as a prospective immigrant i find this site very considerate and sensitive to the needs of people like me. I was just wondering what could be the lowest budget a family of four could survive in, in the GTA area?

I assume that your children are young and you can use their CCTB for your monthly expenses in place of saving it for their future expenses.

Rent for a 2 bed room basement in Missi at around 800 and if your need
an apt near Dixie & Bloor at around 900.

Telephone from Bell (w/o international calls) 35.00; Rogers basic TV cable and internet 50.00.

Groceries (vegetarian)100 per week: 400 pm.

Bus pass 22 per week; 90 pm.

1400 bare minimum.

Now all the Optional Add Ons: eating out, if you have a car the insurance, your family life insurance, clothing, entertainment, RESP, RRSP, if you buy an house the mortgage in place of your rent, utilities-electricity & gas, property tax, your car lease so on so forth.

There are many families whom I know of, are in similar situtation as the children are small the wife cannot go to work, hence the husband has a $ 10 survival job, at 160 hrs per month it is 1600, after taxes it is 1400 plus the CCTB of around 450 for a two children of ages 4 and 6, hence they lead an tight - hand to mouth existence. For a child of that age the weekly childcare is 145 per week, while a desi family would take care at 2 to 3 per hour plus extra for drop off and pick up from school. It is choice you need to make whether you wife should work and you pay for the baby sitting or she stays home on one income.The other alternative is that one of the parent works during the day and the other works in an alternative shift, and hence your children will get to see both the parents together only during the weekend!

I keep seeing posts, where people ask what are survival jobs & even I asked the same question prior to coming here. These are jobs which will you pay the 8 to 10 per hour and lets you live and pay your taxes but will not let you save anything for your future or your children future or education.

This is happening due to high immigration rates currently(which includes me also), and due to which more people are looking for jobs than actually available, and people comprimising to do anything for survival. Just to give you a scenario of what has to the pay(eventhough Ontario is increasing the minimum pay scale from 7.45 currently to 8 in the coming 2 years) the top is eroding. My colleague who is from Guyana migrated here 20 years ago, and used to work as shipper/receiver for 17 per hour in 1998, today he is doing the same job at 13 per hour. The reason is that there many more immigrants with high qualifications willing to work at 12 the same job. Recently I was talking to a white truck driver who was delivering stuff to my company, and told him that you guys make good bucks like 35 to 45 per hour, to which he responded that there are desi driver who are willing to do the same at 20 per hour and in coming times this might also drop to 10 per hour, as you know about 250,000 families are migrating to Canada every year and are looking for a future. My companies System Administrator with very high qualifications in IT, who used to make 40 an hour in 2000, makes 12per hour. The current population is 35 million, while USA is 250 million while India is 1100. Just compare the population, hence the economies and henceforth the job opportunities. Remember the best of the talent from all across of the world migrate here, while the employment growth in the top end is not happening as the top end jobs are all going to India & China as it is cheaper to manufacture or develop there.

The way out is to do something on your own. As a self employed you get lot of tax breaks. I know a few Desi multi millionares, who made it after a struggle here. The trick is do something innovative, and not starting one more furniture shop, desi grocery shop, dollar store, subway, insurance or real estate agency. As there are enough Desis doing it, and hence you are just going to cut into their pie.

Think out of the box and you too can become a millionaire!

It is all a matter of supply and demand, and the choice you want to make.

Good Luck & God Bless!

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Speech by Thomas Friedman of The New York Times....

"When we were young kids growing up in America, we were told to eat our
vegetables at dinner and not leave them. Mothers said, 'think of the
starving children in India and finish the dinner.' And now I tell my
children: 'Finish your maths homework. Think of the children in India
who would make you starve, if you don't.'"

Other alternative is to move to Alberta where odd jobs are supposed to be plenty, costs are lower and economy is growing. In due time you will get job appropriate to your skills.
Best of Luck