wildbill

I'm trying to ling this in some way to travel!so, I live in the Toronto area and am thinking of retiring away from the city wher I can buy a cheaper home or condo. I'm either looking for one of those new adult lifeslyle communities, or a nice quiet adult townhouse complex. I've thouggt of many nice towns in southern Ontario, but I really would like to stay out of the snow belts, so places like Barrie are out.
Any ideas? East to Belleville, Kingston, further? or south west to Port DOver, Niagara Falls, St Catherines?
UP to COllingwood even with the snow?
What do you guys think? Where would you go?

BAK

Kingston is a fine city, but getting expensive.

There are some nice comunities like you are interested in, in Prince Edward County.

I have friends who retired to Niagara Falls, but the man died and his wofe moved back to Burlington.

If you have froiends and family who might want to visit, pick a place they can get to easily.

BAK

BAK

TobieT

There are all kinds of Toronto retirees heading toward the London/Port Dover area to communities like St. Thomas and Tillsonburg. They have the benefit of somewhat milder (though still snowy) winters than northern Ontario, yet are still only a 2 hr drive from Toronto, or Niagara.
Prices are reasonable and the neighbourhoods have a high number of former urban professionals who have much in common with each other.
Try taking a tour of a few of them and you chances are something will appeal to you before you know it!

wildbill

Great information. Thank you very much. I had been thinking of going east towards Kingston and was shying away from London area, because of it being n the snow belt. But I definately will check out St.Thomas and Port Dover. Oddly enough, a friend told me to do a search on David's in Port Dover, a new restaurant and spa. IT looks wonderful and it did make me wonder if Port Dover could be on the verge of booming with boomers. I'll take a trip down, but not on Friday the 13th !!

goldilox

I don't want to be morbid, but here is something to keep in your relocation considerations (and I am amazed how many people don't think about it...)

Where is the closest hospital? It is all well and good to pick a charming town, but some of those towns are a good 20 minute drive from the closest hospital... which will mean at least a 40 minute gap between a call for an ambulance and the arrival at the hospital.

wildbill

goldilox, I totally agree.
I remember when my parents were relocating, and that was a 'must' for them and I must remember to check on that, when I'm looking.
I guess that's one reason I was thinking of Kingston.
Also, public transportation is important. There will come a time when I can not drive.

What about Simcoe?
I like the idea of checking out Tillsonburg and maybe Chatham.

almcd

If you are looking for reasonably priced housing and a large choice, look no further that London. There are more condos being built here than you can shake a stick at. The big advantage that London has is the university, where many things of interest go on all the time. My wife and I spent last night at a performance of the "Merry Widow" put on by the university music department. It was outstanding. I would say superior to anything you could get at Stratford. Definitely London over any of the other suggestions for my money.

wildbill

Thank you amlcd. Actually I did visit London this past week and I really like it. My biggest concern is the amount of snow they get. I think they get a lot more than GTA..
Also, any particular areas of London that you like?

nospam

There are still a lot of reasonable houses/condos for sale in Kingston. There IS snow, but we are on the main rail line between Toronto - Montreal and up to Ottawa. If you want something smaller, and more picturesque, try Perth or any other small town in Lanark County. You might look to Peterborough, too. Brockville, while on the St. Lawrence, is a bit overpriced for what you get (in my humble opinion).

almcd

The north end of London around Maisonville Mall is an excellent area. There are many condos and you are close to everything. So much so that you often don't need a car. The secret in London is not to go east of Adelaide. There are many walking trails in the city which are also used by cyclists and roller-bladers, especially when the university is in session. I have lived in this area for 9 years since I retired and we have not had any more snow than Toronto and places east. What we do get is streamers off Lake Huron. They usually mean that areas north of the city get much more snow, but travelling to Grand Bend and Goderich is not something I do in winter.You can e-mail me at [email protected] if any more info is required.

TobieT

Great point about medical facilities since the dwindling numbers of family doctors in rural areas is a real concern, as well as the availability of a hospital.

For that reason small cities like Simcoe and Tillsonburg that do have hospitals have some advantage.

I too love London and find it has about the same amount of snow as the GTA. With the University of Western Ontario, health facilites (family doctors are still in demand though), The Grand Theatre, fine restaurants and many other amenities, it's not Toronto, but a lovely city.

It's proximity to both the Lake Huron and Lake Erie shores gives one lots of opportunity for enjoying Bayfield or Port Stanley (lovely little towns) even if you don't live there.

The issue of public transportation is a non issue in smaller towns because everything is only a 5 minute drive ride away, and many of the developments have their own recreation facilities or are only a short stroll from the downtown areas. It is still more economical using taxis than keeping a vehicle as one ages.

I am sure areas outside of Kingston have much to offer as well, I'm just not familiar with them.

wildbill

Thanks for all the information. It sounds like I have a lot of day trips to do, and then some. I'm glad you set me straight on the amount of snow there is in London. I was always under the impression that they got much more than the GTA. I like the size of London, although there is something to be said about the smaller places too.

I'm just starting to look and won't actually be making the move for awhile.
My thinking is that as the boomers age, there might be a lot more adult communities popping up.But I'm not sure if that is the answer either.
All food for thought.

Thanks again everyone.

wow

You may want to take a day trip or 2 to the Niagara region. I think it wld be a wonderful place for you to retire for the following reasons:

1. Good hospitals (but close enough to To if you feel the need to go back for some medical treatment, if required)

2. Close enough to To that your family & friends from To can easily come to visit you & you them.

3. Close proximity to Buffalo airport( only 45 minutes from St. Catharines) for your trips South to escape winter. Airfares out of Buf are a lot less expensive than out of Pearson.

4. Not much snow relative to To.

5. Affordable housing.... again relative to To. However, unlike London mentioned above there is not much new condo development in Niagara. Hopefully this will change.

wildbill

Thank you Wow. As a matter of fact, I'm flying south this week out of Buffalo. SO, that is a good point to remember. I love flying out of Buffalo. It's a much easier experience than Pearson....not to mention the cheap flights!

Hopeefully in the future, the Niagara area will start to build for the boomers. I don't even think St Catharines is building much.

And then there is Niagara on the LAke. OUt of my price range!!!

wildbill

It's been a long time since I read this post. Still looking, but it's not urgent. I have time.
I'm hearing good things about Peterborough, so I'll have to check it out. It is a bit far from Buffalo airport, but maybe by then I'll only need to go once a year!! IF I can afford to head further south for the winter. Still lots to explore.
Any new ideas out there?

irecommend

Have you checked out Sarnia. There are beautiful condos with views of the lake river and marina for extremely reasonable rates and it happens to get very little snow. One hour to Detroit airport without the hastle of QEW traffic.

wow

Hello, WildBill: Happy to see that you have resurrected this post! I remember it! Now I am going to throw a big monkey wrench into your thinking: Why not Montreal? I just spent a week there & I think it is the most amazing city. Now, you will have to overcome the "snow thing" but otherwise I think the city has a lot to offer retirees. You can still get a very nice condo in Montreal for a lot less than you wld pay in Toronto!

TobieT

Sarnia is a very good recommendation with lots of new properties to look at in terms of condos. My son worked on one project this summer there:

http://www.firstsarniaplace.com/

almcd

Don't even think about Peterborough. It has water and sewer problems that have surfaced after the huge flooding problems of 2005.

SallyCanuck

One vote for Collingwood. In the old town, not the new part - lots of reasonably priced older homes and it has a hospital.