Quote:
Originally posted by hchheda
For OHIP card you can apply immediately upon landing, no need to wait for 3 months. The card and coverage will be active only after 3 months - but you dont have to wait for the card to arrive.
Hiren
Yeah, That's true.
http://settlement.org/ontario/health/ohip-and-health-insurance/ontario-health-insurance-plan-ohip/what-is-the-3-month-waiting-period-for-ohip/
But sometimes they turn you away, when you arrive and ask you to come back, when the 90 days are up
, if its too busy or there is a back log.
Anyways generally until you have a fixed permanent address you can't really apply for these things including SIN as they mail it to that addy. They won't send it to a hotel or motel. The addy can be your friends, relatives etc too, need NOT be your own.
Just like PAN card in India, No addy is printed on the SIN card or OHIP card
. They only need a secure addy, so that they can mail it there & you can pick it up without any issues
Quote:
Originally posted by payal05
Initially we are staying in a hotel and then finalize an apartment .
where should I look for bed, Tv and other furniture with good discounts.
Check various stores below. Every week they have specials & clearance sales.
The BIG scam is to sell EXTENDED warranty on electronics to scam people. Do NOT go for that. The 1 yr manufacturer warranty is more than enough
On Furniture & mattresses the big scam is to sell some stupid FABRIC protection plan etc. Don't fall for that
You can also negotiate & haggle a bit at some stores if you want, if you are buying a lot
Go to 4-5 stores check out the prices & see their specials, discounts,prices, FLYERS etc before deciding.
13 % HST (tax) + Delivery Charges ( will be charged for most Items ) on top of the prices you see
1. Walmart
2. Best Buy
3. Leons.
4. The Brick.
5. Bad Boy.
6. Canadian Tire.
7. United Furniture Warehouse.
8. Amazon.ca ( Online only , no stores )
9. IKEA
10.
http://www.citymattresstoronto.com/ ( City Mattress Toronto )
^^VERY good place for CHEAP , BRAND new matrresses
. Cheap delivery too
Leons, The Brick & United Furniture Warehouse are same company
, trying to fool people by creating fake competition
Are some of the major chains. But there are lot of mom & pop NO name small retail outlets & clearance stores in some strip malls, which are cheaper.
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1. Dixie outlet mall has lot of such stores. ( DIXIE OUTLET MALL )
Buying NO name electronics can be cheaper than buying brand name.
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A) All stores Price Match prices or Ad Match prices of other stores with proof like Ad , Flyer etc, if its the exact same product
B) Most stores have a 14-30 day price protection. So if the price goes down or you see a lower price later on, even at some other store, after you buy, They will refund the difference
So you buy a TV for $ 400 . After 10 days it goes down to $ 350 . You go in with just your receipt ( don't take the whole TV with you ) and ask for price protection and they will refund you $ 50 back .
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Can't really say where you can get things cheap. you have to watch the sales, deals, clearance, DOOR CRASHERS like a hawk . It could be $ 700 this week & the same exact product could be 50 % off the next week !!!
So price comparision, checking flyers, checking prices online etc is a big thing over here.
Also special day sales like Black Friday sale, Boxing Day sale, Back To School sale can mean BIG savings
. Some sales are fake & some are real, so you should know what is BS & what is truth. Just bcoz it says 50 % off doesn't mean it is, so be aware of general regular prices .
Quote:
Originally posted by payal05
Initially we are staying in a hotel and then finalize an apartment .
where should I look for bed, Tv and other furniture with good discounts.
For Mattress, you can check The Brick/Ikea/Leon/Bad Boys/Sleep country flyers. Every weekend they have some promotions.
You'll find a mattress cheaper this week and same mattress is expensive next week and some other is on sale.
1> Don't think if some item is on sale it's not good, they are as good as if it wasn't on sale.
2> Another thing, sales persons in these shops work on commission basis, so they ll pressurize you to buy stuffs and if you buy more stuff you ll get more discount kind of thing.
If you buy from these shops, and in first 6months if you don't like it you can exchange with same price or expensive mattress(after paying the difrence), they ll just charge 60$ for delivery.
You can get basic furnitures from Walmart.
Black friday is not too far, you may get a good deal on TV that time.
Check these sites for deals etc : ( Mostly their Forums )
1. Smartcanucks - www.smartcanucks.ca
2. Red Flag Deals - www.redflagdeals.ca
Lot of cheap people there , but at least you will know the deals & sales . Cheap people, but they will call themselves FRUGAL .
First month don't buy anything except a mattress and sleep on the floor .
Slowly & steadily, when you start getting a hang of the city & country. On your own, through trial & error & making mistakes & losing some money here & there, you will become smart or cheap on your own. You will know on your own where to shop & NOT to shop. Who is expensive & who is cheap. Who has good service or bad service
Then slowly & steadily start buying one furniture at a time , one by one. A sofa this week, a bed the next week, TV later on , Computer desk etc ..instead of buying everything at once.
No need for CABLE, with just a good TV antennae ( Rabbit Ears ), you can get 10 channel or so for free
Decide which Mobile , Internet company you want to go for. In general avoid Rogers, Bell & Telus they are scam artist
Cell Phone Plans are ridiculously expensive over here & NO free incoming calls nonsense like India, so no MISSED calls nonsense like cheap desi brokeass people in India
Any Info you find relevant over here like schools, rent , transport, shops etc . PRINT it out before you come here, DON'T just keep it in your head as you will forget it
Your husband will be stressed out over here & busy with his career. So you will have to manage ALL these external & extracurricular things like a DUTIFUL Indian housewife, so as to NOT burden your husband.
You will be the one at home & with ALL the free time, so you will have to do ALL the research & ALL these other things like grocery shopping, banking, cooking, cleaning, kids school, transport, shopping, Financing, Budget etc etc. Lot of so called MALE things in India will also have to be done over here by you ( FEMALE )
Remember there are NO domestic servants & drivers over here, so you are ALSO the Kaamwali bai over here and will be washing clothes, cleaning dishes, cleaning the house, cleaning the toilet
Happywoman36 is one such woman. She is NO Ablaa Naari, she is a Bhartiya Naari , Sab Pe Bhaari, Jhansi Ki Raani