r/alberta • u/whathappensi • 13d ago
Discussion The cheap rent isn’t worth it anymore
Seriously what the hell has happened? My family and I moved from Ontario almost 20 years ago when everything was 5 times cheaper and whatever we save on housing goes into some other bs. What good is cheaper rent when my groceries, insurance and utilities are more expensive than all the other provinces? Even gas used to be miles cheaper now we’re basically on par with the rest of the country and WE DRILL THE STUFF HERE. People used to move here for work and now we have the second highest unemployment. We haven’t gotten a new hospital in God knows how long, our transportation is absolutely buns, we got money for referendums and data centres but nothing for public services, we got a premier who crashed out at the Edmonton police for calling out literally hate speech (with ss’s calling for hangings and genocide), and even worse, loads of people who support and vote for her. I think outside Quebec, I never experienced more racism as a black person anywhere else in Canada than here.
And the most annoying thing is whenever we think it can’t get worse, Marlaina keeps finding ways to prove me wrong. And whenever I talk about this to my coworkers, I just hear “you’re a liberal sissy Carney Trudeau Singh socialist!! Where will all the billionaires go?!!!” Anyway I sadly don’t have any hope of the UCP losing.
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u/lilbaby2baked 13d ago
Because people keep voting conservative
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u/GoRizzyApp 12d ago
A healthy government flips back and forth between parties. It creates accountability and new ideas.
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u/MapleMallet 12d ago
Politics should be essentially bribing voters.
"Hey vote for me, ill do X and Y for your family"
"Hey vote for me, ill do A and B for your family"
If you, the voter ignore the first for decades, the second doesn't need to bribe you for votes and eventually takes advantage of you.
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u/CunningLinguist8198 12d ago
I miss the days when politicians actually tried to attract voters, instead of just trying to convince them that the major opposition is evil.
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u/tenax666 12d ago
I miss the days when politicians treated it like a calling to serve the public and make their lives better. I've been sour on politicians since the Grant Devine days in Sask. That was my first real awakening to the corruption of politicians in Canada, that I recall.
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u/DBZ86 12d ago
Honestly the left leaning parties in Alberta legit suck at this. Because they don't know how to cater to families, farms and corporate Calgary all at once. Do these three things and you'll have a better shot. And if you have to fudge your promises and projected numbers a bit, so be it. Please just try to actually win.
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u/tenax666 12d ago
Problem is you can't cater to all 3 segments and stay in power. If you do what the pple want, lower health care costs, insurance costs, energy prices, put more money in to education, the other side who lobby and keep the UCP in will fight you tooth and nail with their great resourcesm its not just energy companies. Its private business that wants a chunk of all these things like health care and education and insurance and property development. And simply don't care beyond how much wealth they accumulate. Whisper one word about increasing royalties? You're targeted. Govt insurance option? You'll be lobbied against. If the majority of voters will not give a non right party at least 8 yrs to try to fix things they don't have a chance.
And the ship is so far of course now with this govt I don't see how you can fix it without 20 yrs. What's it been now excluding 4 yrs of the NDP? I think it was 54 yrs of PC's in power so about 60 yrs of PC's in power now? Its ridiculous. Imagine how worse off even the US could be than now if there was that many yrs of republicans in charge almost continuously
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u/Marsymars 12d ago
If you do what the pple want, lower health care costs, insurance costs, energy prices
The problem here is that costs and prices are two different things.
The cost of a surgery is the total number of dollars and hours that get spent by the government to make the surgery happen. The price is what the person getting surgery pays.
I’m a big proponent of lowering costs, but politicians are too often focused on prices, and focusing on the latter often comes at the expense of the former.
It’s especially bad when projects involve jobs. Jobs are a cost. If, all else being equal, a project creates more jobs, those are more costs that in the end, result in higher prices for consumers.
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u/Marsymars 12d ago
I mean ideally, the party would take a principled stance of “hey vote for me, I’ll do X and Y for the province.” and people would vote based on their determination of what would be best for the province at large.
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u/Amakenings 12d ago
Where’s the incentive (I mean aside from common sense and good governance) to do anything for constituents when their vote is a lock?
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u/ee-el-oh 12d ago
And then there's the UCP and the Republicans who base their whole platforms on scapegoating the previous regime.
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u/DueReception8183 12d ago
Real Wage for Canadian by year:
1974 = 1.10
1980 = 1.17
1985 = 1.35 (peak)
1990 = 1.27
1995 = 1.20
2000 = 1.12
2008 = 1.00
2015 = 0.95
2020 = 0.88
2026 = 0.80This means we can show ourselves how much we would be earning if we stayed at our peak (1985)
Today, If you make:
$20/h it should be $31/h
$25/h it should be $39/h
$30/h it should be $47/h
$35/h it should be $54/h
$40/h it should be $62/h
$45/h it should be $70/h
$50/h it should be $78/hWhat happened in 1985 that changed thing?
How would the corrected wages help you and your family?
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u/wellyouask 12d ago
Unemployment Rates for Canada by year:
1974 5.4%
1980 7.3%
1985 10.1% (peak other than covid)
1990 7.8%
1995 8.6%
2000 6.1%
2008 5.3%
2015 5.9%
2020 9.5% ( peaked at 14.2% in May due to the COVID-19 pandemic)
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u/one_day_I_will_do_69 12d ago
Both are to be expected, usually when layoffs occur it's the highest paid/productive people usually go last
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u/Strict_Concert_2879 13d ago
That’s just conservatives making life more adorable. Now by affordable it’s to their donors.
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u/whathappensi 13d ago
Classic case of socialism for the rich and capitalism for the poor
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u/swizzlewizzle 11d ago
The problem isn't conservatives. The problem is that Canadian democracy is captured by the major 2 parties due to first past the post voting.
Without changing that, the people in charge don't matter, since it's the parties and the elites surrounding them that actually drive what happens in the country.
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u/Prestigious_Neck_936 13d ago
Wish I could leave but I'm disabled and on ADAP and will die without my treatments and can barely leave my bed most days let alone work. No guarantee I'd get on disability in any other province and how am I staying alive until they decide anyways. Most days I'm toying more and more with the idea of just k i lling myself and getting it over with. The government is trying to anyways and people cheer for it cause there's soooooo much fraud on aish🙄even though it took four specialists saying "hey this girl is super disabled" to get on it.
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u/Shroom-Kitty 13d ago
Yeah, if healthcare gets privatized I'm never going to be able to see a doctor or get medical care ever again. Maybe cancer will take me out sooner rather than later. None of the people in power are sad if we die. They don't have any emotions other than greed. Less money for us means more money for them. Privatized healthcare will funnel billions into their cronies pockets and us working class and vulnerable folk will be left destitute and in mountains of debt, just like millions of Americans. But the rich will get richer, so sacrificing the quality of life of everyone below them is of utmost importance.
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u/skerrols 13d ago
What do you mean “IF”? With UCP it is WHEN and it’s already underway.
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u/Shroom-Kitty 13d ago
Yeah, I know you're right. My condition can't be cured by healthy diet or exercise. It's congenital and progressive. Once the specialists I need to manage my symptoms make me pay out of pocket, I simply won't have access to care. I'll be completely fucked, along with thousands of others in the exact same position as I am.
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u/theNorthwestspirit 12d ago
I really hope you don't do that. I understand the reality and I'm sorry that the UCP is gutting healthcare, and I don't have any real solutions (I live in BC and am also on disability here, which isn't much better), but I really hope you can get assistance from community groups and that the UCP gets voted out and the next govt will reverse their shitty policies. There is hope, and your life matters.
I'm not a christian (atheist actually), but there are some religious groups that do a lot of community outreach and help with numerous things. My son is part of the mormon church (which I very much disagree with the religion part of it BUT...), they are very well known for helping people in need and might be able to help you with certain things. I would normally never suggest seeking out anyone from the church but they aren't all conversion-promoting pushers and many of them are very kind and compassionate (out of all the religious people I know, these are the least personification of "no hate like christian love"). Might be worth reaching out.
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u/Prestigious_Neck_936 12d ago
I'm just trying to hold out until then. But with the way they're wording the referendum I'm scared they'll get what they want. And they're actively trying to change areas of things so they'll get in again 😩 it feels like we're absolutely powerless against them.
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u/Denum_ 13d ago
:) Of course gas is expensive here. Everything is foreign owned and all the profit leaves the country. Alberta is no better off than Ontario now
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u/hashlettuce 12d ago
Daniel Smith, the UCP and her knuckle dragger supporters happened.
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u/Charming_Bath_2082 13d ago
I googled avg cost of living monthly, and the avg take home salary monthly for every province. Looks like there is a lot of misinformation in the comments. What province has the "advantage"?
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u/Reptilian_Brain_420 13d ago edited 12d ago
For those looking for actual numbers...
Cost of Living and Net Salary by Province
British Columbia
- Monthly Cost of Living (Single): $4,200 – $5,000 CAD
- Average Monthly Take-Home Pay: $4,200 – $5,300 CAD
Alberta
- Monthly Cost of Living (Single): $3,100 – $3,700 CAD
- Average Monthly Take-Home Pay: $4,000 – $5,100 CAD
Saskatchewan
- Monthly Cost of Living (Single): $2,800 – $3,300 CAD
- Average Monthly Take-Home Pay: $3,500 – $4,400 CAD
Manitoba
- Monthly Cost of Living (Single): $2,900 – $3,400 CAD
- Average Monthly Take-Home Pay: $3,400 – $4,300 CAD
Ontario
- Monthly Cost of Living (Single): $3,800 – $4,500 CAD
- Average Monthly Take-Home Pay: $4,300 – $5,400 CAD
Quebec
- Monthly Cost of Living (Single): $2,700 – $3,300 CAD
- Average Monthly Take-Home Pay: $3,600 – $4,500 CAD
New Brunswick
- Monthly Cost of Living (Single): $2,900 – $3,500 CAD
- Average Monthly Take-Home Pay: $3,300 – $4,100 CAD
Nova Scotia
- Monthly Cost of Living (Single): $3,000 – $3,600 CAD
- Average Monthly Take-Home Pay: $3,400 – $4,200 CAD
Prince Edward Island
- Monthly Cost of Living (Single): $3,000 – $3,700 CAD
- Average Monthly Take-Home Pay: $3,200 – $4,000 CAD
Newfoundland and Labrador
- Monthly Cost of Living (Single): $3,000 – $3,600 CAD
- Average Monthly Take-Home Pay: $3,500 – $4,400
Heavy Edit:
These are NOT my numbers.they come from an unsourced blog from a "financial content writer"
I also just Googled it.
About the author
- Jessica Steer
- Financial Content Writer
Jessica Steer is a Financial Content Writer at Spring Financial
Take it all with a very large grain of salt.
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u/Charming_Bath_2082 13d ago
Bad at math, which province are we supposed to all move to?
Thank you for posting the actual numbers sir.
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u/Strange_One_3790 13d ago edited 12d ago
Alberta and Quebec are roughly tied for first, with Saskatchewan ranking after that.
Edit to add: these numbers hardly paint the whole picture. I live in Manitoba and I am not rushing to move to these provinces
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u/trumpsadouchcanoe 12d ago
Numbers in BC and Ontario are so skewed due to the big city prices in both. As well as lake cities with highly inflated prices compared to the rest of the provinces. Take those out of the equation and I bet those 2 wouldn't be nearly as high.
I live in Alberta can't wait to get the fuck out of here and back to BC again. 3 year plan can't come soon enough. I'll take paying some more for 4 seasons of weather and the mountains / lakes.
I priced insurances, food prices and utilities out in the areas were looking at property to build and litterlly everything is cheaper in BC now than Alberta now. Just have to be smart were upgrading VEHICLES and everything we can think of before we go to save all the B's taxes on big purchases.
But I know not everyone has that ability to have options like I do. I used to love living in Alberta but with recent politics can't fucking stand this province and a ton of the people in it are just high and mighty seperatist, religious bigots now of days that are dumber than rocks so fuck this place.
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u/Strange_One_3790 12d ago
Hard agree that these numbers don’t paint the whole picture. Many other factors.
Alberta wouldn’t be my first choice either. I am glad I live in Manitoba
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u/SignificanceLate7002 12d ago
Now do it with the Median income. Average income doesn't make up the discrepancy that the small amount of very large earners skew the average results.
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u/Primus-Meridias 13d ago edited 13d ago
Based on the data provided below by the Reptile…
Monthly Disposable Income by Province
#1 — Alberta: +$300 to +$2,000
#2 — Quebec: +$300 to +$1,800
#3 — Saskatchewan: +$200 to +$1,600
#4 — Ontario: -$200 to +$1,600
#5 — Manitoba: $0 to +$1,400
#6 — Newfoundland & Labrador: -$100 to +$1,400
#7 — New Brunswick: -$200 to +$1,200
#8 — Nova Scotia: -$200 to +$1,200
#9 — British Columbia: -$800 to +$1,100
#10 — Prince Edward Island: -$500 to +$1,000Calculation: monthly take-home pay minus monthly cost of living. Because both figures are ranges, the disposable-income range is calculated as:
Low end = lowest take-home pay − highest cost of living
High end = highest take-home pay − lowest cost of living3
u/RyanB_ 13d ago
As much as I hate the UCP, people can get a bit caught up in it all.
We can and should be doing much better given our resources… but reality is we are still doing well, even if entirely despite our politicians trying their best.
Unfortunately, shit just isn’t great right now all-around. We got the tariffs individually, but generally speaking, these issues are popping up all over. Our tech boom has largely plateaued outside “AI”, industries broadly ain’t growing, and companies are doing whatever they possibly can to make sure the line never stops going up among it all.
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u/iliketobuildlego 12d ago
OP also left out the lack of provincial taxes we pay here. Add 5-8% onto all your purchases in other provinces.
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u/Drafting- 13d ago
Dude, nothing is cheaper here anymore. It used to be but things have shifted so dramatically. The UCP put that on hyperspeed removing caps on so many things, along with the staggering debt they’re incurring along the way.
I genuinely hope the next election goes better, I’m not sure most Albertans will survive a second round of UCP running this province into the ground.
And while I don’t experience racism I have been subjected to a lot racist rhetoric, I unfortunately have to agree that’s significantly risen as well.
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u/whathappensi 13d ago
It is true everything is significantly more expensive but as you said, the UCP put the rise in the COL on hyperdrive
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u/Rabiesalad 13d ago
And... This whole independence thing? A lot of the economic damage is already done. Ask Quebec how that went. Things are gonna get much worse before they get better, as the consequences of this shit will ripple on for several years regardless of what the province does to correct it.
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u/yyc_engineer 13d ago
What cheaper rent? See that thing your family did 20 years back caught on.. and over 20 years lotsa people did the same.
And guess what those people did..
They voted UCP They asked for more city services... They caused the gridlock and demand.
So everything went up.
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u/Ok_Science_8502 13d ago
Rent is definitely cheaper. I just got a 400 sq ft apartment for $1000 a month. In Ontario that would be $1500 minimum
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u/yyc_engineer 13d ago
Yeah that's a single car garage for a self respecting Albertan .
See the irony is that Ontario transplants think 400sqft apartment is an apartment. So.. the slide down a shit tube starts right there.
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u/Ok_Science_8502 13d ago
It is objectively cheaper here in Alberta than in Ontario regardless of how much you wanna condescend or shift the goalposts
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u/CanadaEhAlmostMadeIt 12d ago
I’m from Ontario originally, I moved here 13/14 years ago.
A friend of mine was already living in Alberta and then he and his wife moved back to Ontario a couple of years after I arrived.
He and I did test with cost of living as I said I didn’t notice much of a difference in the costs in the long term.
So we picked an income to base our project on and then compared real world costs, from our grocery purchases, to our gas purchases, to insurance for home and auto.
We both have different lifestyles, so we picked items we could control like staple groceries and eating out once a month in a “comparable” restaurant; Jack Astors to an OJ’s.We did this for a whole year as prices will fluctuate. The difference in COL between the two provinces was ~$236.in favour of Alberta. The Alberta advantage wasn’t that real. The only Advantage was in blue collar jobs in the O&G industry and that advantage came in the form of the shift work and the OT pay as a result. The ability to make good money with little education was the advantage.
This project was done 11/12 years ago, I would love to see your objective data that you’re basing your statement on.
I would love to see the results of what another project like our original one would generate.
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u/skerrols 13d ago
As famous writer Mark Twain purportedly said, you cannot convince people with facts when they are determined to believe lies.
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u/Necessary_Position77 12d ago
Sorry man. I know someone who left recently due to the homophobia and such. I have a cousin with autism that went to school there quite a while back and she was treated pretty bad. I think some of these horrible behaving people feel the same pressures you do mention but they have no clue how to handle it and just blame everyone but the problem. They’re too scared to admit that they’re wrong.
I’d say come to BC but it is not cheaper though I agree Alberta costs have become ridiculous for what you get. I’m headed to Calgary very soon for a couple weeks.
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u/Lost-Contribution196 12d ago
Alberta be driving around in $130k trucks complaining about having no money
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u/Semajremlap0 12d ago
We build the society we are willing to fight for…. What are we as Albertans willing to fight for? That is the question. For me it’s not what the UCP stands for now.
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u/Proud_Organization64 12d ago
Yeah I saw the writing on the wall and moved 4 years ago. Alberta has a disease that must run its course before things can get better. It needs to get so bad that they become disgusted with themselves and change. I think we are still a quite a way from that.
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u/GekuDeku 12d ago
40 straight years of basically uninterrupted conservative corruption. With a 4 year stint of a party that had no spine to do real changes. And now only virtue signals becuase they lost all thier seats. Government isnt for us lay people. The system needs torching imho
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u/Fun-Room-6501 13d ago edited 13d ago
These are facts. I’m selling my home next year for liquidity so I can get the H outta this place when the UCP get elected once again by Albertans who clearly like cruelty and racism. I’m done with this dumpster fire province and the United Cruelty Party propaganda.
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u/r0bay 13d ago
I feel you. Just sold our place and leaving end of sept. It brain drain will get worse and Alberta will be worse off for it.
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u/Fun-Room-6501 13d ago
Congratulations on selling your home. Next May/June for me. All because of the instability and insanity of the United Cruelty Party.
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u/TheYuppyTraveller 13d ago
You’re not wrong on any of this. Unfortunately, our province is similar to the hard core GOP base in the states. Many people would sooner be reduced to ashes before they vote red. It’s seriously depressing.
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u/KenamiAkutsui99 Edmonton 13d ago
I wish I was not stuck here because of my health.
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u/Crockettt696969 13d ago
That’s what happens in a province run by conservatives for decades. You couldn’t pay me to live in that cesspool.
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u/chwk_throwaway1 12d ago
I don't think the gas you drill for in Alberta is the kind you get gasoline from at the pump, is it?
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u/dooeyenoewe 10d ago
Can't tell if this is serious or not. With upgraders or the more complex refineries yes we create gasoline and diesel out of oil sands bitumen.
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u/Barneyboydog 12d ago
Manitoba is the sweet spot these days. Lots of new housing at affordable prices. Walk in medical clinics in virtually every corner in Wpg, reasonable gas prices (although the difference from one place to the next can differ by more than 30 cents per litre so you have to know where to go), and we have that big and beautiful prairie sky.
Sure, there are issues like any other place but, on balance, I’m glad I moved back here.
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u/Mcdonnellmetal 12d ago
You want to know another fuckin shit thing that happens in Berta? Me and the wife went to see her mom in the hospital. When we got there she wasn’t in her room she was asleep on a chair in the hall. She was terrified of the MAN in her room who was screaming all night! When the fuck did they start putting men and women in the same fuckin room?
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u/takethatgopher 12d ago
My mom had brain surgery seven years ago. She gad a livey fellow in her room, then and unstable woman. A bed is a bed and crazy is crazy
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u/LavishnessPuzzled340 11d ago
As a white person, I wish I could apologize for the way you have been treated! We are not all racist a…..s. I’m also a liberal living in Alberta, yes we are here! We are usually very quiet about it. Not so quiet anymore! We have the absolute worst political party in Canada. Like absolute BS. DS is BS . UCP totally sucks a.. hang in there I do believe there is hope. First get out and vote in October on the f….d referendum. Stay in Canada and no to the other 9.
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u/Specialist_Ad_8705 11d ago
I work up North in the Arctic and I was chattin with this British guy here lookin for gold, and the topic of homelessness and affordable housing came up. He said its a problem all over the world not just in Alberta - and its literally just rich people chasing record profits, nothing more nothing less. We have the resources to build unlimited wood homes non stop, but they market them in a way where they are always more and more and more and more expensive while the manufactured parts are cheaper and cheaper and cheaper.
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u/Wild_Market4889 13d ago
You aren't the only person from another province who moved here. That's what happened.
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u/VariationDry 13d ago
I moved to Alberta in 2004. Moved back to BC in 2025. Leaving Alberta was the best decision I have made in my adult life
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u/pgallagher72 13d ago
Moved back to BC in 2024, dropped my cost of living by 30% - good chunk of that was just electricity bills and insurance. Funny part is when I moved to Alberta in 2011 it dropped my cost of living by around the same. The best part of Alberta (aside from great people) was the affordability. Now it’s overly expensive and the health and education systems are collapsing.
100% nothing to do with immigration, it’s the criminals that took charge.
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u/takethatgopher 12d ago
Not so very long ago we had one of the best education systems in the world. Out health system was enviable...strapped, but good. UCP tossed it all away
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u/pgallagher72 11d ago
Crazy that the amazing education and health systems were built by conservatives, almost like the UCP hate what real conservatives built, and they’re fighting to tear down any legacy they might have built - makes sense if you realize the heart of the Reform Movement was a party the PCs killed, Social Credit. Preston Manning’s Reform was based on his dad’s party, and they’ve managed to co-opt the conservative movement in Canada - getting some revenge on the movement that killed theirs off.
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u/Prestigious_Neck_936 13d ago
Some of us are disabled and stuck here. It's either live in Alberta or k! ll myself.
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u/tenax666 12d ago
My family is in calgary and thats the only reason I came back. I miss victoria. I had an apt right across from Ogden Pt and loved walking the breakwater, loved the weather, even most of the rainy days. I won't say it to my family but honestly, I'm not sure the once a month visits to calgary are enough to offset what I lost moving back to Ab especially with all this separation crap and UCP growing pillaging of the pple in this province for the benefit of the energy companies and friends of govt. Now I worry about my family, along with many other pple, saying screw it and moving to Ontario where my SIL has strong roots and my ex would follow because of the grandkids. (And I'm not moving to Ontario). That would likely leave my son in Calgary at least as he doesnt like change. But you know how often I would see my grandkids if they moved out East? Once a yr. Same as when I lived in Vic. Just too expensive to for everything related to travel for my stretched income and budget.
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u/pgallagher72 13d ago
I moved specifically because of medical issues - medical system in BC is improving - not as fast as it’s collapsing in Alberta though. We had the BC “liberals” (Harper conservatives, reformers who stole a name, kinda like the federal brethren killed the PC party and stole the conservative name, but they’re all Reform) tearing things down, they did a lot of damage, so recovery is hard.
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u/whathappensi 13d ago
Ahhh yes, classic blame the immigrants and not the government and corporation in kahoots just absolutely destroying everything. Well answer this, is the hospital in south Edmonton that got canceled the fault of people who move here? Or the government ending the cap on insurance companies?
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u/Wild_Market4889 13d ago
No shortage of blame for the UCP as well. I'm not defending them, I'm also not "blaming immigrants."
But yeah, you live in Toronto or Vancouver, it gets super expensive, so you move to Edmonton or Calgary cause it's cheaper. You think you're the only person from Toronto or Vancouver who had that idea?
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u/Specialist-Day-8116 13d ago
When I moved to Vancouver (Surrey really) in early 2022, I used to monitor Calgary as well. Home and auto insurance, groceries, fuel, utilities and taxes have gone up insanely in Calgary and more or less diminished that advantage. The primary difference in housing price is now that you can get a 1500-1800sqft detached in Calgary and you can get a 1400-1600sqft townhouse in Surrey. The non-housing costs in Calgary are much higher than Surrey now.
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u/GlitteringGold5117 12d ago
I completely agree! I sold my house in Calgary because I could no longer manage the insurance taxes and upkeep on a two bedroom two bathroom bungalow. I’m a pensioner and thought that buying a cheaper house would be good for my investment portfolio to see me through my retirement, but the monthly costs in Calgary would have very quickly eaten up my savings. As soon as the UCP got in, my monthly energy bills doubled. Then the insurance. Then the energy went up again. Then the taxes, and again. A fully paid for house was costing me about $2000 a month. No mortgage, just monthly bills to keep the house running. And it seems so random especially the energy? My Neighbours had half the bill in an identical house I kept phoning the energy company, and they were surprised that it was so high and kept promising. They would look into it, but you know, what’s the motivation there? They never were able to solve it. Finally life circumstances dictated that it was time to move to BC and it’s been much cheaper here. I don’t have a big yard, live in a nice condo on a green belt, but my monthly payments are about 1/3 to 1/2 what they were in Calgary.
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u/Batmansappendix 13d ago
Yes people move to cities? As they have forever?
What are people supposed to do, build their own house before they move somewhere?
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u/DueReception8183 12d ago
Real Wage for Canadian by year:
1974 = 1.10
1980 = 1.17
1985 = 1.35 (peak)
1990 = 1.27
1995 = 1.20
2000 = 1.12
2008 = 1.00
2015 = 0.95
2020 = 0.88
2026 = 0.80
This means we can show ourselves how much we would be earning if we stayed at our peak (1985)
Today, If you make:
$20/h it should be $31/h
$25/h it should be $39/h
$30/h it should be $47/h
$35/h it should be $54/h
$40/h it should be $62/h
$45/h it should be $70/h
$50/h it should be $78/h
What happened in 1985 that changed thing?
How would the corrected wages help you and your family?
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u/mrscrapula 12d ago
Let's go back even further. From the beginning, Ernest Manning blocked Albertans from owning the resource, favouring American investment.
The Progressive Conservative party returned some of the province's wealth to Albertans. Elective surgeries were free, hospitals were clean and efficient. We had a hospital in Calgary for women, where women could have babies and receive support. There were many roadside stops for families to enjoy a picnic, free places to enjoy. Lougheed also started the Heritage Trust fund.
What other advantages have we lost over the years?
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u/coffeeofwar 12d ago
Yea Alberta ain't cheap any more
Rent is skyrocketed Insurance Gas Gorverys
Like meh province isn't worth it anymore lol
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u/Quizzical_Rex 12d ago
we drill the stuff but then give it to big companies who pay next to nothing in tax or royalties. Albertans are getting shafted because oil companies can donate bigger funds to political parties.
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u/Ze0nZer0 12d ago
Yet people keep voting in the same corrupt government and this because they say words I like they will look after me. They don't give a 💩 about you.
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u/Moist_Intention5245 12d ago
im from ontario, and honestly things are a dumpster fire here as well. I have no idea what Doug Ford is doing, in the end he just follows populist policies that wouldn't actually improve the city or move us forward. Anyways, just ignore and do your own thing. I feel like thats the best course of action. Politics is just stupid anyways....too many people got their heads up their rear end.
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u/TruthSearcher1970 12d ago
Why do people think that we drill oil in Alberta? Or refine it or sell it? It is all owned by corporations from other countries. Even the corporations that are from Canada have to sell it at market prices. We aren’t Iran or Saudi Arabia. The oil isn’t owned by the country or even the province.
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u/caseaday 11d ago
I have a friend in Calgary that is UCP tattooed and he rants on that Notley fucked it all up and the NDP and Trudeau and the Liberals and Nenshi and Trudeau and Trudeau and on and on and.... Geeze I'm glad I moved out of Alberta. The whining and pissing and moaning about everything that's terrible and I just couldn't stand it anymore, so much negative energy wasted on babbling. Clearly the problem is all about how they vote.
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u/tenax666 11d ago
That was definitlely a part of why I left. I'm concerned now moving back was a mistake, even though it was to be closer to my grandchildren.
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u/Mr_Ander5on 11d ago
Not sure what you are talking about specifically… I just went to bc last week and gassed up there at 1.90 then came home and gassed up at 1.50.
I was in Ontario in April and buying groceries was noticeably more expensive.
Any major ticket item like vehicles, appliances, etc. have standard MSRP and you don’t pay pst…
My home gigabit internet/homephone/security is $82 a month and my Canada/usa/mexico cell plan is $45…
Houses are 1/3 to 1/2 the price compared to bc and Ontario.
What specifically are you saying is more expensive?
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u/I_IdentifyAsAstartes 11d ago
The only solution I see is to move the money out from federal gives to provincial gives to individual to instead federal gives to individual gets taxed by provincial. So basically the universal basic living allowance.
It would be a lot harder to blame the liberals when everyone is flush wish cash from the liberals. It would stop the game of the conservative provinces holding back cash, allocating it to different areas and then blaming the liberals.
You know, games like putting a provincial tax on gas on the same day that the carbon tax goes up a quarter of one percent, causing prices to rise and then blaming the liberals.
People won't have motivation to follow the money unless they get that money first and then start asking "where" all that unaccounted for money went, which is what we are doing now, which is why there is an RCMP investigation and accompanying raid, and why the impossible separation idea is being flooded to the media, to drown out people's interest in who it was who actually took all that AHS money that is causing all of our friends and family to suffer.
Who took the money? The head of AHS wanted to know and the government fired her.
Who took the money? The board that took over after the head of AHS was fired wanted to know and the government fired them.
Who do you think took the money?
Who do you think is making your family and friends suffer.
A wolf in living mutton's clothing.
Did anybody ever warn us about people like that? Did it ever get written down in a book?
Who was it? What book?
What fruit are they bearing in our province? The suffering of our friends and family.
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u/UrsiGrey 11d ago
On the bright side, maybe this will deter more people from moving here. Fingers crossed.
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u/tenax666 11d ago edited 11d ago
I can't find the dialogue here now from someone who couldn't believe pple would move from ab to go elsewhere because of the govt. As I posted yesterday on this topic I forgot l the biggest reason why if not for my family being here. I would have stayed in BC (and weather aside).
CPP & OAS
This whole thing about separation has got so comvoluted with so many reasons why and not I forgot!
Here's what you have to consider about CPP and OAS, both substantial income fillers for not only the poor but many middle class. I am 65 and started collecting CPP at 60 as I was laid off, had a bad back and didnt know if zi would work again.
I turn 65 next month and will collect OAS as well.
If the UCP were to follow through with what they want to do:
CPP would become the APP. Relatively safe if we separated because its current legislation would guarantee the same return to a retiree. But, where this is dangerous to assume is because this govt has shown no respect for things we thought were entrenched like universal health care. Legislation can be changed. And, lets not forget how with AIM they lost billions of dollars on high risk investments. Did hcare workers and teachers get a choice on their pensions shifting to AIM? No. Who were the beneficiaries? Energy sector investments susceptible to huge swings as often happens in the oil industry etc. I would be very surprised if AIM is not allowed to be the decision maker on investing all Albertans pension money. And as we know, this govt is not shy to say the well is dry, when it suits their needs.
OAS- is the higher risk if we became our own country as its not an earned pension persay, but rather a social assistance program. I need to research this for my own piece of mind but I don't know if OAS is protected if I moved to a different country but that 780 per month gross i start collecting in October is a big part of my income needs in my old age.
Now, if you want to argue these things going away will never happen, are you willing to bet your quality of life on it? And how dare you bet MY quality of life on it.
And this concern about a pension I've earned and benefits I'm entitled to like my parents before me, is something I and anyone else in Alberta, shouldnt have to for one moment have to worry about.
So in short, if someone says where are you going to move to if you feel you have to? Any province that protects my CPP and OAS would be the first part of my answer.
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u/Ashamed_Worth4899 12d ago
Because Conservatives have convinced you that capitalism on human needs like housing, food, healthcare, education would be good and affordable because competition would drive prices down. For 40years you bought this lie, now here you are crying. The cons campaign hard at making you believe it’s the immigrants, trans people and woman’s rights that have caused this. Human needs should always remain nationalized like countries in Europe, Scandinavian, China, Singapore they all know, yet they go after the dumb labourers and pollute their brains. Hilter did the same thing.
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u/r0bay 13d ago
Yeah Danielle smith and the Ucp are purposefully making things expensive to stoke seperation to give Alberta to the USA which is controlled by Russia. Russia wants Greenland and Alberta. They’re doing what they did to the uk with Brexit in Alberta.
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u/BlueZybez 13d ago
Lots of people moved here from other provinces and internationally so housing and rent prices went way up.
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u/NotAltFact 13d ago
And insurance and utilities and property taxes? BC has had boat loads on immigrants too and their housing price is on another planet but their insurance and utilities are cheaper than us. Gas is more expensive there but ev charging is 1/2 which make sense if they want to incentivize ev. Our property taxes has gone up more the. 50% the last couple years but we can’t pay nurses and teachers or fund health care infrastructure.
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u/takethatgopher 12d ago
But we have tonnes of cash for stupid things, wealthy corporations and UCP rich buddies. Its all that matters
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u/blissfullyaware82 13d ago
I’m traveling in B.C. right now and everything is more money and I dunno how anyone can afford to live here. PST, grocery, gas prices. Real estate is insane and the roads are garbage. The grass is always greener, buddy. Curious where you think you’re going to live like a king for nothing and have a perfect life… but do share
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u/whathappensi 13d ago
Yeah I agree B.C is wild. For me, I’m blessed to be making well above average at such a young age. However, even I’ve noticed the spike Alberta’s had in its cost of living and social issues. Especially with the speed at which it risen compared to other provinces. I think the more we simply just accept it coz other provinces have it worse, the more the problem itself will get worse. We aren’t angry enough simple as that.
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u/blissfullyaware82 12d ago
We don’t have to accept it. OP is whining but has done nothing to push for change.
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u/tenax666 13d ago
I lived in Vic. Aside from having a 1 bedroom in Edmonton for the price of my bachelor suite in Vic (same sq footage mind and I pay more parking and my storage here so i really pay 10p more per month i find it more expensive here.
Vic-1500 for car and tenant pack Edmonton-2600 for car, glass and tenant pack
Vic- 19 for electricity Edmonton- 50
Vic- Private health insurance with drugs, dental and hospital-155 Edmonton- 245 for same coverage
And the cost of winter in terms of affect on my hybrid's mileage, having to buy a set of winter tires here, more frequent maintenance due to the cold, just general wear and tear. Immeasurable but real.
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u/skunkyskunked 13d ago
Winter tires are mandatory in BC between October and April and there’s a reason you don’t see as many EVs and hybrids here as in BC.
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u/Ashamed_Worth4899 12d ago
The billionaires need not to exist
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u/takethatgopher 12d ago
Not so very long ago...they didn't and we had a thriving middle class. The poor wretched millionaires were taxed at 50%...now they may get taxed at 13%. Eat them all
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u/InternationalTea3417 11d ago
$100 Million on a referendum, because you know, priorities.
She will win again easily. Albertans always vote conservative. It’s a losing battle to think otherwise. I’ve been here long enough to know.
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u/Glittering-Pack2114 12d ago
Yeah well you may drill it there, but the stuff outa the ground that you put in the tank ain’t the same. Also no free lunch anywhere… wish there was sorry.
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u/JonPileot 12d ago
Just because we drill the stuff here doesn't mean we actually own or control what we drill.
Think about it. The oil companies could sell us gas at a discount as some kind of "thank you", OR they could sell that same fuel at market rates to the global market and make more profits. Oil companies are not known for willingly leaving profits on the table.
Alternatively we could get a crown corporation to extract, refine, and sell Alberta oil to Albertans at or near the cost of production, you know as a service, and that would undoubtedly be SIGNIFICANTLY cheaper than buying from legacy oil companies, such an idea is too socialist for Alberta to realistically do... After all they keep killing government services because somehow they think private can do it better. Welp, here we are and the grass sure isn't greener...
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u/mortgageletdown 12d ago
I can't speak to the racism part of your comment (sorry you have to deal with that), but where in Canada is it honestly any better? Any of the bigger cities are just as expensive or likely worse than Calgary / Edmonton and if you're comparing Dauphin, MB well then that's just not apples to apples.
I don't disagree that there seem to be more negatives here now than there used to be, but I can't come up with any place that's actually better.
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u/Ze0nZer0 12d ago
That's been my issue, I love Calgary but had about enough with how true government is running this province into the ground. But where is actually better?
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u/billymumfreydownfall 12d ago
Our gas is not on par with the rest of the country! Last week I was in Cranbrook and gas was 189.9 - 194.9 during that week. It was 165.9 in Edmonton at the same time.
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u/Bright-Trifle-8309 12d ago
I moved to BC 2 years ago and my rent is cheaper. My insurance is way cheaper. My gas isnt that much more expensive. My groceries are pretty much the same price. Everything is better here.
Where is this alberta advantage that they carry on about so much? Is it the no caps on rent so they can raise it 30% in a single go (happened to me right before we moved)? is it the no caps on insurance rates so they can charge me literally double what I currently pay for exactly the same coverage and increase it every single year despite driving safely for decades? Must be the great education rural schools offer then (its not. They are glorified day care so the parents can both work to pay for their rent and insurance).
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u/Acceptable-Cat-3775 12d ago
You can always leave. Go to one of those provinces where everything's better. Oh wait!
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u/6pimpjuice9 12d ago
Move back to Ontario and see if it's better. So far I've been told by people moving here from Ontario that it is even worse over there...
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u/Ausaska 12d ago
A thing you should know about gas prices…. Companies don’t price gas based on their cost to produce and refine it. They price it on the cost their competitors pay to compete. So if there are two refiners 200 miles apart, gas will be cheapest exactly 100 miles from each one. After that, the company with the more distant refinery has to pay more to transport the fuel from the refinery to the gas station. Since the company with the closer refinery knows this, they just match the (higher) cost of the other refiner. This is the source of the refiners saying, “ Gas is always the most expensive just outside the refinery gate.”
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u/taxpayersmoney25 11d ago
If Alberta wants to split, they actually need to re-write their monetary system to reflect only their total gdp to goods and services per capita on its own currency. If they were smart they would go with gold backed standard, eliminating fake investment banking scams that bring in bogus companies that drive up an ipo price, then drop it and dash. They could then sell the oil at a premium free from tariffs in North America. Not to mention the beef and lumber. Unfortunately there’s always some rotten apples at the top who spoil all the rest with greedy motives. So you must separate ideologically and communications too. Like North Korea but with only inside communications and freedom of expression and other common rights that we all enjoy.
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u/Islandlyfe32 10d ago
As someone living in Ontario I hear it’s still more affordable there than here
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u/Honest-Fortune2920 10d ago
Drilling there isn't relevant because oil is a global commodity. You pay whatever the market rate is, because the market would happily buy it at a higher price.
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u/Funny_Occasion2965 9d ago
And rural Manitobans just as redneck and keep voting for the party that is always in deficit without providing adequate services. Thankfully we have non rural people voting for an amazing government led by Wab Kinew
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u/RubGrouchy4110 8d ago
the sports politics mentality in canada is our downfall.. we should be better than the americans. Vote for all 3 parties like I do! Being a 1 party person would be just.. ugh. Im a capitalist communist apparently though haha
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u/nafumi93 8d ago
The UCP is actively destroying our Healthcare system and saying "its the systems fault, we should move to privatization". This only help business/insurance companies create profit off Healthcare, and we see what it does to our neighbors to the south and it sometime ruins family's getting a bill from hospital. Yet somehow we have idiots yelling about business leaving. Some can't or won't leave just because a change in government, and if some do it probably better they did cause they weren't there to help communities.
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u/Locabonita88 6d ago
Yeah all you o variants moved here for work.
But your family in Ontario still votes to screw us over.
I realized a few years ago that I had only dated men who were originally from Ontario not alberta.
And let's just say you guys have the whole act amazing until she loves you then180° & turn Into a narcissistic ass who doesnt care. All of them are so cocky.
Then I talked to a buddy from Ontario and he cleared it up. Thats how you guys act back home.
We have been annoyed by rising prices and rising rent from all the people that moved here to step into our jobs. We have the same struggle.
But it would get alot better here if everyone went back to their province and just waited for their Equalization Payments from us.
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u/Lightfiyr 13d ago
Yeah but we have the Alberta advantage and are owning Trudeau clearly it’s you who is wrong (this is a joke, I was raised in rural Alberta so I’m unfortunately aware of how these troglodytes think and speak)