Thank you for this! We are looking at Coquitlam and this was helpful. Would you mind covering Langley/Whilloughby? And maybe a deeper dive on Kits/West Point/UBC? Maybe you already have and I just missed it somehow (sorry, if that’s the case!).
You bet! I'm trying to cover as much as I can...and Surrey and Langley are definitely on the not too distant agenda. Kitsilano, Point Grey and UBC have been covered to a degree...not as an in-depth vlog just yet, but this video on Walkable Neighborhoods in Vancouver (th-cam.com/video/-4v_crLHBso/w-d-xo.html) has a section on Kitsilano and then this video about some of my favorite Vancouver neighborhoods for families (th-cam.com/video/Plc0axUvZNo/w-d-xo.html) also goes over Dunbar and Kitsilano. An upcoming video is going to be talking about the different areas of Vancouver generally (eg Westside/Eastside/Downtown/South Vancouver) and that will probably have some info you are looking for in terms of the westside. I really appreciate you watching the channel @courtneyneuffer2988...and for your questions/suggestions. I'm always open to hearing some ideas for future videos or topics you'd like me to dig into so keep them coming! Thank you!
i've been living in coquitlam all my life (43 years) and in my honest opinion, the best area in coquitlam is central coquitlam.. right between mundy park and como lake park.. such a quite peaceful area with easy access to highway, shops/stores, parks etc.. when i lived in burke mountain, getting to my office in vancouver was such a pain with frequent traffic jams especially during rush hours.. and during winter, snow makes the uphill roads very dangerous to commute..
@speedyfeint Thanks for weighing in with your insights! You are absolutely right that that pocket between Mundy and Como Lake parks is a pretty ideal location. Super central not just to everything in Coquitlam but also to get around the Lower Mainland...and yes, getting in and out of areas such as Burke Mountain or Westwood Plateau can be a huge hassle in rush hour and especially when the weather turns. I see why you made a move!
I'm born and raised in Coquitlam and its sad to see how insanely busy and populated it has become, its sad to see but I guess its a regular process of any growing city in a developed country, especially considering Canada is taking in way too many people than it can handle. main pro I would say is the tranquility, its not hard to find a nice quiet spot in nature to relax
@YEOUBE 100%. There've been massive changes throughout the Lower Mainland...and I'm sure you've seen tremendous change in your lifetime in Coquitlam. I agree that the access to nature is one of the best parts of life in Coquitlam. Out of curiosity, what decade were you born?
Awesome video as usual Sebastian, congrats! I'd like to know what do you think about Squamish? I'd love to see one of your videos talking about this place, pros and cons, etc. Cheers!
Thanks so much @vlogdeugenio4895! I really appreciate your compliment...and your time in coming and checking out my channel and sharing your thoughts. Squamish is definitely a place worth exploring. For me personally, it would place that I would consider moving to if I was younger and less tied to Vancouver. If an outdoor lifestyle is a priority for you, there isn't really a better place for you in Metro Vancouver. I'll definitely put it on my list of future videos! Thank you.
I live in Coquitlam and have been here for 14 years. I love it here. But one con to living here is the commute time if you work in Vancouver. Whether driving, taking transit, or riding a bike, your commute will be long if you work in Vancouver.
@frankyxrax Yes, for sure! However, the fact that you have the Skytrain coming out to Coquitlam now provides a much more efficient way of getting into the city (although I know it still takes time). Does anyone ride their bike from Coquitlam into Vancouver as a daily commuter?!?!?! OMG that would be hardcore. FYI I feel the same way about commuting...which is why I still haven't left Vancouver. :)
@@joseopao I live in West Coquitlam but work in North Van. Now, as bad as that sounds, some of my colleagues travel to North Van from Abbotsford and Mission. I don't envy them.
@@LivingInVancouver-BC The Skytrain is awesome. But the bus connections are at the mercy of traffic. I work in North Van so transit takes about 75 min. I actually ride my bike during the summer months, which actually saves a lot of time. Takes about 50 min each way by bike.
Cons Bus services are unpredictable. I was forced to buy a car as my daughter was late several times for school because the Bus did not arrive on time my or canceled without notice. You need a car to live in Coquitlam as it is very car centric Malls close at 6pm and most Restaurants at 9pm M-TH which sucks So many traffic Bottlenecks going to Vancouver. I was stuck in traffic one time and the jam was so long I gave up and drove back home Houses are very expensive based on the average income in Coquitlam, creeping close to Van levels in affordability Food quality and variety of restaurants is blah at most, particularly Asian food Proximity to YVR. If you take Taxi or Uber good luck with the cost and time going to the Airport and back home. So if you fly a lot Coquitlam is not the best place for frequent travelers Lastly, new Townhouse builds at Burke Mountain and other areas in Coquitlam are getting smaller. I saw listings for new builds at 1,200 sq ft which is a joke Pros Hospitals are very good and less wait in ER Ambulance and Fire Trucks arrive within five minutes after 911 call Streets are very clean and no pollution There is no shortage of schools unlike in aging neighborhoods in Vancouver where some schools have shut down due to low enrollment
@robocop581 Thanks for watching the video and sharing your own experiences! @crashedbboy If you are looking at moving to a suburb and need to drive into Vancouver traffic will always be an issue. Your best bet is living along the skytrain route as that's the fastest and most economical way to get into the city.
@marcberrenson570 i wouldn’t say it’s outrageously expensive, no. But it does depend on what you are comparing it to. Our gas prices are higher than the rest of Canada (but no where near what you’d pay in Europe). Insurance costs have come down to more average levels…parking can be pricey downtown but no more so than any other big city. All in all, it’s not going to cost you a lot more to own a car in Vancouver than most other North American cities other than gasoline.
con: lack of employment within the city. Burnaby has major employers like SFU, which Coquitlam does not have. Pro: (and you alluded to it in the video): the parks, leisure centres, pools, etc. Coquitlam spent an absolute ton on these facilities while those in Vancouver, Burnaby and elsewhere are falling apart in comparison.
Thanks for your insights @thespiritsafe! That's a good point about major employers. There's certainly a few more in Burnaby (SFU, BCIT, EA, along with many others) than in Coquitlam. Coquitlam's facilities are definitely newer than much of what Burnaby and Vancouver has (although, there is significant renewal in Vancouver of late, too).
@box_05 It depends on what your expectations are. However, Coquitlam Town Centre would be an area where you definitely could live without a car. It's fairly dense with lots of shops and services and also now has the Skytrain.
@@LivingInVancouver-BC oh... looks like it won't be so difficult to live there then. the difficult part for me is actually getting to canada. But coquitlam is definitely first choice of homes i'll want when i get the chance to migrate Compared to other places this one doesn't have much terrible things happening in the news
@box_05 I wouldn't be too overwhelmed by what you see in the news (and clickbait articles/youtube). The majority of areas in Metro Vancouver are safe. Yes, there is anecdotal examples of crime but in comparison to most parts of the world almost every part of Vancouver has FAR less crime.
@@LivingInVancouver-BC oh i'm from singapore.. so the sighht of homeless and druggies are kinda not something i see here everyday i would think it might be more dangerous
@box_05 I think everything is relative. Even the "worst" areas of Vancouver are pretty safe for most of us. But I find things like safety are more about perception. If seeing certain things makes you feel unsafe then it's best to avoid them. But basically that just means avoiding living on the Downtown Eastside of Vancouver or much of the downtown core. You could easily live within two KM of the epicentre of the Downtown Eastside (main and hastings) and never see any evidence of drugs or homelessness.
@SteveMenardDesignDXM Yeah...I try not to mention it in every video. :) This one I left it out because I had so many other things to cover. Thanks for watching!
@@LivingInVancouver-BC My pleasure. Your videos are very informative, filled with 'insider information' that help us get a better feel for the Lower Mainland's neighbourhoods. I've lived in the Montreal area my entire life and I have some old friends and relatives who've moved out West. I'm considering the West Coast life for my retirement with my wife, so video content like yours is invaluable. Thanks again!
That's great to hear @SteveMenardDesignDXM. So happy that my channel's content has been helping! Hopefully, you and your wife will be able to make it out here one day soon.
The pros are ok, unfortunately the cons are more pronounced and I don't feel "happy" or lets say satisfied with cost of living when is so high. I have a feeling that I'm working to pay my mortgage - an apartment. A small townhouse price is a huge house in Alberta, Quebec. Yes, living next to the forest is cool, hiking tails are cool, but... beside cost of living, schools don't have school buses. You have to drop your child nor sooner than 8:30Am and pick them up at 3PM. So when people are working with such schedule? That's not even 7h per day. I can go on and on, but... how do people manage to enjoy the place of living when they are overwhelmed by place they are living. Yes, there is always a solution to move to another place, but tbh, cost of living doesn't vary too much depending on the area.
Yeah, I think a lot of people are struggling with the cost of living here and everywhere @alexandrucovaliov8989. I hope it's less stressful for you in the future. Appreciate you sharing your experience and thank you for watching the channel!
the main reason Conquitlam was so nice was because it had higher White population, but its getting worse because more chinese & indians are moving there now
@@LivingInVancouver-BC based on basic common sense. But if you want data then go check the crime rate, rent, house price, etc. As Canada imported more nonwhites all those “data” exacerbated for past decades.
No. That's simply not true. The history of Vancouver as a port city is one of crime and violence over the course of well over 100 years (significantly so when we had a much higher proportion of "whites" vs "non-whites"). It actually used to be a much more dangerous city than it is today. It's only within the last forty years or so that our city progressively grew up and cleaned up....yeah, there's still crime. Most of what we need to worry about is petty crime, though...but we are incredibly lucky to live in such a safe city (and in my opinion, lucky to live in such a diverse city). As for the cost of housing, that's due to PEOPLE moving to Vancouver. We (thankfully) don't limit immigration by skin color. You might want to research the history our country has with the head tax...something we rightly learned from and SHOULD be embarrassed about.
![Where NOT to Live When Moving to Vancouver [AVOID THESE AREAS!]](http://i.ytimg.com/vi/yxbTwJUfkAg/mqdefault.jpg)
![Where NOT to Live When Moving to Vancouver [AVOID THESE AREAS!]](/img/tr.png)
Thanks for checking out the video! 👍 What's YOUR favorite thing about Coquitlam?
Thank you for this! We are looking at Coquitlam and this was helpful.
Would you mind covering Langley/Whilloughby? And maybe a deeper dive on Kits/West Point/UBC? Maybe you already have and I just missed it somehow (sorry, if that’s the case!).
You bet! I'm trying to cover as much as I can...and Surrey and Langley are definitely on the not too distant agenda. Kitsilano, Point Grey and UBC have been covered to a degree...not as an in-depth vlog just yet, but this video on Walkable Neighborhoods in Vancouver (th-cam.com/video/-4v_crLHBso/w-d-xo.html) has a section on Kitsilano and then this video about some of my favorite Vancouver neighborhoods for families (th-cam.com/video/Plc0axUvZNo/w-d-xo.html) also goes over Dunbar and Kitsilano. An upcoming video is going to be talking about the different areas of Vancouver generally (eg Westside/Eastside/Downtown/South Vancouver) and that will probably have some info you are looking for in terms of the westside.
I really appreciate you watching the channel @courtneyneuffer2988...and for your questions/suggestions. I'm always open to hearing some ideas for future videos or topics you'd like me to dig into so keep them coming! Thank you!
i've been living in coquitlam all my life (43 years) and in my honest opinion, the best area in coquitlam is central coquitlam.. right between mundy park and como lake park.. such a quite peaceful area with easy access to highway, shops/stores, parks etc.. when i lived in burke mountain, getting to my office in vancouver was such a pain with frequent traffic jams especially during rush hours.. and during winter, snow makes the uphill roads very dangerous to commute..
@speedyfeint Thanks for weighing in with your insights! You are absolutely right that that pocket between Mundy and Como Lake parks is a pretty ideal location. Super central not just to everything in Coquitlam but also to get around the Lower Mainland...and yes, getting in and out of areas such as Burke Mountain or Westwood Plateau can be a huge hassle in rush hour and especially when the weather turns. I see why you made a move!
Thanks for the balanced view towards Coquitlam! Nice video in all aspects.
@crashedbboy Thank you so much...really appreciate you checking out the video and sharing your thoughts!
The pros are so accurate! I love to live in Coquitlam
Thanks, @rogeliohmercado. Glad to hear that it rings true for you! I really appreciate you checking out the channel and sharing your thoughts. :)
I'm born and raised in Coquitlam and its sad to see how insanely busy and populated it has become, its sad to see but I guess its a regular process of any growing city in a developed country, especially considering Canada is taking in way too many people than it can handle. main pro I would say is the tranquility, its not hard to find a nice quiet spot in nature to relax
@YEOUBE 100%. There've been massive changes throughout the Lower Mainland...and I'm sure you've seen tremendous change in your lifetime in Coquitlam. I agree that the access to nature is one of the best parts of life in Coquitlam. Out of curiosity, what decade were you born?
Awesome video as usual Sebastian, congrats! I'd like to know what do you think about Squamish? I'd love to see one of your videos talking about this place, pros and cons, etc. Cheers!
Thanks so much @vlogdeugenio4895! I really appreciate your compliment...and your time in coming and checking out my channel and sharing your thoughts.
Squamish is definitely a place worth exploring. For me personally, it would place that I would consider moving to if I was younger and less tied to Vancouver. If an outdoor lifestyle is a priority for you, there isn't really a better place for you in Metro Vancouver.
I'll definitely put it on my list of future videos! Thank you.
Another Coquitlam resident here!!
16 years! woot
@matthoffman8162 Amazing! Thanks for checking out the video and commenting! Did I miss anything? ;)
The cons sounds like pros to me 😂 Thanks for the video!!!!!!!!!!! Its amazing! Planning to move to Coquitlam soon!
Haha! @karinai8549 Sounds as though you are making the right decision then!
I live in Coquitlam and have been here for 14 years. I love it here. But one con to living here is the commute time if you work in Vancouver. Whether driving, taking transit, or riding a bike, your commute will be long if you work in Vancouver.
@frankyxrax Yes, for sure! However, the fact that you have the Skytrain coming out to Coquitlam now provides a much more efficient way of getting into the city (although I know it still takes time). Does anyone ride their bike from Coquitlam into Vancouver as a daily commuter?!?!?! OMG that would be hardcore.
FYI I feel the same way about commuting...which is why I still haven't left Vancouver. :)
I’m sure living in west Coquitlam would be a huge improvement in commute time compared to me living Surrey Fleetwood lol 😂
@@joseopao I live in West Coquitlam but work in North Van. Now, as bad as that sounds, some of my colleagues travel to North Van from Abbotsford and Mission. I don't envy them.
@@LivingInVancouver-BC The Skytrain is awesome. But the bus connections are at the mercy of traffic. I work in North Van so transit takes about 75 min. I actually ride my bike during the summer months, which actually saves a lot of time. Takes about 50 min each way by bike.
@frankyxrax Wow. Good for you for commuting that distance by bike (and makes sense when it’s that much faster). That’s really impressive!
Thank you, this was very helpful!
My pleasure @jdreamhunter. Thank you so much for watching and I'm happy to hear that you found this helpful! :)
Thanks for the great info 👍
My pleasure @reghardsteynber3006! Thanks for watching. :)
Have a coffee on me. Thanks for these videos.☕
I really appreciate that @ordinaryfilmmaker, thank you! :)
You've provided me with a lot of information, data and your viewpoint and that's at least worth a coffee ;)@@LivingInVancouver-BC
@OrdinaryFilmmaker Thank you once again...and I'm really happy to hear that you've found my content to be so helpful!
What coffee can you buy with $2?😂
@hsueric4804 There might have been a bit of inflation lately creeping those numbers up...but it's the thought that counts!
Cons
Bus services are unpredictable. I was forced to buy a car as my daughter was late several times for school because the Bus did not arrive on time my or canceled without notice. You need a car to live in Coquitlam as it is very car centric
Malls close at 6pm and most Restaurants at 9pm M-TH which sucks
So many traffic Bottlenecks going to Vancouver. I was stuck in traffic one time and the jam was so long I gave up and drove back home
Houses are very expensive based on the average income in Coquitlam, creeping close to Van levels in affordability
Food quality and variety of restaurants is blah at most, particularly Asian food
Proximity to YVR. If you take Taxi or Uber good luck with the cost and time going to the Airport and back home. So if you fly a lot Coquitlam is not the best place for frequent travelers
Lastly, new Townhouse builds at Burke Mountain and other areas in Coquitlam are getting smaller. I saw listings for new builds at 1,200 sq ft which is a joke
Pros
Hospitals are very good and less wait in ER
Ambulance and Fire Trucks arrive within five minutes after 911 call
Streets are very clean and no pollution
There is no shortage of schools unlike in aging neighborhoods in Vancouver where some schools have shut down due to low enrollment
Thanks for all those points, those cons are really the things I would like to learn.
@robocop581 Thanks for watching the video and sharing your own experiences! @crashedbboy If you are looking at moving to a suburb and need to drive into Vancouver traffic will always be an issue. Your best bet is living along the skytrain route as that's the fastest and most economical way to get into the city.
Great video. Am I correct in my belief that owning and driving a car in B.C. is very expensive?
@marcberrenson570 i wouldn’t say it’s outrageously expensive, no. But it does depend on what you are comparing it to. Our gas prices are higher than the rest of Canada (but no where near what you’d pay in Europe). Insurance costs have come down to more average levels…parking can be pricey downtown but no more so than any other big city. All in all, it’s not going to cost you a lot more to own a car in Vancouver than most other North American cities other than gasoline.
con: lack of employment within the city. Burnaby has major employers like SFU, which Coquitlam does not have. Pro: (and you alluded to it in the video): the parks, leisure centres, pools, etc. Coquitlam spent an absolute ton on these facilities while those in Vancouver, Burnaby and elsewhere are falling apart in comparison.
Thanks for your insights @thespiritsafe! That's a good point about major employers. There's certainly a few more in Burnaby (SFU, BCIT, EA, along with many others) than in Coquitlam. Coquitlam's facilities are definitely newer than much of what Burnaby and Vancouver has (although, there is significant renewal in Vancouver of late, too).
Bears
Haha. Yep, I got it covered. :)
Am i able to live in coquitlam towns without owning a car? How good is the public transport to vancouver
@box_05 It depends on what your expectations are. However, Coquitlam Town Centre would be an area where you definitely could live without a car. It's fairly dense with lots of shops and services and also now has the Skytrain.
@@LivingInVancouver-BC oh... looks like it won't be so difficult to live there then. the difficult part for me is actually getting to canada. But coquitlam is definitely first choice of homes i'll want when i get the chance to migrate
Compared to other places this one doesn't have much terrible things happening in the news
@box_05 I wouldn't be too overwhelmed by what you see in the news (and clickbait articles/youtube). The majority of areas in Metro Vancouver are safe. Yes, there is anecdotal examples of crime but in comparison to most parts of the world almost every part of Vancouver has FAR less crime.
@@LivingInVancouver-BC oh i'm from singapore.. so the sighht of homeless and druggies are kinda not something i see here everyday i would think it might be more dangerous
@box_05 I think everything is relative. Even the "worst" areas of Vancouver are pretty safe for most of us. But I find things like safety are more about perception. If seeing certain things makes you feel unsafe then it's best to avoid them. But basically that just means avoiding living on the Downtown Eastside of Vancouver or much of the downtown core. You could easily live within two KM of the epicentre of the Downtown Eastside (main and hastings) and never see any evidence of drugs or homelessness.
You didn't mention home/condo prices, but that's a given I suppose.
@SteveMenardDesignDXM Yeah...I try not to mention it in every video. :) This one I left it out because I had so many other things to cover. Thanks for watching!
@@LivingInVancouver-BC My pleasure. Your videos are very informative, filled with 'insider information' that help us get a better feel for the Lower Mainland's neighbourhoods. I've lived in the Montreal area my entire life and I have some old friends and relatives who've moved out West. I'm considering the West Coast life for my retirement with my wife, so video content like yours is invaluable. Thanks again!
That's great to hear @SteveMenardDesignDXM. So happy that my channel's content has been helping! Hopefully, you and your wife will be able to make it out here one day soon.
The pros are ok, unfortunately the cons are more pronounced and I don't feel "happy" or lets say satisfied with cost of living when is so high. I have a feeling that I'm working to pay my mortgage - an apartment. A small townhouse price is a huge house in Alberta, Quebec. Yes, living next to the forest is cool, hiking tails are cool, but... beside cost of living, schools don't have school buses. You have to drop your child nor sooner than 8:30Am and pick them up at 3PM. So when people are working with such schedule? That's not even 7h per day. I can go on and on, but... how do people manage to enjoy the place of living when they are overwhelmed by place they are living. Yes, there is always a solution to move to another place, but tbh, cost of living doesn't vary too much depending on the area.
Yeah, I think a lot of people are struggling with the cost of living here and everywhere @alexandrucovaliov8989. I hope it's less stressful for you in the future. Appreciate you sharing your experience and thank you for watching the channel!
the main reason Conquitlam was so nice was because it had higher White population, but its getting worse because more chinese & indians are moving there now
@kaspermigi9456 are you saying that non-white people make a place worse to live in?
@@LivingInVancouver-BC Yes, they are, everywhere they go, the QoL drops.
@kaspermigi9456 Is this based on your opinion or on data?
@@LivingInVancouver-BC based on basic common sense. But if you want data then go check the crime rate, rent, house price, etc. As Canada imported more nonwhites all those “data” exacerbated for past decades.
No. That's simply not true.
The history of Vancouver as a port city is one of crime and violence over the course of well over 100 years (significantly so when we had a much higher proportion of "whites" vs "non-whites"). It actually used to be a much more dangerous city than it is today.
It's only within the last forty years or so that our city progressively grew up and cleaned up....yeah, there's still crime. Most of what we need to worry about is petty crime, though...but we are incredibly lucky to live in such a safe city (and in my opinion, lucky to live in such a diverse city).
As for the cost of housing, that's due to PEOPLE moving to Vancouver. We (thankfully) don't limit immigration by skin color. You might want to research the history our country has with the head tax...something we rightly learned from and SHOULD be embarrassed about.
Ooppss 🙈 came across this video just now. How could I not see it yet? 🫣
@htp7008 Glad you found it! And thank you for watching. I post a new one every week, so be sure to subscribe and check back often. :)