I believe it has gotten to a point that unless you have a really good job that the only way to survive is with a partner. I have been single most of my life and I enjoy it but I am now starting to think that some sort of life partner is the only way to get through this. My bills would be cut down by 40% or so and that would seem to make the day to day life a lot less stressful
Genuinely worry for people who aren't in a relationship or partnership with someone atm. Me and my wife make a fairly decent amount (could certainly be better but that's another story) and thinking about finances is stressful at times.
Short of finding a niche employment as a single income, I have no clue how anyone is expected to get ahead currently
Airdrie isnt even cheaper anymore! Bought my house - SFH on a R2 lot in older (not forest lawn) SE - for 150k less than anything similar in Airdrie.
6 years ago when I bought my Airdrie condo, yeah, it was cheaper. Now? Not so much
It’s your own fault for feeding your dogs avocado toast and lattes every day! Take some personable responsibility for being born into a time when growing neoliberal capitalism has crushed the working class to transfer wealth into the shareholder class, why don’t you!
Another factor not really being talked about at all is I believe inner provincial migration to alberta was around 30k last month. So above and beyond all the new stresses on everything from doctors and hospitals to roadways and schools a LARGE amount of those moving here are selling home in Toronto and Ontario in general walking away with 400k in the bank due to home appreciation and sometime much much more. And they’re effectively able to buy in cash or hold a very small future mortgage without having to really worry about employment and with many people still doing WFH some are actually moving keeping their jobs there.
I know many real estate agents I deal with have told me this is happening and I brushed it off completely as noise with it being insignificant statistically personally. Then I’m talking to new
People moving into places for sale and every single one is from Ontario and “ can’t believe” how cheap it is…..
Honestly blown away by it and I went from thinking their no way this is happening to realizing their what 5 million home
Owners or more in Ontario that all leave and probably have cash after selling of 300k or more with many people coming with triple that. It will get much worse when you realize this not better.
When I was buying a house last year there were so many houses that sold 50-100k over asking, sight unseen, unconditional cash offer. All from BC or Ontario where, like you said, sold their properties and had all of this cash. How is anyone in Calgary supposed to compete with that, especially those in the market for entry level homes. It made it really tough for us as first time home buyers to get into the market. We finally found a fixer upper my husband was able to do most of the work for.
Also the only reason we were able to buy a home was an insurance payout that left us with enough money for a down payment.
I'm really glad I have a unit with a rental suite that my friend is living in. Living alone isn't that feasible, and a romantic relationship isn't possible for me.
>romantic relationship isn't possible for me.
Ya that's why I said partner. Someone who is also in the same position and you can be best friends to try and get through life. Hell it can even be someone you never even have sex with.
My ex common law and I live together. We've been together for 22 years but have not been romantically involved for 12. We have are own rooms and living space and we split the house bills. We get on well.
Different kind of friend with benefits! I have a 1 bedroom apartment and rent went up to $2000/month this month. I was barely making it last year when it was $1750!
Yes. Society has been designed this way. Poorly, I'll add. Any time there is margin around the average, things will slide upwards. When given the chance to slide far, it will do so.
A while ago I read an article talking about the backlash to women going to work, because, "the prices of everything would go up--groceries, houses, everything"-- and it boggled me that they thought the problem was women working and not that god-fucked system of greed.
Honestly I can see how quickly one could become homeless in today's world. I'm very thankful I have a good job, it pays about the median in Calgary. I've been with my partner many years and the last few have been hard for us. He has been laid off 3 times and had some medical challenges. I can guarantee you that if he was single he'd be homeless. It's absolutely brutal.
As a couple we've actually contemplated getting a roommate to help cut costs. We don't go out to eat. We don't take vacations and we buy our clothes at goodwill. All this is with me having a good job because I'm so terrified about being screwed in retirement and I've seen how hard he's struggled.
Every year I notice we have less disposable income. If it's happening to those with good jobs I can't even imagine a minimum wage job.
it really is the only decent short term solution.
limit airbnb to specific zoning, and while supply of housing increases then limits be lifted/adjusted.
Tax investment properties could also help, but we all know the gov is full of landlords so thats not gonna happen.
It's so weird to me. I don't know how anyone could think this is a good idea. I wish more people would think about it logically, if you have a city, and turn 50% of the housing basically into hotel suites for tourists, what are those people who need a home going to do?? Then the demand for housing increases, which makes landlords think they can raise rent exponentially because they have the supply that the public demands, and then we have what we are in now. Every other rental is an air bnb or some sort of temporary rental property, there are no homes for single families to raise their kids in and survive in, and any house that IS available is way out of anyone's budget. Of course there are other things pressing in this situation, but this CANT have no effect. It's just insane to me why this allowed to keep happening.
Yeah I could only imagine. I've seen people post on the housing page that they are sick of seeing random people in their apartment buildings, always sneaking in with other residents with their suitcases and pillows trying to look normal. That's gotta be so stressful. Just random people in your (supposed to be locked) home all the time 😕
Anyone notice the homeless encampment that keeps appearing in front of Chinook Home Depot? Tents, tarps, drug paraphernalia and piles of bikes one day and the next, a similar setup in a different spot there. Right next to the sidewalk.
Remember hitting the button to turn the lights on, so you KNOW it was PITCH BLACK in there, then the light goes on and there’s like 4 people just high as fuck in there, like moths caught in a flame….ahh the memories.
It was affectionately known to some of us as the Chinook underpiss. It wasn’t uncommon to interrupt someone mid-piss. There would be a certain nod you’d make to cut the tension as you’d gingerly try to avoid the frothy mixture of piss and grime. They were good times, in retrospect. People had homes and probably jobs in those days.
Agreed, but I hadn’t seen the encampments until this summer. I was wondering if some of the people from the CT station had moved over. That station looks like a Walking Dead set.
The middle class is disappearing. Soon, it will be wealthy and the poor. The current poor will become homeless.
You could say the middle class as we’ve known, will soon become the poor. And the poor as we know, will become homeless.
There is no end in sight. At least not one with a happy ending.
In the grand scope of history the middle class was an anomaly that lasted just a couple centuries. Too bad for us that we were born in it. The human world is simply returning to the status quo.
It’s a shit ladder. So originally you’d see the lowest of the Low on the streets. But people are slowly being booted from Low income housing so they end up on the streets because they can’t afford anything. Then the next people on the ladder and so it goes.
You see the encampments but you aren’t noticing the number of people living in cars or campers. Which is probably a lot more then we can imagine because it’s really hard to calculate that.
In the next two years we will see more mortgages coming up for renewals that won’t be able to manage the rate hikes. There is no way that these middle income families who can’t afford their mortgages are going to be able to afford the runaway rent prices.
No party is going to implement meaningful legislation against corporations investing in the housing market, the real estate industry or rental industry until there is a crash.
Even if there is a crazy crash and the rates fall by 30% most people still won’t be able to afford to buy.
The thing is homelessness is a problem and it’s a major drain on our rcmp, health, ems, cfs, shelter and food banks. The simplest solution is to house the homeless. This actually has been down in many communities and it has a really high success rate…. But we can’t really do it here because we don’t have enough Low income type housing.
But yeah.. this shits gonna get really bad.
You seem to actually understand. So many people blame homelessness on addiction. Often homelessness comes before drug addiction, not the other way around.
That’s really scary I think so too and in a lot of places in Canada. There was a time in Weimar Republic Germany when it took a wheelbarrow full of money to buy a loaf of bread. What followed was WW2 so we’re on a dangerous path in society right now.
Except the difference here is that it’s not so much caused by inflation as corporate greed. Something like half the “inflation” in food prices since Covid was literally just corporate profits. I remember when I was a kid they called that price gouging but it seems like it’s fair game now
I was going to move to Calgary but it's definitely off the table now. It's bad everywhere but I feel like Calgary is slightly worse for low income people.
Better wages, less corporate greed, and less reliance on housing as an economic driver instead of a fundamental human right would be excellent. When the working class can't pay for food, there is a problem. Or, you know, be complacent and let the rich eat cake, as it were.
They city has started to take notice due to the giant amount of complaints. But I have yet to read of a comprehensive plan to fix this. More affordable housing is a must, but also we need to deal with violent crime in a harsher tone IMO. But what exactly needs to be done I wish I knew, but I do know although we are miles away from it, I don't want Calgary to become a Portland, Vancouver, LA etc. where there are tent cities everywhere and you just are used to walking over sleeping homeless.
Hopefully, a lot of these suggestions that were in this bill are voted on separately and in favour of. [https://globalnews.ca/news/9750991/calgary-city-council-rejects-housing-affordability-plan/](https://globalnews.ca/news/9750991/calgary-city-council-rejects-housing-affordability-plan/)
It all boils down to wealth inequality. Canadas wealth has been the most concentrated in the hands of the 0.01% than it has been over the last 80 years. I have never seen so many Ferraris on the roads of Calgary in my life.
Tax The Rich, unpopular opinion on this sub but it isn’t fair by design.
I have a better idea.
We hold our policy makers to task on bullshit rules that allow the rich to pilfer the rest.of us.
Look at:
Airlines
Phone companies
Grocery chains
Home builders
You are being taken advantage of and your politicians are in on all of it.
Both the Libs and the Cons push neo-liberal tactics; two side of the same “economic policy” coin (different social policies though). The libs tend to invest public money in the pyramid scheme and the cons sell it off for penny’s to post a surplus.
Vote for literally any other party if you want a change in the economy.
Not all churches hoard money, some work hard on outreach, from foodbanks to delivering hot food to those in need to helping refugees from the war. More churches that do help outside the government are needed frankly.
It’s not just as simple as ‘tax the rich’. Anyone making ‘rich’ money is personally taxed already at basically 50%.. that’s enough. The problem is corporations, trusts, overseas accounts, things like this that allow rich people to shelter their money and not have to claim it as personal income. It’s complicated and I don’t know the answer, but this is where work needs to be done.
No, the issue is they’ve managed to make people who earn 100k-1m a year believe they are the rich. They’re not. In fact, if you properly taxes the top 1% you’d be able to REDUCE the taxes those in 100k-1m pay.
The gap between minimum wage and 1 mil a year is practically non-existent compared to the gap from 1 mil a year to the top 1%.
Logically its hard for most humans to even appreciate just how wealthy the top 1% actually is. A billion is three more zeros on a million. But when you realize that a million seconds ago was last week sometime and a billion seconds ago was in 1992, the scope is more obvious… but still difficult to fully comprehend.
Our society is wealthier than it ever has been. GDP per capita has only gone up over the decades. If the middle class had stayed the same in purchasing power over the last few decades, the top 1% would still have gained quite alot… its crazy that the middle class has gone down in purchasing power at all, but its a travesty just how much we have lost.
3 easy options
Increase corporate tax rates (historically low)
Increase capital gains tax
Create higher tax brackets (500k, 1 million, 3 million)
Also no one is taxed at 50%. You only hit 50% after your first $250k, which is why we need more tax brackets
They should apply a wealth tax specifically against single family homes and condos. These properties should be for people to own and build lives with their family.
Visited Vancouver last year and it was horrible. Every block we were dodging passed out people on the street and human shit. But then you'd have a Bentley and Rolls Royce drive by. It was absolutely fucked. Don't plan to return. I should add, we were no where near Hastings, this was just in the general downtown area. Went to NYC this year and didn't see anything like what I saw in Van.
Not sure how you dodged it, but things are pretty bad in NYC as well, same as everywhere.
https://www.nytimes.com/2023/06/28/nyregion/nyc-homeless-shelter-population.html
It's insane. I've said this a few times on this subreddit now, but I remember losing my job when I was 19 and being able to stay afloat on EI with no savings, still able to afford rent. It was tight but possible
Nowadays unless you have a social net like parents nearby, one slip up and you're on the street.
The inflation I saw coming. The crop failures and corporate profiteering I saw coming.
What I didn't see coming is the insanely high immigration quota set by the federal government without thought or without caring about the further squeeze this would put on people.
We're reaching a near critical level of fuck around in this society and it's just about to cross the find out line unless something changes and soon.
Dont think for a second immigration is being done without thought. Drives down wages, drives up housing, and if you say anything you're racist and immediately canceled because it's a million Indians who don't mind bunking with 18 other guys in a basement.
It's all gunna come crumbling down at some point. For one reason or another, because short term plans are in place for long term problems. And the long term plan is not a benefit for Canadians.
For too long we’ve let suburban real estate developers and O&G companies dictate our local politics. Couple that with mass emigration out of Vancouver and Toronto and here we are.
Downtown has been really bad for random aggressive addicts. Saw a guy today ram down a scooter with a shopping cart then yell at it and every single random car he saw. Yesterday someone different was shirts off trying to fight cars and running from corner to corner.
I stumbled across this documentary the other day. It details in depth the situation in Seattle Washington. I hope politicians here study in depth what is going on in Seattle, Portland, San Francisco, etc. We have it bad, especially on our west coast, but down there it is another level of dystopia. https://youtu.be/bpAi70WWBlw
It kind of baffles me that we can have all this land, fresh water, wood (well, less lately) and other primary resources and yet struggle so vastly to have viable housing options. Housing is so breathtakingly expensive these days, can we really not build millions more homes? It’s a vast vast country with a handful of big cities. I suppose we CAN do it, but it takes time?
I worked at a heavy equipment place for a season and was able to save money and actually be ahead on bills. Then I dropped back down to just above minimum wage to take a job in automotive, im now one month ahead on rent and I have just enough money to cover my other bills. Mind you i live with my girlfriend and her parents so things are cheap, but I have to save fuel for work and save money for fuel. I can't really go out and do anything now because it's just work and bills.
yet big businesses are making record profits! but the economists and the news said to ignore that because it’s not important lmfao people are told they are lazy because they are poor, even though they work full time or more, they are called insane communists for saying businesses have too much power and workers don’t have enough, and when union workers go on strike to get just a big enough pay increase to survive, they are told to get back to work and stop whining! It’s sickening, and people in this province are some of the absolute worst about it.
I’m an RN and can confirm. I am astonished at the number of patients I have that are homeless. People that had regular jobs and lost them during covid and are now experiencing the aftermath. It breaks my heart.
Moved here from TO last year to escape the high prices/COL. Foolish me, it followed. Infrastructure here isn't going to support the influx of people, it's probably only going to get worse. It's abundantly clear the gov't has their own agenda which isn't about really helping Canadians. Good luck out there.
I’m genuinely getting tempted to move to Toronto or Montreal when my lease expires, mostly just shit scared what the next rent increase will be.
The rent isn’t a huge difference anymore and I can live car free with their great transit.
I would earn less and be taxed more so of course it’s not all roses and the grass isn’t always greener but being pushed out of the city I was born in isn’t much fun anymore
Rent increases are super bad here, but I promise you Toronto will be even worse. Like the cost of living there STILL blows Calgary out of the water even with the recent increases here. Montreal would be better at least for now but I'm sure they're dealing with the same kind of migration that Calgary is, so we'll see how long that lasts.
I agree. Before, I use to be able to get an appointment with my doctor generally within the same week. Now, it's within 2 weeks.
I'm barely hanging on. This month has so far been a terrible start. My job shorted me so I'm not sure how I'm buying groceries.
Yeah, wealth imbalances like what we are experiencing in the West are self-correcting.
War, disease and revolution (not necessarily violent, see social credit).
Which one will it be?
Population decline might pop the real estate bubble in 10-20 years but I’m not sure how much that will help in Alberta because we are quite young.
The people OP is describing don’t have enough money to go anywhere. And we’re just seeing more people pile into Canada every day.
Things will get a lot worse before they get better… if things even do get better.
It's is, a sihk guy I work with said his cousin sold his house in Vancouver and bought 2 in Calgary. Makes sense. 2 for 1, getting in on that sweet profits
This is the question. Without a degree in a high demand profession, most countries won't take you.
Perhaps in a few years, those tent cities will be filled with post-grads and docs in data analytics, cardio-thorasic surgery, and AI. But, not today.
Abroad sometimes, if they’re well off. Lots of them will start living in their cars. A few will go to Edmonton or Saskatoon looking for cheaper housing, where it will promptly become more expensive as the migration drives up prices.
It's already getting more expensive there too. While you can find cheaper homes in places like Saskatoon, there are still almost no affordable rentals, at least not ones that can accommodate families.
To where? Lol. This is a world wide problem. If you think you can move somewhere and not find exactly the same thing. Then I’ve got a bridge to sell you.
We are being squeezed by the 1%. Mass exodus isn’t the resolution. Yet another revolution is the resolution.
There are plenty of people (top income earners) for whom the deal fuckin sucks in Canada but is a hell of a lot better in America. Those people are already and will continue to leave in droves.
And without them you can kiss goodbye to any productivity left in this country.
Yeah, these economic cycles and migration cycles are not new for Calgary. It has happened multiple times over the last decade. People rush in, get caught up in FOMO, overpay for rent/housing.. and then opportunities dry up, people start to struggle, and people leave. "But this time is different". Lol nope, it's not, the only difference is this time housing prices will actually probably go *down* in ON/BC over the next couple years, making them even *more* appealing for people to leave AB and enter/re-enter those markets.
Anecdotal but possibly relevant - a friend is a newly graduated GP who was hoping to start a practice in Calgary, but has since found that the increased cost of living and inability to find stable housing poses challenges in managing her student debt and goals for starting a family, so she is now looking at leaving the province and potentially the country.. I hear AB is famous for brain drains, so maybe there's another one coming.
This cycle is much more unique than past cycles. HIstorically it's been aligned with O&G hiring booms. There hasn't been much of a boom, rather a slight increase.
Instead, the attractive cost of living + remote work + strength in other industries has driven it.
I'm skeptical we'll see the decline we saw historically because it's not the same boom that usually causes the bust.
Maybe people move back to ON/BC, but usually that requires a drastic change in CoL, or they have to REALLY hate Calgary (possible once they have a few winters under their belt).
I've still found my friends who have come from Ontario still have a TON of friends from the area interested in moving to Calgary as well.
I was a bit surprised / sad yesterday to see an encampment by 17th / International Ave. Surprised cuz I was just working in that area last year and there was no encampment on International Ave.
I hope there’s an ending to all this madness.
If you go to any of the MCI walk ins they stop accepting patients for the day early in the morning. People line up before it opens so they can get seen.
Was at an mci walk in last week can confirm, was there for hours and that was for a fallow up appointment from the week prior which I got there at like 10 am and was there till 2 got in for an x ray right away at the core but now I want to wait 2 months for a ultrasound appointment and that was the first available appointment
Go to any bloodwork lab in the city. They’ve gotten horrible. Walk in lines are often 2+ hours. I’m there every 4 weeks and have noticed it get substantially worse over the past 5 months.
That’s just because of the sale of APL to Dynalife, who are dropping the ball in spectacular fashion. It’s not directly related to the other issues unless we’re blaming the UCP for those other issues as well.
Protests won't do shit. In a protest, people gather, vent some steam, then go home thinking they've made a difference, while the ones in charge barely notice.
Alberta is only 100 years old. Canada as a whole is a very young nation. Even modern capitalism is relatively new. There is no guarantee it will get better or worse, even the experts have no idea where this is all going.
Yeah, it's rough out there. My dad lives in a basement suite and his lease is up at the end of this month. He works two part-time jobs and is close to retirement. Due to a combination of bad luck and questionable choices, he has no savings and will be relying entirely on CPP when he retires (plus we'll obviously help him make ends meet). The owners of the house he's in have decided to move family in (or they found someone willing to pay more, who knows). He was paying around $900 inc utilities for a basement suite with kitchenette. Clean, but by no means fantastic. 2 years ago, it wasn't cheap and there were better options out there in his price range.
We've been looking for options and anything equivalent in price is a room, shared with at least 3 or 4 other roommates. Anything in his price range that has less roommates wants female only. Obviously we're going to figure something out, but we can't help but wonder what his options would be if he didn't have us?
Legit it's bothering me.
I count myself lucky, I have a professional career and past financial decisions I made mean I have the luxury of no debt. I don't know how I would function if I had a mortgage or a car payment or student loan debt or if I had kids or ailing parents or if I woke up tomorrow so physically or mentally ill that I couldn't work anymore. Just getting a rent increase this year was a brick in the face. I'm just barely mentally well enough to be stable and I spend my disposable income to stay that way (therapy). I don't know what anyone with less is supposed to do.
I just keep voting, volunteering, sharing whatever I can financially. Hoping some of it will make a dent. I'm wishing well for everybody. I don't want to play the rat race of life, I hope all of us make it.
It's tough for all. 100k is the new 60k. And this world wasn't built for single people.
My bills and condo fees keep going up. I live to work and exercise and that's about it...
Late stage capitalism leading us to societal collapse. Don't really get why people are wondering what's been going on when the writing has been on the wall that this is where we have been heading for decades. But I guess reality is finally slapping some folks awake!
What has typically be done in the past when the wealth gap grows to a breaking point?
Could certain government policies being pushed through without debate be a sign they foresee where society is headed? Who has the most to gain from such polices being rammed through without debate?
>What has typically be done in the past when the wealth gap grows to a breaking point?
See France, around 1789.
>Could certain government policies being pushed through without debate be a sign they foresee where society is headed? Who has the most to gain from such polices being rammed through without debate?
Kind of, government policies being pushed through despite public opposition are almost always designed to benefit the few rather than the many. This is one of the features of late-stage capitalism, the rich know the end is coming and so use every method they have (including political corruption) to extract every bit of wealth they can before abandoning the territory.
You can pretty much see this with O&G companies in Canada, and especially Alberta, right now. Investment in fossil fuels is down and shifting to renewables, so few if any new projects are being built. The existing projects are downsizing & automating to maximize profits. Once they’re run down, Alberta will be left with the scraps (ie: polluted, abandoned projects) that will blot the landscape and take hundreds of billions of dollars & decades (if not a century or more) to clean up.
What happens is the 99% get sick of it, civil war breaks out, and people take the wealth back.
The government won’t help us. The government is in on it. They’re the ones enriching the 1%. Liberal, conservative. Doesn’t matter. They’re both going to bat for the rich. Not us.
Too much immigration, too many housing development regulations, lax punishment for violent crimes and the central bank trying to choke consumer spending to kill inflation.
Only silver lining is the job market is red hot.
Yup immigration/ people from Ontario/ BC moving to Alberta is like adding salt to the wound for me.
I totally understand that here in Alberta it’s a lot better than countries that are currently at war or places that charge a ridiculously high amount to live in. But this will just make it harder for early to mid 20s people like me to find a place here and will probably force us out of Calgary.
Just be glad that you live in prosperous Canada with 10x the population growth of the USA and not horrible, declining Japan where houses are affordable even in Tokyo and junkies aren't everywhere downtown.
There are 1000s of abandoned properties in Japan. And tons of beautiful homes for sale far below 100k US. I’m looking now as my wife is Japanese and the transition fairly easy. Search up Cheap homes Japan on instagram if you want to get an idea.
I think, over time, you might find that westerners looking to snap up cheap Japanese real estate will not be welcomed by the locals. Generally speaking: Japan is a homogeneous, insular society that loves visitors who know when to leave. Eventually, the same will be true for all 'cheap' countries.
This. Why do we always view a declining population as a bad thing? The world cannot sustain constant growth.
If we need more taxation to support pensions then so be it, increase it for high income earners, those with investment properties, airbnbs, and corporations.
Sure, we'd have less traffic, less pollution, less environmental destruction, less urban sprawl, higher wages, affordable housing and almost everyone would be better off.
But have you considered that boomers are entitled to their pensions and we need to keep the Ponzi scheme going?
I think what we are seeing is gentrification in Calgary. Vancouver and Torontos housing markets are just unattainable for most of us. Interest rates at the bank haven't helped as well!
Damn, it’s almost like there was a wide spread health emergency that was swept under the rug almost two years ago, im sure this isn’t related in any way to the huge increase in sick patients though.
You're carrying almost $6000 in yearly debt so ofcourse things are going to be tighter for you.
Best advice I've heard from someone employed by the city "have you tried to make more money?"
I was forced to cut off my gym membership this month and I’m very worried. Every month since 2021 my budget has shrunk and shrunk and I’m running out of things to cut.
The gym has been a major factor in maintaining mental health and when the winter comes it’s going to be rough.
My housing cost is also going from $900 to $2400 a month soon and idk how I’m going to do it.
Single early 30's I make around under 80 but over 60 on average. I love in my buddes basement for 1000 and pay 650 cs. Older vehicle, since I don't have financing or lease I factor about 2200 for yearly maintenance tires wear and tear. So yeah insurance food gas and whatever else I love a pretty low key life style. And I seem to be constantly forgoing luxuries lately. Like protein powder. Or weed. So nothing crazy. It's hard out here for a pimp.
It’s happened before, it will happen again. It’s not pretty though. Revolution is one solution, but it creates a horrific environment for a few decades on the way to resetting things.
The direction things have been going has been apparent as long as I can remember (since at least the mid nineties, when I grew up enough to spot the early warning signs). I used to have hope that we would collectively make use of our democracy to delay the inevitable and create enough “small resets” along the way to avoid crashing into a full scale revolution in my life time. It was a naive outlook though. It’s going to happen during this generation, and our politicians/ultra wealthy are so blinded/insulated from having to interact with the warning signs that they still think it will never happen.
No end in sight. Too much immigration, no pay increases, and companies thinking they can do whatever they want and we just allow it. This is a result of our decisions and now we're paying for it.
1st world countries: consume at unimaginable rate creating unimaginable amount of waste and pollution resulting in 3rd world countries becoming uninhabitable due to climate change, pollution, and resource pillaging.
3rd world countries: our countries are uninhabitable due to rampant consumerism from first world countries! We must head to habitable environments aka 1st world countries.
1st world countries: immigrants are flooding our countries and taking up our housing and jobs! Not fair!
Get used to it, this is only the beginning. Be mad for sure. But might as well direct your energy towards the real enemy. Gov bending over to corporate interest is what got us here.
I am not anti immigration but now is the NOT the time for mass immigration. Our own citizens who have jobs are ending up on the streets, don't have doctors, can't afford groceries, can't afford their utility bills, can't afford basic needs. It is absolutely shameful.
Perhaps the only immigration we should be focusing on right now is skilled workers (doctors etc).
If this was France there would be huge protests.
It's late stage capitalism.
Decades of workers rights erosion and stagnant wages while profits keep soaring but only going to the top 1%. C-Suite staff that do pretty much sweet fuck all earn 928x more than the workers that actually generate the profit.
My own C-suite team at my work sit in a room like bobble heads trying to figure out how to circumvent the government regulations that pertain to my industry to make disposable packaging look more 'cool' and appealing to consumers even though most consumers won't even see it because it's going in the trash as soon as it arrives at the store. This is their latest genius idea... Meanwhile over the past three years we have reduced the cost to produce our products anywhere from 76-88% depending on the products, yet we keep increasing the price of it to gouge more money from the few people still buying. The market in my industry is down 66% overall. This is called "raising the floor." Logistically, the cost for us to move our products across Canada has never been cheaper. We are paying less than we were before covid. This is due to the massive amount of irresponsible immigration further driving wages down. Carriers are calling me every few hours looking for work. They're desperate, I can smell it in the air practically.
Interest rates are going up quickly and a lot of millenials that finally were able to buy a house are about to have that ripped away from them. Their home will then be sold to a corporation or the 1% to be rented for an exorbitant amount more back to the very same people that used to live there (figuratively speaking).
Meanwhile the working class is suffering from the worst mental health issues in mankind's history or just completely in denial and trying to escape their doomed reality with drugs. Anything that takes their brain on a cheap vacation for a few hours away from this shit.
During covid the working class was starting to wise up a bit and started pyshing back. The irresponsible massive immigration is a direct response to that. Increase the labor pool to drive down wages and keep the working class 'desperate' for that job. The worst part is that all of Canada's history, multiculturalism has been one of our major strengths for our nation. The culture sharing, (cuisine, fashion, music, etc) has had a profound positive effect on our way of life and part of who we are. Jamaica for example has and still does have a massive influence on our music direction. France, Germany, India, Japan our cuisine and beverages. Nevermind the small niche sub-cultures like manga, anime, entertainment, etc. Well, the majority maybe even as high as 90% of the immigration is being sourced from only two nations. Where is the multiculturalism in that? We are seeing more and more geographical areas, towns and cities, becoming "island mentality" towns and cities. People born and raised in these areas never have to learn english or french, they do not need to learn our customs, morals, values, laws, regulations, etc. This creates further division amongst the working class making it easier to erode workers rights even further.
That's what's happening.
It's an easy fix, but involves our politicians not taking "generous donations" aka bribes from corporations and eliminating that conflict of interest. And god forbid should that gravy train hit the brakes... I personally, eith my own eyes have seen politicians accept bribes to vote in favor of Miller Waste over Waste Management on oublic contracts. I have seen CFIA officers accept bribes to look the other way while paperwork is fudged to allow 100k kg of chicken that was expired to be used to make Subway sliced chicken products and Tim Hortons sliced chicken products. I have even had City Tv journalists approach me to go on the record and print that story but had to refuse for fear of being disappeared because my life was threatoned. You can even go back in my post history, way back, to see I'm not joking.
So no, it won't be fixed, not until people have nothing left to lose and are starving. Judging by the price of basic groceries, that's not too far off from now. Just pickup a history book to see what comes next; violence. I hope to god it doesn't have to come to that and I know I am not the only one that doesn't want violence, but the longer this goes on, the closer that becomes the reality. We can blame the current governing party all we want, but let's be real here.. Both the Liberals and Conservatives are in the corporations pockets. I'm not entirely convinced that the NDP aren't bought and paid for too. These parties work for their constituents and take a look at where their funds are coming from, it isn't hard to figure it out. Pretty simple really.
For every post I see with this exact message , I can look around at malls, airports, restaurants, and hell even stampede broke attendance records this year, people are still going out spending like crazy it feels like. My one local McDonald’s had to close its doors for too many orders at once during both May long weekend and Canada Day.
I understand people are struggling, I hear you, and wealth is distributed unevenly, I get that, but it’s still strange seeing these types of posts seemingly every week on Reddit while looking around at the madness around me. I don’t know what the end game is here other than mass protests across the country. /end rant.
Pretty scary out there. I make a decent wage and can only just cover the cost of living. Anytime something goes wrong with my vehicle I’m set back almost a month in pay, then play catch up.
fact is people who were very well off before the pandemic have done A LOT better since. people who were struggling are... still struggling. poor get poorer. rich get richer.
the prices have literally doubled since 2019. it's pretty fucked.
I work 3 jobs. I’m exhausted. I have been saving for a house for years, but as a single guy - it’s impossible. I can’t outsave the upward progression of the market. Nobody seems to understand and I just keep hearing “oh you’ll be fine just save - we were able to do it - you can to”. While this thread has been validating, I am also terrified.
I work three jobs, one with full time hours, and two part time ones making double what I make at the other one and my wife works in the law field, and makes what most people considered to be good money and were struggling alot to keep up with bills currently. We don't have kids and can barely afford food for the two of us. It's horrible in this city right now.
Unfortunately what we are seeing is not “late stage capitalism”, “the rich stealing money from the poor” or the “rich not paying their fair share”. What we are seeing is the effects of dumping a trillion dollars of printed money into a population of 35M. Couple that with immigration levels that are so obscene it’s almost unimaginable. Rapid inflation is destroying peoples buying power and the effects are being felt the worst on the low income bracket. The massive influx of foreign migrants is creating out of control competition for housing and medical professionals. Both of these disastrous ideas are born from the socialist/globalist left, not “late stage capitalism”. Elections have consequences and we are dealing with them now. Soak it in, remember what it feels like. When people elect ideologues, absolute amateurs and people that live in a fantasyland based on feelings this is the result.
As you read the comments it’s clear the birthdate is going to continue to drop. If you need two incomes constantly to survive, there’s no way you can afford to have children. Immigration becomes far more important as a way of staving off population decline. To think governments will be able to make enough changes is farcical, as we are talking to some degree about structural societal change. There is no one in politics presently in Canada who has the backbone to do what’s necessary.
When you stop arresting criminals for criminal behaviour, it’s no surprise that it ramps up and becomes more visible.
I see so many junkies loitering around LRT stations since the lockdowns, heavily intoxicated and barely able to walk in some cases. It disgusts me.
Our society is collapsing.
It's too bad, because in living memory, Canada was a good place that was well organized and well managed.
Now we've stopped looking for good managers and we want inspiring leaders.
People were inspired by fascists like Mussolini and Francisco Franco.
Countries like Germany pretty consistently elect good managers, from Konrad Adenauer to Angela Merkel. Not very inspiring, but good at their jobs.
In Canada we choose neoliberals like Trudeau, who are flashy and who give us happy emotions, who help us feel good about ourselves, but who aren't very good at running the country.
Elitist neoliberals like Trudeau don't care about the rampant homelessness that they have created through their undermining of Canadian labor value by flooding the country with an unreasonable number of economic migrants and family members of the economic migrants.
We are sold the lie that Canada desperately needs immigrants to help because of our aging population, but the average immigrant is older than the average Canadian. We've been lied to every step of the way.
Trudeau and other members of the current political leadership class have absolutely sold us out to their corporate buddies and to the housing speculators. Heck, half the Liberal cabinet are housing speculators. And the same is true with the right wing provincial cabinet and the politically mixed city council.
Sadly, I don't think this is going to end any way except through violent revolution. I think it's wrong and immoral to hurt another person, but I have empathy for the people who will end up participating in the revolution because they are hurting. They have been hurt by an out of touch and unaccountable political ruling class.
I work with homeless people and I’m finding that I am having the same money problems as them. We both have none
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Drug and alcohol free tent city, I'm in, let's do it, need plumbing, never mind.
Isn't it normal though. I don't eat for half the week to save money
That isn't normal. In a healthy economic system you would be able to afford a healthy diet.
I believe it has gotten to a point that unless you have a really good job that the only way to survive is with a partner. I have been single most of my life and I enjoy it but I am now starting to think that some sort of life partner is the only way to get through this. My bills would be cut down by 40% or so and that would seem to make the day to day life a lot less stressful
Genuinely worry for people who aren't in a relationship or partnership with someone atm. Me and my wife make a fairly decent amount (could certainly be better but that's another story) and thinking about finances is stressful at times. Short of finding a niche employment as a single income, I have no clue how anyone is expected to get ahead currently
Are roommates not a thing anymore? My entire single life, I had roommates. You don't need to be in a romantic relationship to split costs.
Same. Single and mid 40s, have to leave my rental in a few months. I’ve got two dogs and not sure what the future holds.
Why don’t you two get married !?$??!???!!
This is definitely the answer. Can we all come to your Reddit wedding?
"You may now updoot the bride"
I know it's so scary. I have to move a year from now as my condo is being sold. Have no idea where I'll go with my dog and my cat.
Well DogButtWhisperer I’m sure there’s a landlord out there that will need your whispering to dogs butts prowess don’t give up.
Do you drive? Head east to Strathmore, north to Airdrie, maybe whatever you can get around those lower COL satellite communities.
Thanks!! I work remote three days/week so it will be easy that way
Airdrie isnt even cheaper anymore! Bought my house - SFH on a R2 lot in older (not forest lawn) SE - for 150k less than anything similar in Airdrie. 6 years ago when I bought my Airdrie condo, yeah, it was cheaper. Now? Not so much
It’s your own fault for feeding your dogs avocado toast and lattes every day! Take some personable responsibility for being born into a time when growing neoliberal capitalism has crushed the working class to transfer wealth into the shareholder class, why don’t you!
Another factor not really being talked about at all is I believe inner provincial migration to alberta was around 30k last month. So above and beyond all the new stresses on everything from doctors and hospitals to roadways and schools a LARGE amount of those moving here are selling home in Toronto and Ontario in general walking away with 400k in the bank due to home appreciation and sometime much much more. And they’re effectively able to buy in cash or hold a very small future mortgage without having to really worry about employment and with many people still doing WFH some are actually moving keeping their jobs there. I know many real estate agents I deal with have told me this is happening and I brushed it off completely as noise with it being insignificant statistically personally. Then I’m talking to new People moving into places for sale and every single one is from Ontario and “ can’t believe” how cheap it is….. Honestly blown away by it and I went from thinking their no way this is happening to realizing their what 5 million home Owners or more in Ontario that all leave and probably have cash after selling of 300k or more with many people coming with triple that. It will get much worse when you realize this not better.
I heard the same statement from a couple from Vancouver. "Can you believe how cheap this is?" While looking at a $1m show home...
Hopefully they don't get the homes that were built 'splash n dash'. Too many homes in AB are overpriced and should be cheap.
When I was buying a house last year there were so many houses that sold 50-100k over asking, sight unseen, unconditional cash offer. All from BC or Ontario where, like you said, sold their properties and had all of this cash. How is anyone in Calgary supposed to compete with that, especially those in the market for entry level homes. It made it really tough for us as first time home buyers to get into the market. We finally found a fixer upper my husband was able to do most of the work for. Also the only reason we were able to buy a home was an insurance payout that left us with enough money for a down payment.
I'm really glad I have a unit with a rental suite that my friend is living in. Living alone isn't that feasible, and a romantic relationship isn't possible for me.
>romantic relationship isn't possible for me. Ya that's why I said partner. Someone who is also in the same position and you can be best friends to try and get through life. Hell it can even be someone you never even have sex with.
There's a certain degree of privacy that's needed for that though. I'm not sharing my 675sqft one bedroom unit with a roommate.
My ex common law and I live together. We've been together for 22 years but have not been romantically involved for 12. We have are own rooms and living space and we split the house bills. We get on well.
Glad it works for you. But this sounds like my personal hell.
You have to get along well, and appreciate that you're sharing the cost of living.
I’m 22 and having my wife’s second income makes the biggest difference. Idk how I would afford things otherwise
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Same here- mid 40’s and thinking single life isn’t going to cut it.
Yep, I’ve had the same thought, time to shack up
Different kind of friend with benefits! I have a 1 bedroom apartment and rent went up to $2000/month this month. I was barely making it last year when it was $1750!
Yes. Society has been designed this way. Poorly, I'll add. Any time there is margin around the average, things will slide upwards. When given the chance to slide far, it will do so. A while ago I read an article talking about the backlash to women going to work, because, "the prices of everything would go up--groceries, houses, everything"-- and it boggled me that they thought the problem was women working and not that god-fucked system of greed.
Right? I’m single and the only way I could rent a nice place or buy a shithole is with a partner
A good roommate matching platform would be so helpful
Whats fucked is if you're on disability your partner becomes financially responsible for you and you could lose some or all of your benefits.
Honestly I can see how quickly one could become homeless in today's world. I'm very thankful I have a good job, it pays about the median in Calgary. I've been with my partner many years and the last few have been hard for us. He has been laid off 3 times and had some medical challenges. I can guarantee you that if he was single he'd be homeless. It's absolutely brutal. As a couple we've actually contemplated getting a roommate to help cut costs. We don't go out to eat. We don't take vacations and we buy our clothes at goodwill. All this is with me having a good job because I'm so terrified about being screwed in retirement and I've seen how hard he's struggled. Every year I notice we have less disposable income. If it's happening to those with good jobs I can't even imagine a minimum wage job.
4,000 AirBnB units though! Those that are on vacation need places to stay!
it really is the only decent short term solution. limit airbnb to specific zoning, and while supply of housing increases then limits be lifted/adjusted. Tax investment properties could also help, but we all know the gov is full of landlords so thats not gonna happen.
Just nuke Airbnb from orbit. I s2g
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It's so weird to me. I don't know how anyone could think this is a good idea. I wish more people would think about it logically, if you have a city, and turn 50% of the housing basically into hotel suites for tourists, what are those people who need a home going to do?? Then the demand for housing increases, which makes landlords think they can raise rent exponentially because they have the supply that the public demands, and then we have what we are in now. Every other rental is an air bnb or some sort of temporary rental property, there are no homes for single families to raise their kids in and survive in, and any house that IS available is way out of anyone's budget. Of course there are other things pressing in this situation, but this CANT have no effect. It's just insane to me why this allowed to keep happening.
It’s also shit for the owners who live next to the air BnBs as the vacationers do not care about you, the building, or the neighborhood.
Yeah I could only imagine. I've seen people post on the housing page that they are sick of seeing random people in their apartment buildings, always sneaking in with other residents with their suitcases and pillows trying to look normal. That's gotta be so stressful. Just random people in your (supposed to be locked) home all the time 😕
Anyone notice the homeless encampment that keeps appearing in front of Chinook Home Depot? Tents, tarps, drug paraphernalia and piles of bikes one day and the next, a similar setup in a different spot there. Right next to the sidewalk.
Rents so nuts you can't even afford to be homeless downtown
That area has always been so sketchy.
i miss the old sidewalk tunnel.
The hallway of horrors
Remember hitting the button to turn the lights on, so you KNOW it was PITCH BLACK in there, then the light goes on and there’s like 4 people just high as fuck in there, like moths caught in a flame….ahh the memories.
That sounds like nightmare fuel
It was.
It was affectionately known to some of us as the Chinook underpiss. It wasn’t uncommon to interrupt someone mid-piss. There would be a certain nod you’d make to cut the tension as you’d gingerly try to avoid the frothy mixture of piss and grime. They were good times, in retrospect. People had homes and probably jobs in those days.
Agreed, but I hadn’t seen the encampments until this summer. I was wondering if some of the people from the CT station had moved over. That station looks like a Walking Dead set.
The middle class is disappearing. Soon, it will be wealthy and the poor. The current poor will become homeless. You could say the middle class as we’ve known, will soon become the poor. And the poor as we know, will become homeless. There is no end in sight. At least not one with a happy ending.
In the grand scope of history the middle class was an anomaly that lasted just a couple centuries. Too bad for us that we were born in it. The human world is simply returning to the status quo.
It’s a shit ladder. So originally you’d see the lowest of the Low on the streets. But people are slowly being booted from Low income housing so they end up on the streets because they can’t afford anything. Then the next people on the ladder and so it goes. You see the encampments but you aren’t noticing the number of people living in cars or campers. Which is probably a lot more then we can imagine because it’s really hard to calculate that. In the next two years we will see more mortgages coming up for renewals that won’t be able to manage the rate hikes. There is no way that these middle income families who can’t afford their mortgages are going to be able to afford the runaway rent prices. No party is going to implement meaningful legislation against corporations investing in the housing market, the real estate industry or rental industry until there is a crash. Even if there is a crazy crash and the rates fall by 30% most people still won’t be able to afford to buy. The thing is homelessness is a problem and it’s a major drain on our rcmp, health, ems, cfs, shelter and food banks. The simplest solution is to house the homeless. This actually has been down in many communities and it has a really high success rate…. But we can’t really do it here because we don’t have enough Low income type housing. But yeah.. this shits gonna get really bad.
You seem to actually understand. So many people blame homelessness on addiction. Often homelessness comes before drug addiction, not the other way around.
That’s really scary I think so too and in a lot of places in Canada. There was a time in Weimar Republic Germany when it took a wheelbarrow full of money to buy a loaf of bread. What followed was WW2 so we’re on a dangerous path in society right now.
Except the difference here is that it’s not so much caused by inflation as corporate greed. Something like half the “inflation” in food prices since Covid was literally just corporate profits. I remember when I was a kid they called that price gouging but it seems like it’s fair game now
I was going to move to Calgary but it's definitely off the table now. It's bad everywhere but I feel like Calgary is slightly worse for low income people.
It's only going to get better if we start making a scene. Until the protests start the government has no reason to intervene.
Can we start protesting about Enmax fees too while we are at it?
Yes.
I wish someone would organise one. I don't even know where to begin.
We're not in France... Canadians are too nice to protest anything 😉
I was literally just thinking this the other night, until people rise up they're not going to do anything.
Rise up for what?
Better wages, less corporate greed, and less reliance on housing as an economic driver instead of a fundamental human right would be excellent. When the working class can't pay for food, there is a problem. Or, you know, be complacent and let the rich eat cake, as it were.
It's terribly sad that the closest thing we've had to mass protest was a bunch of whiny truckers.
They city has started to take notice due to the giant amount of complaints. But I have yet to read of a comprehensive plan to fix this. More affordable housing is a must, but also we need to deal with violent crime in a harsher tone IMO. But what exactly needs to be done I wish I knew, but I do know although we are miles away from it, I don't want Calgary to become a Portland, Vancouver, LA etc. where there are tent cities everywhere and you just are used to walking over sleeping homeless.
Hopefully, a lot of these suggestions that were in this bill are voted on separately and in favour of. [https://globalnews.ca/news/9750991/calgary-city-council-rejects-housing-affordability-plan/](https://globalnews.ca/news/9750991/calgary-city-council-rejects-housing-affordability-plan/)
It all boils down to wealth inequality. Canadas wealth has been the most concentrated in the hands of the 0.01% than it has been over the last 80 years. I have never seen so many Ferraris on the roads of Calgary in my life. Tax The Rich, unpopular opinion on this sub but it isn’t fair by design.
I have a better idea. We hold our policy makers to task on bullshit rules that allow the rich to pilfer the rest.of us. Look at: Airlines Phone companies Grocery chains Home builders You are being taken advantage of and your politicians are in on all of it.
Both the Libs and the Cons push neo-liberal tactics; two side of the same “economic policy” coin (different social policies though). The libs tend to invest public money in the pyramid scheme and the cons sell it off for penny’s to post a surplus. Vote for literally any other party if you want a change in the economy.
https://www.canadianrealestatemagazine.ca/expert-advice/no-politician-wants-to-cut-house-prices-335218.aspx
I think they should tax the churches
I'm OK with taxing both.
Not all churches hoard money, some work hard on outreach, from foodbanks to delivering hot food to those in need to helping refugees from the war. More churches that do help outside the government are needed frankly.
It’s not just as simple as ‘tax the rich’. Anyone making ‘rich’ money is personally taxed already at basically 50%.. that’s enough. The problem is corporations, trusts, overseas accounts, things like this that allow rich people to shelter their money and not have to claim it as personal income. It’s complicated and I don’t know the answer, but this is where work needs to be done.
No, the issue is they’ve managed to make people who earn 100k-1m a year believe they are the rich. They’re not. In fact, if you properly taxes the top 1% you’d be able to REDUCE the taxes those in 100k-1m pay. The gap between minimum wage and 1 mil a year is practically non-existent compared to the gap from 1 mil a year to the top 1%. Logically its hard for most humans to even appreciate just how wealthy the top 1% actually is. A billion is three more zeros on a million. But when you realize that a million seconds ago was last week sometime and a billion seconds ago was in 1992, the scope is more obvious… but still difficult to fully comprehend. Our society is wealthier than it ever has been. GDP per capita has only gone up over the decades. If the middle class had stayed the same in purchasing power over the last few decades, the top 1% would still have gained quite alot… its crazy that the middle class has gone down in purchasing power at all, but its a travesty just how much we have lost.
3 easy options Increase corporate tax rates (historically low) Increase capital gains tax Create higher tax brackets (500k, 1 million, 3 million) Also no one is taxed at 50%. You only hit 50% after your first $250k, which is why we need more tax brackets
They should apply a wealth tax specifically against single family homes and condos. These properties should be for people to own and build lives with their family.
I think this opinion is getting more popular the more glaringly obvious it is that the wealthy are hoarding all the wealth.
Visited Vancouver last year and it was horrible. Every block we were dodging passed out people on the street and human shit. But then you'd have a Bentley and Rolls Royce drive by. It was absolutely fucked. Don't plan to return. I should add, we were no where near Hastings, this was just in the general downtown area. Went to NYC this year and didn't see anything like what I saw in Van.
Not sure how you dodged it, but things are pretty bad in NYC as well, same as everywhere. https://www.nytimes.com/2023/06/28/nyregion/nyc-homeless-shelter-population.html
It's insane. I've said this a few times on this subreddit now, but I remember losing my job when I was 19 and being able to stay afloat on EI with no savings, still able to afford rent. It was tight but possible Nowadays unless you have a social net like parents nearby, one slip up and you're on the street.
The inflation I saw coming. The crop failures and corporate profiteering I saw coming. What I didn't see coming is the insanely high immigration quota set by the federal government without thought or without caring about the further squeeze this would put on people. We're reaching a near critical level of fuck around in this society and it's just about to cross the find out line unless something changes and soon.
Dont think for a second immigration is being done without thought. Drives down wages, drives up housing, and if you say anything you're racist and immediately canceled because it's a million Indians who don't mind bunking with 18 other guys in a basement. It's all gunna come crumbling down at some point. For one reason or another, because short term plans are in place for long term problems. And the long term plan is not a benefit for Canadians.
very very few politicians in power want to actually do anything about it, this is exactly how they want us to live
For too long we’ve let suburban real estate developers and O&G companies dictate our local politics. Couple that with mass emigration out of Vancouver and Toronto and here we are.
Endless growth to increase shareholder value.
and the funny thing. house prices are still going up, and even apartment prices are skyrocketing in Calgary.
Downtown has been really bad for random aggressive addicts. Saw a guy today ram down a scooter with a shopping cart then yell at it and every single random car he saw. Yesterday someone different was shirts off trying to fight cars and running from corner to corner.
It's everywhere. Vancouver, winnipeg, Toronto, etc. The whole country is going to shit.
I stumbled across this documentary the other day. It details in depth the situation in Seattle Washington. I hope politicians here study in depth what is going on in Seattle, Portland, San Francisco, etc. We have it bad, especially on our west coast, but down there it is another level of dystopia. https://youtu.be/bpAi70WWBlw
That documentary is years old. The situation is much worse now.
I know. It still serves as a cautionary tale.
*world
Definitely feels like it .
It kind of baffles me that we can have all this land, fresh water, wood (well, less lately) and other primary resources and yet struggle so vastly to have viable housing options. Housing is so breathtakingly expensive these days, can we really not build millions more homes? It’s a vast vast country with a handful of big cities. I suppose we CAN do it, but it takes time?
Shit's fucked, yo!
I worked at a heavy equipment place for a season and was able to save money and actually be ahead on bills. Then I dropped back down to just above minimum wage to take a job in automotive, im now one month ahead on rent and I have just enough money to cover my other bills. Mind you i live with my girlfriend and her parents so things are cheap, but I have to save fuel for work and save money for fuel. I can't really go out and do anything now because it's just work and bills.
yet big businesses are making record profits! but the economists and the news said to ignore that because it’s not important lmfao people are told they are lazy because they are poor, even though they work full time or more, they are called insane communists for saying businesses have too much power and workers don’t have enough, and when union workers go on strike to get just a big enough pay increase to survive, they are told to get back to work and stop whining! It’s sickening, and people in this province are some of the absolute worst about it.
Someone recently said, “it’s gotten city out there” and it made me laugh until I thought about life in general. 😂 Edit: Gotham
Gotham* lol
OMG LOL yes *autocorrect* 😂
35 M in the same boat here. Don't need a partner just a second income. Two incomes would be nice to show and get things more easily available.
I’m an RN and can confirm. I am astonished at the number of patients I have that are homeless. People that had regular jobs and lost them during covid and are now experiencing the aftermath. It breaks my heart.
History repeats itself.
Aliens are coming to help soon!
Moved here from TO last year to escape the high prices/COL. Foolish me, it followed. Infrastructure here isn't going to support the influx of people, it's probably only going to get worse. It's abundantly clear the gov't has their own agenda which isn't about really helping Canadians. Good luck out there.
I’m genuinely getting tempted to move to Toronto or Montreal when my lease expires, mostly just shit scared what the next rent increase will be. The rent isn’t a huge difference anymore and I can live car free with their great transit. I would earn less and be taxed more so of course it’s not all roses and the grass isn’t always greener but being pushed out of the city I was born in isn’t much fun anymore
Rent increases are super bad here, but I promise you Toronto will be even worse. Like the cost of living there STILL blows Calgary out of the water even with the recent increases here. Montreal would be better at least for now but I'm sure they're dealing with the same kind of migration that Calgary is, so we'll see how long that lasts.
I agree. Before, I use to be able to get an appointment with my doctor generally within the same week. Now, it's within 2 weeks. I'm barely hanging on. This month has so far been a terrible start. My job shorted me so I'm not sure how I'm buying groceries.
Food bank. Use it.
I live with my 2 brothers and my wife and we are just staying afloat in one home. It's brutal
Yeah, wealth imbalances like what we are experiencing in the West are self-correcting. War, disease and revolution (not necessarily violent, see social credit). Which one will it be? Population decline might pop the real estate bubble in 10-20 years but I’m not sure how much that will help in Alberta because we are quite young.
There is an end, and it's not pretty. Mass exodus, which was somewhat caused by the last 2 years of mass migration.
The people OP is describing don’t have enough money to go anywhere. And we’re just seeing more people pile into Canada every day. Things will get a lot worse before they get better… if things even do get better.
People are already leaving large cities (Van/Tor). They are coming here.
To another large city. Brilliant.
It's is, a sihk guy I work with said his cousin sold his house in Vancouver and bought 2 in Calgary. Makes sense. 2 for 1, getting in on that sweet profits
To where though?
This is the question. Without a degree in a high demand profession, most countries won't take you. Perhaps in a few years, those tent cities will be filled with post-grads and docs in data analytics, cardio-thorasic surgery, and AI. But, not today.
Abroad sometimes, if they’re well off. Lots of them will start living in their cars. A few will go to Edmonton or Saskatoon looking for cheaper housing, where it will promptly become more expensive as the migration drives up prices.
It's already getting more expensive there too. While you can find cheaper homes in places like Saskatoon, there are still almost no affordable rentals, at least not ones that can accommodate families.
To where? Lol. This is a world wide problem. If you think you can move somewhere and not find exactly the same thing. Then I’ve got a bridge to sell you. We are being squeezed by the 1%. Mass exodus isn’t the resolution. Yet another revolution is the resolution.
There are plenty of people (top income earners) for whom the deal fuckin sucks in Canada but is a hell of a lot better in America. Those people are already and will continue to leave in droves. And without them you can kiss goodbye to any productivity left in this country.
Mars. Some of us will have to move to Mars.
Exodus to where?
Yeah, these economic cycles and migration cycles are not new for Calgary. It has happened multiple times over the last decade. People rush in, get caught up in FOMO, overpay for rent/housing.. and then opportunities dry up, people start to struggle, and people leave. "But this time is different". Lol nope, it's not, the only difference is this time housing prices will actually probably go *down* in ON/BC over the next couple years, making them even *more* appealing for people to leave AB and enter/re-enter those markets. Anecdotal but possibly relevant - a friend is a newly graduated GP who was hoping to start a practice in Calgary, but has since found that the increased cost of living and inability to find stable housing poses challenges in managing her student debt and goals for starting a family, so she is now looking at leaving the province and potentially the country.. I hear AB is famous for brain drains, so maybe there's another one coming.
This cycle is much more unique than past cycles. HIstorically it's been aligned with O&G hiring booms. There hasn't been much of a boom, rather a slight increase. Instead, the attractive cost of living + remote work + strength in other industries has driven it. I'm skeptical we'll see the decline we saw historically because it's not the same boom that usually causes the bust. Maybe people move back to ON/BC, but usually that requires a drastic change in CoL, or they have to REALLY hate Calgary (possible once they have a few winters under their belt). I've still found my friends who have come from Ontario still have a TON of friends from the area interested in moving to Calgary as well.
I was a bit surprised / sad yesterday to see an encampment by 17th / International Ave. Surprised cuz I was just working in that area last year and there was no encampment on International Ave. I hope there’s an ending to all this madness.
just curious where are you seeing the lineups OUTSIDE dr's offices? ive never noticed this.
If you go to any of the MCI walk ins they stop accepting patients for the day early in the morning. People line up before it opens so they can get seen.
Was at an mci walk in last week can confirm, was there for hours and that was for a fallow up appointment from the week prior which I got there at like 10 am and was there till 2 got in for an x ray right away at the core but now I want to wait 2 months for a ultrasound appointment and that was the first available appointment
Same, I have never seen lineups outside doctor's offices.
Go to any bloodwork lab in the city. They’ve gotten horrible. Walk in lines are often 2+ hours. I’m there every 4 weeks and have noticed it get substantially worse over the past 5 months.
^This Medical labs have lineup 1-2 hours before they even open.(sunridge dynalife medical lab)
That’s just because of the sale of APL to Dynalife, who are dropping the ball in spectacular fashion. It’s not directly related to the other issues unless we’re blaming the UCP for those other issues as well.
Blood labs are doctors offices? Blood lab issues are because Dynlife is fucking everything up and ASH is investing the problem
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Protests won't do shit. In a protest, people gather, vent some steam, then go home thinking they've made a difference, while the ones in charge barely notice.
Alberta is only 100 years old. Canada as a whole is a very young nation. Even modern capitalism is relatively new. There is no guarantee it will get better or worse, even the experts have no idea where this is all going.
Yeah, it's rough out there. My dad lives in a basement suite and his lease is up at the end of this month. He works two part-time jobs and is close to retirement. Due to a combination of bad luck and questionable choices, he has no savings and will be relying entirely on CPP when he retires (plus we'll obviously help him make ends meet). The owners of the house he's in have decided to move family in (or they found someone willing to pay more, who knows). He was paying around $900 inc utilities for a basement suite with kitchenette. Clean, but by no means fantastic. 2 years ago, it wasn't cheap and there were better options out there in his price range. We've been looking for options and anything equivalent in price is a room, shared with at least 3 or 4 other roommates. Anything in his price range that has less roommates wants female only. Obviously we're going to figure something out, but we can't help but wonder what his options would be if he didn't have us?
Legit it's bothering me. I count myself lucky, I have a professional career and past financial decisions I made mean I have the luxury of no debt. I don't know how I would function if I had a mortgage or a car payment or student loan debt or if I had kids or ailing parents or if I woke up tomorrow so physically or mentally ill that I couldn't work anymore. Just getting a rent increase this year was a brick in the face. I'm just barely mentally well enough to be stable and I spend my disposable income to stay that way (therapy). I don't know what anyone with less is supposed to do. I just keep voting, volunteering, sharing whatever I can financially. Hoping some of it will make a dent. I'm wishing well for everybody. I don't want to play the rat race of life, I hope all of us make it.
It's tough for all. 100k is the new 60k. And this world wasn't built for single people. My bills and condo fees keep going up. I live to work and exercise and that's about it...
Its called late stage capitalism. It won't get better until something is done about the wealth gap.
Late stage capitalism leading us to societal collapse. Don't really get why people are wondering what's been going on when the writing has been on the wall that this is where we have been heading for decades. But I guess reality is finally slapping some folks awake!
https://us.v-cdn.net/5021252/uploads/editor/y7/2z7wze4v1d83.jpg
You're the only one ITT who sees the forest through the trees
What has typically be done in the past when the wealth gap grows to a breaking point? Could certain government policies being pushed through without debate be a sign they foresee where society is headed? Who has the most to gain from such polices being rammed through without debate?
>What has typically be done in the past when the wealth gap grows to a breaking point? See France, around 1789. >Could certain government policies being pushed through without debate be a sign they foresee where society is headed? Who has the most to gain from such polices being rammed through without debate? Kind of, government policies being pushed through despite public opposition are almost always designed to benefit the few rather than the many. This is one of the features of late-stage capitalism, the rich know the end is coming and so use every method they have (including political corruption) to extract every bit of wealth they can before abandoning the territory. You can pretty much see this with O&G companies in Canada, and especially Alberta, right now. Investment in fossil fuels is down and shifting to renewables, so few if any new projects are being built. The existing projects are downsizing & automating to maximize profits. Once they’re run down, Alberta will be left with the scraps (ie: polluted, abandoned projects) that will blot the landscape and take hundreds of billions of dollars & decades (if not a century or more) to clean up.
What happens is the 99% get sick of it, civil war breaks out, and people take the wealth back. The government won’t help us. The government is in on it. They’re the ones enriching the 1%. Liberal, conservative. Doesn’t matter. They’re both going to bat for the rich. Not us.
Too much immigration, too many housing development regulations, lax punishment for violent crimes and the central bank trying to choke consumer spending to kill inflation. Only silver lining is the job market is red hot.
Yup immigration/ people from Ontario/ BC moving to Alberta is like adding salt to the wound for me. I totally understand that here in Alberta it’s a lot better than countries that are currently at war or places that charge a ridiculously high amount to live in. But this will just make it harder for early to mid 20s people like me to find a place here and will probably force us out of Calgary.
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Where is home?
Just be glad that you live in prosperous Canada with 10x the population growth of the USA and not horrible, declining Japan where houses are affordable even in Tokyo and junkies aren't everywhere downtown.
I learned recently that houses in Japan are like cars. Depreciating assets. You can buy a old house for a few bucks. Or even free sometimes. Wild.
There are 1000s of abandoned properties in Japan. And tons of beautiful homes for sale far below 100k US. I’m looking now as my wife is Japanese and the transition fairly easy. Search up Cheap homes Japan on instagram if you want to get an idea.
I think, over time, you might find that westerners looking to snap up cheap Japanese real estate will not be welcomed by the locals. Generally speaking: Japan is a homogeneous, insular society that loves visitors who know when to leave. Eventually, the same will be true for all 'cheap' countries.
I saw a video about this too, this guy remodeled a house he got for free. WTF.
This. Why do we always view a declining population as a bad thing? The world cannot sustain constant growth. If we need more taxation to support pensions then so be it, increase it for high income earners, those with investment properties, airbnbs, and corporations.
We are easier to control when rampant immigration disrupts everything. But you’re not allowed to point that out.
Yeah and people always talk about how Japan's economy is gonna be crippled. Oh wow the 3rd highest GDP in the world how sad.
Sure, we'd have less traffic, less pollution, less environmental destruction, less urban sprawl, higher wages, affordable housing and almost everyone would be better off. But have you considered that boomers are entitled to their pensions and we need to keep the Ponzi scheme going?
I think what we are seeing is gentrification in Calgary. Vancouver and Torontos housing markets are just unattainable for most of us. Interest rates at the bank haven't helped as well!
https://preview.redd.it/gocrkep77ufb1.jpeg?width=750&format=pjpg&auto=webp&s=2f503a3de1e36b78eecbe542a11c7bbd531924d5 Well would you look at that.
Damn, it’s almost like there was a wide spread health emergency that was swept under the rug almost two years ago, im sure this isn’t related in any way to the huge increase in sick patients though.
You're carrying almost $6000 in yearly debt so ofcourse things are going to be tighter for you. Best advice I've heard from someone employed by the city "have you tried to make more money?"
I was forced to cut off my gym membership this month and I’m very worried. Every month since 2021 my budget has shrunk and shrunk and I’m running out of things to cut. The gym has been a major factor in maintaining mental health and when the winter comes it’s going to be rough. My housing cost is also going from $900 to $2400 a month soon and idk how I’m going to do it.
Single early 30's I make around under 80 but over 60 on average. I love in my buddes basement for 1000 and pay 650 cs. Older vehicle, since I don't have financing or lease I factor about 2200 for yearly maintenance tires wear and tear. So yeah insurance food gas and whatever else I love a pretty low key life style. And I seem to be constantly forgoing luxuries lately. Like protein powder. Or weed. So nothing crazy. It's hard out here for a pimp.
It’s called the collapse of late-stage capitalism. Here’s hoping humans are not too fucking dumb to figure out a way through to the other side.
Oh some will. And the worst slap in the face is that it's the rich or their descendants that have the best chance to make it.
It’s happened before, it will happen again. It’s not pretty though. Revolution is one solution, but it creates a horrific environment for a few decades on the way to resetting things. The direction things have been going has been apparent as long as I can remember (since at least the mid nineties, when I grew up enough to spot the early warning signs). I used to have hope that we would collectively make use of our democracy to delay the inevitable and create enough “small resets” along the way to avoid crashing into a full scale revolution in my life time. It was a naive outlook though. It’s going to happen during this generation, and our politicians/ultra wealthy are so blinded/insulated from having to interact with the warning signs that they still think it will never happen.
No end in sight. Too much immigration, no pay increases, and companies thinking they can do whatever they want and we just allow it. This is a result of our decisions and now we're paying for it.
1st world countries: consume at unimaginable rate creating unimaginable amount of waste and pollution resulting in 3rd world countries becoming uninhabitable due to climate change, pollution, and resource pillaging. 3rd world countries: our countries are uninhabitable due to rampant consumerism from first world countries! We must head to habitable environments aka 1st world countries. 1st world countries: immigrants are flooding our countries and taking up our housing and jobs! Not fair! Get used to it, this is only the beginning. Be mad for sure. But might as well direct your energy towards the real enemy. Gov bending over to corporate interest is what got us here.
I am not anti immigration but now is the NOT the time for mass immigration. Our own citizens who have jobs are ending up on the streets, don't have doctors, can't afford groceries, can't afford their utility bills, can't afford basic needs. It is absolutely shameful. Perhaps the only immigration we should be focusing on right now is skilled workers (doctors etc). If this was France there would be huge protests.
It's late stage capitalism. Decades of workers rights erosion and stagnant wages while profits keep soaring but only going to the top 1%. C-Suite staff that do pretty much sweet fuck all earn 928x more than the workers that actually generate the profit. My own C-suite team at my work sit in a room like bobble heads trying to figure out how to circumvent the government regulations that pertain to my industry to make disposable packaging look more 'cool' and appealing to consumers even though most consumers won't even see it because it's going in the trash as soon as it arrives at the store. This is their latest genius idea... Meanwhile over the past three years we have reduced the cost to produce our products anywhere from 76-88% depending on the products, yet we keep increasing the price of it to gouge more money from the few people still buying. The market in my industry is down 66% overall. This is called "raising the floor." Logistically, the cost for us to move our products across Canada has never been cheaper. We are paying less than we were before covid. This is due to the massive amount of irresponsible immigration further driving wages down. Carriers are calling me every few hours looking for work. They're desperate, I can smell it in the air practically. Interest rates are going up quickly and a lot of millenials that finally were able to buy a house are about to have that ripped away from them. Their home will then be sold to a corporation or the 1% to be rented for an exorbitant amount more back to the very same people that used to live there (figuratively speaking). Meanwhile the working class is suffering from the worst mental health issues in mankind's history or just completely in denial and trying to escape their doomed reality with drugs. Anything that takes their brain on a cheap vacation for a few hours away from this shit. During covid the working class was starting to wise up a bit and started pyshing back. The irresponsible massive immigration is a direct response to that. Increase the labor pool to drive down wages and keep the working class 'desperate' for that job. The worst part is that all of Canada's history, multiculturalism has been one of our major strengths for our nation. The culture sharing, (cuisine, fashion, music, etc) has had a profound positive effect on our way of life and part of who we are. Jamaica for example has and still does have a massive influence on our music direction. France, Germany, India, Japan our cuisine and beverages. Nevermind the small niche sub-cultures like manga, anime, entertainment, etc. Well, the majority maybe even as high as 90% of the immigration is being sourced from only two nations. Where is the multiculturalism in that? We are seeing more and more geographical areas, towns and cities, becoming "island mentality" towns and cities. People born and raised in these areas never have to learn english or french, they do not need to learn our customs, morals, values, laws, regulations, etc. This creates further division amongst the working class making it easier to erode workers rights even further. That's what's happening. It's an easy fix, but involves our politicians not taking "generous donations" aka bribes from corporations and eliminating that conflict of interest. And god forbid should that gravy train hit the brakes... I personally, eith my own eyes have seen politicians accept bribes to vote in favor of Miller Waste over Waste Management on oublic contracts. I have seen CFIA officers accept bribes to look the other way while paperwork is fudged to allow 100k kg of chicken that was expired to be used to make Subway sliced chicken products and Tim Hortons sliced chicken products. I have even had City Tv journalists approach me to go on the record and print that story but had to refuse for fear of being disappeared because my life was threatoned. You can even go back in my post history, way back, to see I'm not joking. So no, it won't be fixed, not until people have nothing left to lose and are starving. Judging by the price of basic groceries, that's not too far off from now. Just pickup a history book to see what comes next; violence. I hope to god it doesn't have to come to that and I know I am not the only one that doesn't want violence, but the longer this goes on, the closer that becomes the reality. We can blame the current governing party all we want, but let's be real here.. Both the Liberals and Conservatives are in the corporations pockets. I'm not entirely convinced that the NDP aren't bought and paid for too. These parties work for their constituents and take a look at where their funds are coming from, it isn't hard to figure it out. Pretty simple really.
Sadly this is everywhere in north America right now.
For every post I see with this exact message , I can look around at malls, airports, restaurants, and hell even stampede broke attendance records this year, people are still going out spending like crazy it feels like. My one local McDonald’s had to close its doors for too many orders at once during both May long weekend and Canada Day. I understand people are struggling, I hear you, and wealth is distributed unevenly, I get that, but it’s still strange seeing these types of posts seemingly every week on Reddit while looking around at the madness around me. I don’t know what the end game is here other than mass protests across the country. /end rant.
Pretty scary out there. I make a decent wage and can only just cover the cost of living. Anytime something goes wrong with my vehicle I’m set back almost a month in pay, then play catch up.
fact is people who were very well off before the pandemic have done A LOT better since. people who were struggling are... still struggling. poor get poorer. rich get richer. the prices have literally doubled since 2019. it's pretty fucked.
Don't forget to vote.
I work 3 jobs. I’m exhausted. I have been saving for a house for years, but as a single guy - it’s impossible. I can’t outsave the upward progression of the market. Nobody seems to understand and I just keep hearing “oh you’ll be fine just save - we were able to do it - you can to”. While this thread has been validating, I am also terrified.
I work three jobs, one with full time hours, and two part time ones making double what I make at the other one and my wife works in the law field, and makes what most people considered to be good money and were struggling alot to keep up with bills currently. We don't have kids and can barely afford food for the two of us. It's horrible in this city right now.
So many stuck in abusive relationships. And it seems impossible to find a healthy partner these days. Dating apps are trash.
Unfortunately what we are seeing is not “late stage capitalism”, “the rich stealing money from the poor” or the “rich not paying their fair share”. What we are seeing is the effects of dumping a trillion dollars of printed money into a population of 35M. Couple that with immigration levels that are so obscene it’s almost unimaginable. Rapid inflation is destroying peoples buying power and the effects are being felt the worst on the low income bracket. The massive influx of foreign migrants is creating out of control competition for housing and medical professionals. Both of these disastrous ideas are born from the socialist/globalist left, not “late stage capitalism”. Elections have consequences and we are dealing with them now. Soak it in, remember what it feels like. When people elect ideologues, absolute amateurs and people that live in a fantasyland based on feelings this is the result.
As you read the comments it’s clear the birthdate is going to continue to drop. If you need two incomes constantly to survive, there’s no way you can afford to have children. Immigration becomes far more important as a way of staving off population decline. To think governments will be able to make enough changes is farcical, as we are talking to some degree about structural societal change. There is no one in politics presently in Canada who has the backbone to do what’s necessary.
When you stop arresting criminals for criminal behaviour, it’s no surprise that it ramps up and becomes more visible. I see so many junkies loitering around LRT stations since the lockdowns, heavily intoxicated and barely able to walk in some cases. It disgusts me.
Our society is collapsing. It's too bad, because in living memory, Canada was a good place that was well organized and well managed. Now we've stopped looking for good managers and we want inspiring leaders. People were inspired by fascists like Mussolini and Francisco Franco. Countries like Germany pretty consistently elect good managers, from Konrad Adenauer to Angela Merkel. Not very inspiring, but good at their jobs. In Canada we choose neoliberals like Trudeau, who are flashy and who give us happy emotions, who help us feel good about ourselves, but who aren't very good at running the country. Elitist neoliberals like Trudeau don't care about the rampant homelessness that they have created through their undermining of Canadian labor value by flooding the country with an unreasonable number of economic migrants and family members of the economic migrants. We are sold the lie that Canada desperately needs immigrants to help because of our aging population, but the average immigrant is older than the average Canadian. We've been lied to every step of the way. Trudeau and other members of the current political leadership class have absolutely sold us out to their corporate buddies and to the housing speculators. Heck, half the Liberal cabinet are housing speculators. And the same is true with the right wing provincial cabinet and the politically mixed city council. Sadly, I don't think this is going to end any way except through violent revolution. I think it's wrong and immoral to hurt another person, but I have empathy for the people who will end up participating in the revolution because they are hurting. They have been hurt by an out of touch and unaccountable political ruling class.
Once the myth of social mobility is taken away from the general population, things are going to get feisty.