As the capital of the Canadian province of British Columbia, Victoria is considered one of the nation\u2019s prettiest cities. Located on the southern tip of Vancouver Island, the city is a hub for government, business and academics. But economics and possibilities aren\u2019t the city\u2019s biggest draw\u2014it\u2019s the city\u2019s weather and walkability.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cMy sister lives in Victoria, B.C. and spent years trying to convince my wife and me to move here,\u201d wrote Sternmeyer<\/a>, a community member at MetaFilter<\/a>: The community weblog.<\/p>\n\n\n\n It\u2019s no surprise, then, that the city grew significantly in the last decade. In the five years before 2006, Victoria\u2019s population grew by less than 1%. Yet, between 2006 and 2011, the number of residents grew by more than 5% and again another 2.5% between 2011 and 2016. This has put a strain on the real estate market in Victoria<\/a>.<\/p>\n\n\n\n But even if you do fall in love with the early spring weather\u2014which typically starts in February or March each year\u2014that doesn\u2019t mean all is blissful in this west coast urban centre.<\/p>\n\n\n\n As a result, people are actually starting to leave Victoria, B.C. and choosing to set up shop elsewhere in Canada. Here are their reasons why.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Visiting Victoria? Then you\u2019re bound to walk away with more than a few stories of that famous Canadian friendliness. But those that move to the city don\u2019t always get the same reception.<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cI moved here four years ago with my family from Sidney, Ontario with the hope of having a better lifestyle and unlimited opportunity,\u201d wrote Kevin in a comment made on Topix.com<\/a>. \u201cWhat we found is that people here are colder than a prairies winter.\u201d Kevin added, \u201cThe place is beautiful but the pretty beaches and the trees do not make up for the island\u2019s lack of personality.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n Kevin isn\u2019t the only who\u2019s complained of feeling like an outsider. Quite a number of new transplants to Victoria find it tough to break-in. As another forum commenter states: \u201cVictoria is not a nice place to live. Dig a little deeper [and you\u2019ll notice that] the general cultural attitude is cold, aloof, dead inside, uptight, socially cliquey, standoffish\u2026\u201d and so on.<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cMy advice,\u201d writes Kevin, \u201c[don\u2019t] give up your real family and friends for the crap the island offers. Come [to Victoria] for a vacation, only.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n When Cait Flanders, a well-respected personal finance blogger and author of The Year of Less, graduated with her communications degree she was thrilled to start working for the B.C. government. It was a good gig and allowed her to stay in her hometown of Victoria, B.C. Eventually, her dreams were dashed when the provincial government implemented a hiring freeze and took away any possibility of Cait\u2019s career advancement.<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cAt that point, I convinced myself I had to move away, in order to have the career I wanted,\u201d she writes on her blog<\/a>. \u201cIt got to the point where I was constantly looking at job boards, searching for something in Toronto and daydreaming about escaping Victoria. With a population of [just over] 350,000, it\u2019s not exactly a small town, but there is typically only one or two degrees of separation from everyone you meet.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n For many, the draw to Victoria is a job opportunity or the prospect of career advancement. This is particularly true for tech-sector workers who are enticed to the city by the possibility of either private sector or government jobs. But once in the position, you may find there is little room for advancement\u2014and this can certainly impact your overall earnings as the years go by.<\/p>\n\n\n\n As another Topix.com<\/a> commenter writes, \u201cI know many ex-Victorians who moved to Ontario and Alberta to make better money and actually have a wealthier life.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n Victoria is rated second-least affordable housing market in Canada, behind neighbouring Vancouver, according to the Demographia International Housing Affordability Survey<\/a>. According to Demographia\u2019s calculations, it takes almost seven times the annual salary for a resident of Victoria to pay the cost of an average house in the city. Any city with a ratio above five times is considered a severely unaffordable place to live.<\/p>\n\n\n\n As Robin writes<\/a>, \u201cVictoria wages are sub par and various living expenses are above-par.\u201d She isn\u2019t the only one who feels this way with another commenter stating: \u201cYou will get squeezed with cheap wages and high housing costs.\u201d He adds, \u201cthis only gets worse as the upward-mobility job prospects in Victoria are limited.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n While Victoria wasn\u2019t originally nominated for the Canadian Boring Awards\u2014a tongue-and-cheek examination of all that is tedious about this nation\u2014it did step in at the last minute when the people of Abbotsford, B.C. complained.<\/p>\n\n\n\nIt\u2019s Not Friendly: People Are Colder Than a \u201cPrairie Winter\u201d<\/h2>\n\n\n\n
It\u2019s Stagnant: Lack of Career Advancement<\/h2>\n\n\n\n
It’s Expensive: High Living Costs<\/h2>\n\n\n\n
It\u2019s Boring: Fear the Banana Slug<\/h2>\n\n\n\n