Moving from Halifax to Montreal: 4 things to consider

Moving from Halifax to Montreal is not uncommon these days. Simply, Montreal is a bigger city with more opportunities, and, it’s a cheaper place to live in. Still, even though everything looks good at first glance, there are a few things that you should know, and think about, before you really start preparing for a move. And Centennial Moving Canada has prepared for you a list of the 4 most important things to consider before relocating to Montreal from Halifax.

Montreal offers more opportunities

So, you are thinking about relocating from Halifax to Montreal? Why is that? As you probably already know, Montreal is the second-most populous city in the country, with a population of 1.78 million. On the other hand, Halifax has a population of 417,000 and even though it is not a small city, it has more than 4 times fewer people than Montreal. A bigger city usually means more opportunities for work, relationships, fun, etc. but in this case, it also means a lower cost of living. Living in Montreal is 5.6% cheaper than living in Halifax. And that is one of the most important reasons why so many people hire Canadian moving services these days to relocate down this route.

You will find numerous opportunities for work, entertainment, and love in the city of Montreal

Things to consider before moving from Halifax to Montreal

Everything looks ideal at first glance. Moving from Halifax to Montreal really looks like an amazing opportunity. However, there are a few things that you need to consider before you start searching for long distance movers Halifax. Know that:

• Real estate prices in Montreal are higher
• Average wages are lower in Montreal
• Halifax is safer
• Moving 1,200 km is neither easy nor cheap

Home prices in Monreal

Living costs in Montreal are 5.6% lower than in Halifax. However, home prices are significantly higher in Montreal. So, if you are planning to sell a home in Halifax and buy a new one in Montreal, relocation is not going to be so easy. The median home value in Halifax in 2022 was $484,800. On the other hand, the median home value in Montreal is $557,009. So, you will either settle down with a smaller living space or find a way to finance it all before you plan your long distance moving trip. One interesting thing here, however, is that rent is cheaper in Montreal. If you are only planning to rent a home in Montreal, you will pay cheaper than in Halifax.

Moving from Halifax to Montreal will usually mean that you need to downsize.

Lower wages

As a bigger city, Montreal also offers more job opportunities than Halifax. The main industries here are aerospace, electronic goods, pharmaceuticals, tourism and transportation, printed goods, software engineering, healthcare, telecommunications, textile manufacturing, and tobacco. Unfortunately, Montreal has lower median wages than Halifax. The monthly salary, after tax, in Halifax is $4599. On other hand, the monthly salary, after tax, in Montreal is $3908. This means that the lower living costs that you were hoping for were not that apparent after all. If you plan to benefit from the lower cost of living in Montreal you will need to find a good job with an above-average salary. Here are the top 10 employers in Montreal:

• ABB Canada
• Air Canada
• BAM Strategy
• Beaconsfield, City of
• Behaviour Interactive Inc.
• Bell Canada
• Bell Textron Canada Ltd.
• Blue Cross Canassurance Group
• BNP Paribas (Canada)
• Broadsign Canada Company

Safety issues

Moving to a bigger city usually means increased safety risks. And that is the case when relocating from Halifax to Montreal. Halifax is one of the safest cities in Canada. On the other hand, even though Montreal is also a pretty safe city, there are certain areas that you should avoid. Particularly at night. The safest neighborhoods in Montreal are:

• Plateau Mont-Royal
• Ville-Marie
• Rosemont-La Petite-Patrie

Aside from these three neighborhoods, there are numerous other neighborhoods that can provide a safe location for your new home. The best thing to do before you settle on the ideal home is to take a look at the current crime statistics. You can get these from the local police office in the neighborhood of your choice. While you can search for these statistics online, chances are that you are going to get much more accurate information if you go straight to the source.

Relocation process

Finally, the last thing that you need to consider before heading down this route is the relocation process itself. There is nearly 1,200 km between Halifax and the city of Montreal so the relocation process will not be easy or cheap. The first thing that you need to think about with long distance moving is how you plan to get to your destination. Do you want to travel by plane or do you want to drive there yourself? If you own a car but you don’t want to drive, you will have to find a moving company that can handle car shipping. If you plan to drive, you need to plan the trip carefully and make sure that you are well-rested before you go. And that can be hard to achieve after a long and tiring pre-move process.

It is not easy to move across Canada, you will need a good plan and good movers to help you

Besides traveling, you also need to organize transport for your belongings. You can rent a moving truck, which is something that we do not recommend for these long distance relocations, or you can hire a moving company to help you. If you decide to hire movers, you need to make sure that you find a reliable company that knows how it’s done. Finally, you need to think about costs. Long distance relocations can cost up to several thousand dollars. So make sure that you plan it all well before you start your journey.

Think well before you make a decision

Those are the most important things to think about before moving from Halifax to Montreal. As you can see, even though Montreal looks like a better option at first glance, there are a few obstacles that you will need to overcome in order to make this move a positive experience.