Emigrated to BC from Coastal California in 2012, lived on the lower mainland until 2019. The insane real estate market had cooled down at the time, so the timing was right for us to buy. Unfortunately, BC real estate has exploded again, and prices on the mainland, especially close to Vancouver, are ridiculous.
The island has a decent arts and music community (haven’t been able to explore much due to COVID), but they don’t get many of the big name performers like Vancouver does. There is a community of artists on Salt Spring Island and Gabriola Island, just off the coast.
In Nanaimo, where we live, there are lots of seniors, and lots of senior oriented activities and volunteer opportunities.
Although Seattle has lots to offer culturally, the traffic is just awful- worst in the PNW.
My son lives in Portland, OR and loves it. It’s a city of quirky character without too much pretentiousness (regardless of how they are portrayed on Portlandia), rich arts and music scene, and housing isn’t too insane compared to other major PNW cities.
Once it’s safe, maybe a road trip to Portland, Seattle, Vancouver BC and Vancouver island will help in your decision.
If you need the name of a good immigration lawyer, let me know. Although getting permanent resident status is time consuming and a bit complicated, Canada wants and needs immigrants, and since immigration has decreased significantly due to COVID, there has been talk in the government about loosening some of the requirements to make up for the past year or so. The article I read focused mainly on student and folks with work visas.
Good luck!
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