This as-told-to essay is based on a conversation with Steve Clarke, 47, a music producer who moved from the US to Canada earlier this year. The essay, which also incorporates quotes from emails between Clarke and BI, has been edited for length and clarity.
I moved to Toronto this past April from New York City, where I grew up. I'm a Queens kid, raised in the city, and was living in Crown Heights with my daughter. I'm a music producer, but I also manage artists and work on film and TV projects.
In New York, we were lucky to live in a building owned by a family member, so we got a discount. A three-bedroom, one-bathroom for $2,000 a month in the heart of Crown Heights. It was a dream. Steps away from the Brooklyn Museum, steps away from the Children's Museum. Last year, that family member told me he was thinking about selling the building. For years, I had been thinking about living somewhere besides America, so I took that as a sign.
Three years ago, I lost my wife. I was starting to realize just how tough it is raising kids in New York by yourself. I reconnected with an old friend in Toronto, who became my girlfriend, and she suggested I move here.
Toronto is a vibrant city
My girlfriend helped negotiate an amazing apartment, a six-month lease on a two-bedroom, two-bathroom newly built high-rise building. The apartment is on the 45th floor, for just $3,000 CAD, or about $2,200 USD.
I love that Toronto is a very walkable city. There are great pockets of food and nice little neighborhoods like Leslieville or Riverside, which kind of reminds me of Tribeca.
Surprisingly, I have found good pizza.
My groceries are cheaper. I remember complaining to my father before I left New York City that a box of Cream of Wheat was $8.99. I bought one yesterday for $3.99. I found a whole rabbit in the supermarket for $7.99 — meanwhile, try to get some oxtails in New York for that price.
My daughter went to camp this summer, and I paid $700 for two months. The amount of stuff she did — swimming, trips every week, visits to the science center. It would've been thousands of dollars in New York.
But culture here feels programmed at times. New York City is a cultural city by default. You go to Bed-Stuy or you go to the Brooklyn Museum — there's always something going on. Toronto has cultural activities, but they're not as robust. A lot of my Canadian friends get upset when I explain that to them, but it's true.
Housing is still astronomical here and doesn't seem worth it to me
The similarities between New York and Toronto initially drew me in, especially with the thought of providing a great environment for my child. However, as an outsider looking in, the perceived utopia is, in reality, veiled by smoke and mirrors.
Toronto is really having a housing crisis.
Looking for my next apartment, I thought about trying to go and buy. So I started looking to see what I could get. But I'm not a resident yet, so there's a 30% tax rate for non-residents, which wouldn't go away for two years.
But even when that goes away, what is there to buy? Two-bedroom or three-bedroom apartments start at $1 million. I started showing my girlfriend places in the suburbs, but why would I purchase something that's still $800,000 only to commute all the way back into the city. And you're not even getting half of what New York has to offer.
If someone in New York asked me if they should move to Toronto, I'd be very transparent with them. My blessing is already having friends and people here that I know. If I didn't, I would probably be like, "Hm, what am I here for?"
I think I'll be in Toronto for another two years, then I'm off to Barcelona.
