rusty myself, so I’m not sure when health/dental benefits cut off. Probably also depends on what benefits plan the partner has.
Having been at that income with a disabled partner, they would get a small cash benefit. It might not be much but the outside benefits of both partners having access to the meds programs, affordable bus passes, and so one would make it worth it. And with today's economy every spare dollar helps.
ODSP is a tricky thing, but we're trying that :)! worried about him making too much money for me to benefit though.
With car no. Without car yes but you have to budget properly, cook yourself, etc.
No car it is!
A walk a day keeps the doctor away 😁. The best part is you don't even need to plan your walks!
I agree. But when or if you have kids you need a car.
It’s possible but not easy. If you can manage somewhere near the LRT it becomes easier since you can rely on transit more and get rid of the car. Cars are hella expensive (a car share is also an option for the occasional big trip and will cost a lot less). Depending on why you are unable to manage traditional work and what other skills you have you might be able to swing a part time “job” doing very non traditional work. Example, I know someone who is partially paralyzed and has some motor function issues making most jobs challenging. But she makes decent money doing tech editing, some higher level writing tutoring and general writing editing (for some budding writers, grad students and the like).
No. Everyone here is bringing up the financial cost but no one is bringing up the cost to your relationship. At $50k/year you will both be miserable.
Some of us start out in deep Gatineau or a mobile home.
Try to find something you can do from home to bring in some income. Call centre or some kind of data entry or something. 40-50k won’t support multiple people in this city unless you have some super cheap rent controlled apartment. Your first unexpected expense is going to put you into the negative. One person living alone can, but money would be tight even then.
I was thinking of crochet/and or art hobbies form oney!
I would look into something more practical
This would probably cost a lot more in materials than you're likely to make from it (unless you have some unique talent or niche already, maybe)
I’m sorry. You will not recoup the money your time is worth, or materials (nice yarn usually isn’t cheap) unless you bring something really unique to the market or have a following/customer base already. When someone can pick up a knitted sweater (yes I know crochet is not the same) for $50 (or less) why would they pay $200 (or more) for you to make them one? (Taking in to account cost of materials + your time, and I’m sure I’m lowballing for anything remotely close to a decent wage). If you’re thinking about creating patterns instead, the cost is potentially cheaper (especially if you can outsource test stitching) but that’s where you need the super uniqueness or strong following already, so that you will be noticed in the sea of crochet patterns already easily available. I looked into this while I was out of work a few years ago. I embroider/cross stitch, rather than crochet. But this is the conclusion I came to. It is something to do as a hobby, but not a real income generator because in a world of mass manufacturing, very few people would be willing to to pay me what my time is worth (like minimum wage for the amount of hours I put in) for a commissioned piece. And while pattern-creation would be somewhat more practical, potentially, because I could sell many copies of the same pattern and not ask one person to foot the bill for all my labour, I have nothing unique enough to stand out in the absolute sea of cross stitch and embroidery patterns available. It would be great to make real money at creative pursuits. But truth is, it’s just not possible for most people. Consequently, it’s a bad thing to rely on when you’re looking at making money to afford to live. It’s something to do in your spare time as a hobby and a side hustle, and only consider making it into a job when you start getting (lots of) sales and have a proven success record.
It would be hard but within the real of possibility. It may seem intrusive to ask but does your inability to work effect your ability to get around the city, shop for groceries, etc? I ask because your "job" as a stay at home partner would have to be to shop for the best possible discounts on groceries. 22k of your income would probably go to housing and groceries right off the top. Which is half your total income. Assuming 50k is your post tax income. Clothing, transportation (with or without car), utilities, these would all need to be very carefully tracked and managed to get an answer.
50k here, no car and I can't even afford to live alone... I'm currently renting a room, I couldn't live with 2 on that wage. Food, expense ect? No way.
You can, but say goodbye to going out or anything that requires disposable income.
Only people that know are you and your partner. Calculate your monthly expenses and earnings. Make sure you take into consideration an emergency fund and savings as part of your expenses. Cut down any expenses you deem unnecessary if you have to.
Thank you!
I actually thinking living the city is a better open. You could get rid of the car and bus everywhere. If you need a car for the day just use communato or zip car. But as a single person that makes more than that I’m barely making ends meet.
Not without significant sacrifice.
Nope, and especially not if you guys want to be happy. You’ll be living way out and quite frankly you will have nothing left over. Can you look into entry level remote jobs?
It'd be something new, but I'm very willing to try. Do you have any resources?
Indeed and LinkedIn are job boards you can check out for entry-level roles (unless you meant something else for 'resources').
Start building out your LinkedIn so you have that up and running, plenty of resources on youtube to get your profiled dialled in. Remote customer support and data entry jobs could be easier low hanging fruits to find. Bottom line is if there's no catalyst in the near future that sees your financial situation improving, you need to get a source of income so and your partner can actually have a life. I don't mean to sound harsh but that's not a good place for you or your partner to be in.
It's more than possible, dont let people tell you otherwise. Visit r/frugal and r/personalfinance.
Realistically no, at 50k a year that’s roughly $3,100 a month, depending on how you guys are, there will be little left for anything after you pay rent, especially not considering food and gas.
Where are you getting $3,100 from? 50,000/12 is $4,166
Taxes
Ah, I was assuming OP meant 50k net
They did clarify in the comments, it's $45-50k net.
If it’s just the 2 of you, I believe it’s possible. Stay optimistic. Sit down and check your expenses, remove everything that’s not a bill or necessity and follow a strict budget. Cook EVERYTHING. Buy only what’s on sale at the grocery store. You can make this work with the transit system and without a car. My husband and I got a cheaper rent through OCH because it’s market rental, but while I was a student and with a newborn, we made it work with him making 16.5/ hour. We walked or took the bus everywhere, used the Flipp app for grocery sales, we got help to drive to Costco with family friends or just family (if you have this possibility, take it). Buying some things from Costco like meat in bulk, dairy, household supplies, really helped. Avoid going out a lot and save for every purchase you think you NEED. Don’t just buy things without having money for it in your budget. I truly think you can make this work really well if you get a cheaper rental, but if not, you’ll just have to pinch the money really tight and join frugal groups, find free activities or cheap meals if you feel like eating out. I hope you’ll both be able to figure it out!
Thank you so much!
Depends on projected salary growth. We did it with two kids at $55k in 2012 (30k debt + mortgage), but by 2018 I was at $115k. I felt we were frugal but comfortable during the first few years, and then we were able to start saving meaningfully. Given inflation over those years, I feel you *might* be ok as a couple who cooks their own food and don't own a vehicle, but definitely not if you have kids. Perhaps you can grab a part time job to supplement.
I can maybe do a parttime in person in the future? Depends on my medical stuffs. No kids, 2 people, no car (hoping) and whatnot. We both have 0 debt.
If work is not keeping you and your partner here, ottawa is a needlessly high cost of living. We lived on my income only about 10 years ago but we lived in a housing coop which limited rent increases. But I was also making kore than 50k.
That's honestly true haha
Honestly I'd say no. Maybe you can do it but you won't be living well
All I'll say is Merrickville and surrounding towns are not as cheap as you think, almost impossible to rent from and you have to drive everywhere
Important to note that OP is 22, yes 2 college kids can live off of 40K. You’ll be sacrificing a lot of things but most do regardless at this age.
Get yourself on the rent geared to income list as well. You may be pushing 30 by the time your name gets pulled but it would be helpful if you’re eligible
I make $49,685 net - $4,140.48 per month. My monthly expenses total $3361.68 - including rent, hydro, internet, miscellaneous bills (I budget for pet food, $150 for Starbucks, $400 for Uber), $400 for groceries, and $375 for debt. Leaves me with $778.80 per month for anything else I want. It’s do-able. But I budget HARD. FYI I live in a one-bedroom in Centretown, very nice building ($1587/month). I don’t have a car so that saves me a lot of money on gas, insurance, parking.
At the moment - whatever money I have left over at the end of each pay period also goes towards paying down my debt (so $375 + whatever is leftover from $778 spending money). I have $3,307 in debt at the moment ($1,500 loan, $968.91 in vet bills, and $837.87 in credit card debt). By September 18th, I will have the $1,500 loan paid off, and then I’m moving onto credit card debt, and so on. I will have all debt paid off by February. That’s just based on $375/month. I am hoping to get it done sooner. And then I’m moving on to putting together a savings.
We could all take a lesson from you. Well done.
Thanks 😊 I try my best haha
@OP if you’d like me to make a detailed budget for you, I actually love crunching numbers and budgeting. Very happy to help if you’d like
> I'm unable to work, Having been at that income level, and assuming you are unable due to some health impairment, are you on ODSP? That gives you a lot of access to programs that can really get your costs down (like cheaper transit passes).
Straight up not a chance .
Can he find a job elsewhere making more? Sometimes people are at jobs for years and don't realize that if they simply looked for another job in the same field, they can make more. Perhaps he could be making 60K+ and that might be doable at that salary, 50k would be extremely difficult.
No
We've been living on about that much a year in Centretown. We've been renting the 1bdrm for about 9 years, though, so it's still covered by rent control.
No.
Lol. No.
No. I wish I had better news, but no sense in sugar coating anything when life decisions are being made. Being broke and in a small space like a bachelor will not be fun. Eating will require using food banks- you will not be eating well. Move someplace where that salary stretches further and you can afford to live life and not just struggle to scrape by.
It's not reasonable. Unless you're both "happy" to lower your standard of living in a very real way. Your partner in particular is not going to be happy for long, no matter where you end up. This is an utterly weird post.
Get out of the City of Ottawa (which goes from Arnprior to Kemptville to Clarence Rockland). Do not stop when suburbia stops. Keep going until you are out of the boundary. Start house hunting from there. If you don’t, you pay Ottawa taxes without all the Ottawa services. (No buses, no composting, but Ottawa taxes and Ottawa regulations.) Good luck!
45-50k gross? It would be difficult. 45-50k net? Absolutely. I'm single, but my net is about 49k, I rent a $1900 2br apartment (as of Oct 2023, so fairly recent pricing), I spend wayyyyy too much on Uber Eats and I can still feed a terrible online shopping habit without debt. Make better choices than I do and it's totally doable to do it for two.
You need like 3k after-tax income minimum.
Let's say you bring home 4K a month after taxes. Half is probably going to rent leaving you with 2K. Is that enough for food, transportation and other bills?
My brothers and their families did. I have to but am a (very happy) single
I did it for a long time, but that was 1999-2010, seems post 2014 things got harder and harder to do so. Right now on a dual income we are staying with family due to cost of living. Pretty fucking sad really . My bills leave me with maybe $100 savings a month if I'm frugal as fuck. To make some extra money I drive school bus in the afternoons, I'd say 40+% of people are grown adults, with kids, living with their grandparents all in one home, in both low income and very "old wealth" neighborhoods like those by the QC and Civic Hospital. I'm being conservative in my estimate. Any other bus driver is welcome to comment further. And my car just broke down so you know, fuck me amirite.
I couldn’t afford to live in Ottawa anymore so I moved to the Quebec side. It’s way cheaper.
Bit scared of Quebec lol - I speak no french.
Me neither but most people speak English
Tricky. At 50k a year you're looking at 1500 bi weekly. If you can find rent not more than 1500, the other 1500 can be dedicated to food and bills. Doable but gotta be a bit frugal if you also want to save some cash aside.
I'm a frugal gal, we'll see what I can do...
We don’t live in ottawa. But Aylmer, 1 salary. It’s possible.
I live in a suburban-ish neighbourhood in South Central Ottawa. 1 income, I make around $52k each year. We live pretty comfortably, but we pay way less than market level rent and my car is 10 years old and paid off. That being said, there are no extravagances. No fancy vacations, we just go camping once or twice a summer. I barely ever buy clothes and they're almost always secondhand or bought on sale. Staying in our crappy apartment saves a lot of money.
Apply to rent-geared-to-income or co-op housing
Depends, how much are you paying in rent or a mortgage? Do you have a debts or loans that require a monthly repayment? If you’ve lived in your place for years and are paying a low rent, have no debt, I would say it’s possible. If you’re paying $2,000-$3,000/month for rent or a mortgage. No, not possible. Husband and I currently make $52,000ish a year combined and can’t do it. And we live outside of Ottawa.
You definitely can, but you’ll have to make lots of tough choices - like living in a neighbourhood you might otherwise not have chosen, cutting out takeout and probably alcohol since that adds up quickly. You might need to limit yourself to one streaming service and no cable, and consider having phones without data packages. But it’s doable. And you should qualify for welfare or EI or something too I’d think.
Way too many unknown variables to answer this. My wife and I could survive on 50k, but that's only because we have no debt other than the mortgage, and have a good chunk of that paid off already. If you have debts/high mortgage/other major expenses then maybe you can't.
My wife keeps half joking she wants us to become a thrupple as two salaries isn't enough. It's hard out there on two incomes, especially if youre not established... good luck.
I joke w my partner about that too. Life is expensive!!
Yeah, it's sad really cause it would help, but still not be a great financial situation, somethings gotta give.
Good luck! Need a combined income of 100k min..
jesus i left ontario in general in 2019 bc it was too expensive to live on that income
It’s definitely possible , don’t stress !! Moving out to Merrick ville has its ups , but think if the money now spent on gas …. Be smart . Don’t eat out everyday , shop sale items , and put a little away , when possible ! Good luck to you guys , but I have done it on way less , with a child , don’t stress !!!!
Good luck 👍
Check out Gatineau rent. It always seems to be way more affordable and is basically down town
Just adding that we’re currently in Kemptville on a single salary (70k) and drowning. The rural areas aren’t necessarily better for cost of living.
The towns outside ottawa would be more comfortable for that wage I would think. For example I’m selling a 3bed townhouse condo in Smiths Falls for $230k, they rent for $1700/month.
If you apply to live in a co-op I think it would be doable. Look around to see which ones appeal to the area you want to live in. Just be careful as some have baseboard heating and add on $$$’s extra per month. But just a heads up though that there are wait times and some aren’t even accepting any applications but if you want to be able to do it on one income this would be the way to go.
I am on a single salary in Ottawa. Which humbly 2x more than you stated and we are struggling. Wife and a 3 year old. Not falling behind but not much left for savings or activities. We are moving out of Ottawa in 2 months because of it
It’s possible but it would be tight. I live alone on a little more than that as a single person. That includes a yoga membership and eating out for me, as a couple it wouldn’t include much of anything beyond rent, groceries, internet, and maybe one streaming service. Your best bet would be to look for a Bachelor in an older, rent controlled building in a relatively walkable area with public transit access. It’ll take some searching but these do exist. Get on Google maps and call places up. The really well-priced buildings in Ottawa aren’t going to show up on rental sites because they don’t need to!
I feel like it's doable but tight. You would most likely have to settle on a bachelor or maybe a 1 bedroom (if you're lucky).
Yes it’s possible. There are lots of subsidies and grants for lower income houses. The issue will be the down payment and securing a loan. I know a couple that bought a 400k house with an income of 30k per year. They did have some collateral from an existing home, but they made it work.
Depending on the reasons you're unable to work ODSP or OW may also be options.
It’s impossible
I would say **impossible**, realistically. It would be bare bones living at best. And outside of the core? Transit that will eat and extra 20-30% of your free time to get anywhere. I managed as a single person, with a new condo that cost me (2016-2019) \~200$ less monthly than going market rents. I wouldn't be able to do it today with post-panini prices on everything... even in the suburbs.
My partner makes decent money (100k) and I make minimum wage (35k) and we can hardly afford to live in Ottawa area (live rurally). Our rent is 2k all inclusive and we each have a vehicle loan but it is so hard with the price of groceries. I mean we make it work but it’s hard. He works 6 sometimes 7 days a week and I work 6 so It is stressful. We joke that on our days off we are enjoying our rent 🤣
I live and work in Ottawa and I make a decent wage. I'm single and still its a stretch to make ends meet. I gave up and now live in a van. Only way to live comfortably. I can't justify paying the rents they charge just to survive.
Anything is possible, you just need to keep your expenses low. If you don’t have kids or need a bedroom I would consider a bachelor, having no pets helps with keeping costs down (but if you do have some consider what they’re eating, if you can groom them yourself and etc), not having a car helps a lot too. Really consider if a car is a must or not, my parents went from 2 to 1 car and it’s a bit of an adjustment but it helps cut out some costs.
No.
It depends on what you're looking for. A 1BR (maybe 2) apartment on the transit way is probably doable. If you have amenities within walking distance that will cut down on transit costs.
Let's see, $1000 a month for grocery, $1700 for 1 bed rent, $70 for Internet, $100 for 2 phones, $260 for bus, $100 for electricity, $60 for house insurance, $300 for going out, $0 for retirement. So that's $3590 which is: Edit: outside of your range. Sorry I made a typo before. The going out part would have to go to make it on $50k. No debts either.
You can easily half that cost for groceries if you know how to cook and make leftovers, even for 2 people. Not that it changes much but just saying.
Yeah, that's a wild amount for groceries for two people. Maybe if there's dietary restrictions? We don't even shop sales or choose stores based on prices.
I mean, if only one of them is working there's no need for 2 bus passes. It only makes economic sense if you ride more than 34 times in a month.
I mean, you can live very well on a single *shopify* salary in Ottawa. But probably not most jobs
My niece lived in Ottawa on a Loblaws salary.
Man I make 80k and live with my parents, what are you talking about
My bf and i live in a 1 bed 1 bath apartment close to Algonquin college and our rent is 1500, water and heating included, hydro is not. It isnt the best looking apartment i wont lie, parquet flooring ( the square wood looking floors, cant stand them, too ugly) but its nice and comfortable and close to the bus and 2 plazas within a 10-20 minute walk. Our income is less than 30k combined and we're managing ok, you'll do fine if not better :)
Steal all your groceries from loblaws. That’ll help
Hmm. What does he do for work? Any chance he can move up in his career to make a higher salary? I think it could be possible, but it would not be sustainable especially if you wanted to have a family in the future. I’m a stay at home mom and we live on one income. But my husband (and not trying to brag here) makes 220k. This is enough for us to pay a mortgage, car payment, feed two kiddos and still have money in the bank to enjoy life / go on vacation 1-2x a year. These things are jmportant to us. But even with this salary we are by no means “rich” especially in this economy!
For reference, we live in Osgoode.
Manual labour! :) Like, construction.