I am 75 years old and lived all of my life in downtown Toronto. It was amazing during the 60's 70's 80's and 90's. Moved to a small town in 2002....it was a big change but I got used to it. Decided to move back to Toronto in 2022 to the Manulife Bldg. at Bay and Bloor and lasted 6 months. Traffic, construction, noise and condos everywhere you look. No new park space or infrastructure, Yorkville is now condo lane and the whole city is one big traffic grid. Moved back to my small town east of the city where there is everything I need, all major stores, lots of good restaurants and beautiful Sandbanks Park for swimming in the summer. Ali is 100% right on all points. Good luck in your move.
As an American the only thing I’ve heard Canadians say is how all their cities are perfect and wonderful, especially compared to our cities. Glad to hear not all Canadians are self-righteous
As a lifelong Torontonian I have to say I agree 100% with everything you are saying. Ludicrously expensive, infrastructure sucks, mostly unfriendly and aloof people, has become dangerous and crime-ridden and don't even get me started on the traffic or politics and wokeness. It's disgusting. Having said that, I think that is the norm for most big cities these days. If you live in a metropolis expect to live in the shite.
Toronto is not a crime ridden city and I’m someone who has grown up in metro housing and has been indirectly and directly affected by the crime in this city! Yes there are pocket areas where crime is prevalent but so what! Toronto is a very safe city outside of some outlier neighborhood’s!
I live in Mississauga, been here my whole life. I’ve watched both Toronto and Mississauga crumble, it’s very sad. I’m glad you posted this video, people need to hear the truth✊🏽
@@carymnuhgibrilsamadalnasud1222 not exactly, only good for people who are scammers. I grew up here, coming back here from the US was a mistake (not of my willing)
My wife and I moved to Toronto a few years ago to start our careers. Made some money and got out after a year. It was awful. Everything was so expensive, gross and concrete. We bought a house 100 km north of Toronto just before the pandemic. Have already made $500k in equity. The quality of life in this province is tanking. I'm very concerned about the future our kids are going to face a two tier society; rich and poor, because so many of my peers are dropping out of the middle class due to home prices/inflation.
@JJL I don't think u get it... what hes saying is the middle class is now the poor class. In a few years, it will go back to what it once was. Poor class and rich class. There will be no middle class.
…Toronto used to be a great City their Political Class try to emulate New York, I remember the 1980’s-90’s Downtown I used to enjoy every weekend going to restaurants etc.. Unfortunately those Mayors of the City they are detached from the reality only they concentrated in Downtown and special interest groups, and the way of inmigration in the last 25 years completely destroyed the identity of this City serving the Globalist Agenda,like Sweden 🇸🇪 use to be a great country now Sweden became a Cesspool of decomposition infected with lower humanity, the rape Capital of Europe and across Europe, Germany, Poland,France Etc…
@@notgivingoutname8976 Agree. The middle class is the strength of an economy. It is the tax base. And as it erodes, so does the economy. Social programs cannot continue to be financed if the tax base is gone. Mental health becomes affected. All of the elements that we've come to expect as citizens are now very much at risk. So, here we are. If you can move out, do it. Your salary might not be as high, but you housing will be cheaper (but not cheap....very little of that left now)...but the quality of life is much better.
Born and raised here, my kind sir you were spot on with every single thing you mentioned. Impeccable description. Toronto my friend is honestly a nightmare!
I've lived in Toronto almost my entire life and I agree with you. Rent and cost of living is insane and I am looking forward to leaving soon hopefully. It is impossible raising a family here.
@@TheAliKoca i live in Toronto and have 3 kids. it's constant back and forth all over the place. What should be a 15 minute errand ends up being an hour
Classic government failure that for some reason has not been well addressed. Canada needs to deregulate the housing sector and become more business friendly in general. Government needs to get out of the bureaucracy business and into the infrastructure business (like a federal highway system comparable to the US Interstate system). The government let in many more immigrants than the system could handle. The Canadian economy is just not open enough or dynamic enough to deal with the millions of people recently let in to the country. The public sector unions are a huge drain on the economy as well.
Toronto has been drowning in darkness for years now there’s no hope for this city anymore what has become of it. i’m glad you are moving out of that city and I hope the next place you stay at will be better
I was born and raised in Toronto, spent my first 27 years here. I worked also in the USA and the UK. I am grateful to Canada and to Toronto for many things but sadly I plan to do the same as Ali in the next three to five years. Toronto once lived up to it's nickname Toronto The Good but it has been in decline for at least the last twenty years. Once a person regardless of socioeconomic standing could get a good foothold and progress in this city. Now, that is a near impossibiliy. The worst part, our politicians and bureaucrats push the lie of how great Toronto and Canada are for newcomers and immigrants. They NEVER tell them the full story. I will be out of here as soon as possible. Good for you, Ali. I hope that things are working out better for you in Montreal. At the very least, Montreal has a better public transit and subway system - which is a huge advantage!
I grew up in Toronto and last lived there a little over 30 years ago. I still go home to visit my family. I must say that a lot has changed. It's a beautiful city don't get me wrong. But I would much rather live in this little city in the States. What ya'll are paying for in rent for a 1 bedroom shoe box, I can get a nice 3 bedroom home in the suburbs over here. And what's up with the unfriendly, standoffish people over there. It's refreshing to come across a friendly face up there and unusual at the same time.
Living in Toronto all my life and I fully resonate with him. Unless you have family support the majority of people can’t afford to live on their own. Right on point as well with the TTC it’s completely atrocious.
Try taking Hamilton Street Railway, St Catherines and Niagara Falls Transit then come back and tell me how bad the TTC is. People in Toronto have no idea how good they really have it compared to other places.
I was born at Toronto General Hospital in 1952 and lived in Willowdale growing up. I remember going to the Ex on public transit and having a great time as a kid . I was making $2.00 per hour as a shipper/receiver in 1970 and asked for a $.50 raise and was refused. I had a friend return from B.C. where he was making $4.50 per hour so I left to make my fortune. At that time, 1971, they were talking about building a subway line across Eglinton out to the airport and I thought what a great idea, I hope they do it. Came back in 1980 and made a pretty good living in construction and lived in Richmond Hill but worked in the downtown. My commute in the morning was about 50 minutes stopping for a coffee. Coming home home at 5:00 pm was about 2.5 hours. Married a Bulgarian girl and retired in Sofia. Here we have one of the most amazing transit systems I have ever experienced, and cheap. As a senior I pay about $8.00 Canadian per month to use all transit and it goes everywhere. I only use our car to go to the Black Sea or Greece so I have to fill up once a month. I love Toronto as a Torontonian but man they really need to get their act together if they want to be the cosmopolitan city that they claim to be.
Native Bulgarian here. The Sofia subway definitely alleviated the traffic, but still traffic jams are atrocious in peak hours. When I was a kid some 30 years ago, there were literally 2 cars parked on the street. Now I live in the city center and parking is next to impossible. Still, it looks like the points brought up in the video are valid for most major cities. The weather especially looks quite depressing, cannot see myself living in Toronto...
It's a shame ... I lived in Toronto between 1978 and 1980, and it was an amazing city. The subways were awfully loud from the metal wheels, but otherwise transit was excellent. I heard languages from all over the world, and Toronto the Good still meant something. It was a very safe city. The book stores on Queen Street were great fun, with stock from Britain. My rented room for weekdays and my small apartment in Westdale for weekends were both affordable, and finding a place to park was hard but not impossible. The traffic was already out of hand, but people put up with having to do odd tactics to get where one needed to be. Looking at RUclips, Hamilton isn't quite what it was, either.
I recently visited Toronto and Hamilton I my brother lives there I drove from Atlanta Georgia to Hamilton it took me 20 hours to drive there. I noticed how horrible traffic is I heard horror stories about the cost living is ridiculously expensive
As a former resident of Toronto for about 27 years, he nails it on all the points mentioned. Toronto used to be an amazing city to live in back in 2010 or so. I got out of Toronto in 2022 officially and don't regret it. I was paying 1050,00 for a bachelor apartment. The place was not bad only that the heating system was not in my control and would only be shut off "legally" in like May and sometimes it would get very hot in May some years. I would guess that same apartment costs like 1800 by now.
I live in Oakville for $1500 for a whole basement. Home was built in 2012. It's awesome. Free parking in the driveway. I guess 30 minutes away it wayyy more expensive. It's about 30 minutes to get from Oakville to Toronto
The only reason why you would pay that much for rent is because you have probably been living there for more than 4 years or you simply got a good deal. There is no way one would get your apartment for that price in Oakville in 2023 unless it's a friend etc. My friend lives in a 2 bedroom apartment building in downtown Toronto and she pays $1200 but she has been there for over 10 years. But landlords are now kicking out tenants that they've had for over 5 years so that they could start afresh and charge rent at market value, which is at least $1000 more in any area on the GTA.
@@SammySam316 Yes I have to agree with you. My rent always would go up after 1 year by a certain percentage allowed by the provincial government. The rent is out of control in Toronto and most of the horseshoe valley region. Soon only very wealthy people will be able to afford living in Toronto. Not to mention the cost of food and everything else continues to go up and up.
OMG. I am aware of the problems with the city but I could never have put it all together or said it out loud the way you did. So true. I came to toronto in 2011. Since then the city has been on a downward spiral. Its a dying city. Rotten to the core.
I've never heard a negative review of Toronto from a Toronto citizen, so this is a first. And it was very well-explained. If you want to leave, that's your choice and we'll always support you no matter where you are in the world 🙏
Eastern Canada 🇨🇦 except for the far east are not great people in general. You get money from the west you don't deserve and you get everything from the government because of your monopoly on the election system. Canada need the electoral college system to make things fair
I moved out of Toronto in 2021 after 6 years. If rent could go down, I would go back in a heartbeat. I love Toronto and still go often and it breaks me to admit that he's telling the truth.
I went to North Bay last weekend for a wedding and it’s amazing how much friendlier the people are there than in Toronto. A lady at A&W complimented my shirt and the taxi driver was super friendly. In Toronto people are scared to make eye contact and think you’re weird if you say hi
Yeah but the problem there is they have winter for a solid extra month+ over southern Ontario. A buddy lives there and he called me a few weeks ago, down where I am (London area) the temp was 28C, up there it was 7C. No thanks!
I lived in Switzerland my entire life and facing with the problem of unbearable costs of living, especially renting and obligatory health insurance, not only in 2023 but instead since basically forever is a struggle well known to me. Even with something that here would be considered a normal paycheck, folks still struggle to get by the end of the month. It's not the absolute perfect country everyone thinks it is, even here there are some huge problems. You did the right move, I feel ya.
Thanks for sharing! And yea can confirm, everyone I know including myself assumed your country was just Heaven on Earth. From 🇺🇸. Sorry about everything!
@LeafBoi obligatory health insurance (which in some cases might actually costs half the price of your rent) and constant taxes and contributions sucks you dry
Switzerland is a very conservative country , with a very old neutrality act 1907 and does not make sense in 2023 in Europe , every canton has its own way , it is like more than one country , everything is about making money in Switzerland , there are so many Swiss german dialects that nobody understand each other at the governement level plus the french language.
I left Toronto behind twenty years ago, believing it to be an expensive city back then. However, having settled in South Florida, I've come to realize that the cost of living here has reached unprecedented levels. Even in less desirable neighborhoods, houses are now priced at over $500,000. Home insurance rates range from $5,000 to a staggering $15,000. Rent prices are exorbitant, with one-bedroom apartments demanding anywhere between $2,800 and $3,000. The cost of food is high, and education expenses are simply astronomical.
I feel SO LUCKY that I was able to pay off my mortgage in 2005. My house price has quadrupled since then, I could never afford to buy it now. It's no use owning a house which is "worth" so much more, because I couldn't find a place I could rent or buy if I sold the house.
As a Canadian. And been to Toronto many times in my life, I can fully relate to this video. Toronto is always super busy no matter where or when you are in Toronto. and the places to rent are not in the best condition.
Toronto does a good job of keeping up the illusion and convincing people that it's good and okay. Notice all the people in the comments talk bad about you but don't refute your points. Typical Torontonian mentality. It's because you're right on the money. To add to what you said, Toronto also does a good job of convincing you that there aren't better places to move to and keep you hopeless about moving. Toronto is world class in pricing only.
I lived in Rexdale for five years in the late 80s and 90s. It was a cheap, quiet and safe neighborhood. Now, I hear they call it the "Killing Fields" because there's so much crime out there now. Great analysis by the way. Loved it.
I don't live in Toronto but every time I go there I see homelessness and traffic jams. I wish you good luck In Montreal and I hope it's better than what Toronto has become.
@@jeanbolduc5818 yeah Montreal has always been a better and more interesting place to be. Even during the Great Depression people flocked to Montreal for its superior night life. I think the only reason people live in Toronto is for work.
@@stockeyWhen we moved to Montreal from Laval, my family had 2 cars, but we released how useless it was. Now we have only one car but we almost never use it!😂 Subway is amazing!
This same issue is happening to California, New York, Chicago........ It's happening to Toronto too for all the same reasons you mentioned. It's a culture shift and a crumbling infrastructure (morally and physically) and a spiritual issue as well. We moved out of the GTA and have never been happier. I'm not saying Montreal won't fall prey to some of the same issues Toronto has - it will likely too but you can stretch your dollar, enjoy the diverse food and culture as well. The winter might make you long for somewhere else but I still think you've made the right move.
Christ the winter is the best thing about Quebec if you're a real Canadian. I'll take -10 over +30 all year round. I hate the heat. Well..except for how the women dress...i love that part about the heat.
Lived in Toronto all my life and I agree with you 100%. I plan to get out of here within the next few years. Transit ( and lets take up the roads that are usable with constructions and full bike lanes on each side). Politicians are horrible. WOKE WOKE WOKE Over whelming majority of immigrants come here. Where are they going to live ?We already have a housing shortage and a homeless problem. And God help us if Olivia Chow becomes mayor, I can see her taxing us into bankruptcy
Exactly JM. The TTC is by far the WORST transit system in North America. I remember one time I was on the line 2 train coming home from work, and they forced everyone off the train at Woodbine station to wait OVER AN HOUR in -20 degree weather for shuttle buses that NEVER CAME. They then, after an hour and a half of waiting, told everyone they could go back on the train. I live around Queen and Spadina, and I work in Scarborough around the STC area, so it takes me an hour to get to work on a good day, 2 hours on a slow day. Toronto is also full of unfriendly and rude people now due to the culture of fear we live in. I went to university in Kingston, there I was used to women crossing the street when they saw me approaching, but until I moved back to Toronto, I’ve never seen them take one look at me and run. One morning (very early around 6am, I was coming home from working a 12 hour graveyard shift lol 😂) I stepped off the SRT at Kennedy station at the same time as a young woman in her 20s. She took a couple steps, looked over her shoulder at me and just tore into a full sprint. Another time, I was sitting on the line 2 train when a teenage girl was about to get on at Warden station but this girl took one look at me and just froze, letting the train pass her by. Then one night, I got on the bus around Cedarbrae Mall, and I sat down next to this elderly lady who immediately pulled her purse closer to her when I sat down, like she was scared I was going to snatch it. People are way more scared of you than they ought to be in Toronto these days, especially when you’re a man my height who’s well over 6 feet tall. Any recommendations on better cities?
at least the US has jobs that supports their citizens first. Trudeau is giving prs to literally everyone who goes to sham colleges. Here in Canada, every job will accept a temp permit for jobs meant for Canadian Citizens. Stop all immigration.
I was born in Toronto 60 years ago. It was horrible then...just can't imagine what's it's like now though you have given us a god idea. Happy for you!!!
Here on 🇳🇿 New Zealand, housing is so unaffordable that my friend, she's married, 30 years old, has a 4 year old daughter and she still lives 4 days a week with her parents and 3 days a week with her husband's family as her husband (32 years old) also lives with his parents. Neither of them can afford rent here in Auckland, let alone buy a house despite the fact they both earn about $60k per year before tax. The only reason I haven't left Auckland is because my grandmother gave me her house in Howick as an early inheritance, for me and my daughter to have a place to live in. My husband is 🇺🇸 American and if my grandma didn't give me her house as an early inheritance, we would have just moved to North Carolina where housing and cost of living is still generally quite affordable.
He is totally right! I lived in Ottawa my whole life but from April 2022 to Feb 2023 I lived in Toronto and dude....everything he said is FACTS! Waaaaay too expensive, I was regularly stuck in traffic for 2+ hours, people are rude, and you really do feel alone. Don't get me wrong its fun there and there's tons to do but it's so costly. Also it's extremely dangerous and crime is rampant. Moved back to Ottawa in Feb! Way safer and muuuuuch cheaper! Montreal is dope also!
@@carymnuhgibrilsamadalnasud1222 No it's not that. It's just the federal, provincial, and municipal government dropping the ball so hard for so long in that city. Everything so expensive along with everything else you mentioned in the video that it just makes people angry and rude cuz they're so stressed
I visited Canada for the first time two weeks ago, and the city I went to was Toronto. Was really excited to go, have heard of it for a long time, I know Drake is from there and I wanted to see how multicultural the culture of the city was. My first impression was weird. The traffic was bad, and I couldn't shake off the feeling that Toronto was trying too hard to be like New York rather than itself. It was a nice change of pace that there was ANY public transit compared to Houston, where I flew in from, but having been to New York, I noticed that it was sparse in comparison. The most useful public transit was renting a bike (in my experience). I grew up part of my childhood in Japan, Im also half-Russian half American, and I was pleasantly surprised that I could practice all of those languages A LOT when I was there. Im also learning Spanish, so I got to practice that as well, just like I do in Texas. But I absolutely noticed that everybody is very disconnected. In New York, despite everybody having their diaspora and own culture, there was always a sense of everybody is united under our American identity. Was missing a Canadian version of that in Toronto, didn't even feel like there was any sort of uniting Canadian identity. I guess in a way Toronto is like a train station - it unites a bunch of different people from all walks of life, but nobody has anything in common. Finally, everything seemed super expensive. I obviously had USD, so things were 20% cheaper for me, but the hotel room was expensive, food was expensive - even in New York you could find something cheaper that tastes just as nice without having to default to fast food. I cant imagine how expensive it must be if you are in Canada with a salary in Canadian Dollars. The conclusion I came to, is I probably wont go back to Toronto unless I find a cheap stop-over deal with Air Canada on the way to Europe or the Middle East. Because flying direct at the time I went cost $800, and with a stopover thru Florida (which is what I did) was $500. Too much. To Vancouver it costs about $300 which is a lot more reasonable. So basically what Im saying is that I'll only be in Toronto again if I find a ticket with a stopover that goes through there thats reasonable. Good luck on your move to Montreal, I know you posted this 4 weeks ago so Im gonna assume you've already posted videos from Montreal, excited to see them!
You're absolutely right about the Canadian identity. I'm an immigrant and it makes me sad because I'd like to be part of Canadian culture, however it's being replaced by excessive multiculturalism with no common identity. Everyone has its own version of English, many times you can't even understand each other with all the different accents. Small towns are still mostly Canadian but big cities are like this. It's the liberal push for multiculturalism and anti-Canadianism that created this.
@@jbc22112 Canadianism is accepting each others. I’m friends with everyone, newcomers or not. Some of them have thick accent but mostly easy to understand. If you go to different places and be friendly, people are friendly back.
@@TheJlee28 Maybe you're right. Time will tell. But I think the whole point of immigrating somewhere is that you prefer that country over your own. Your own country failed you in some way. So, you should probably have a lot of respect for the country of your preference. And try to become part of that culture. And I don't think it's happening anymore. I think Canadian culture is disappearing. It will become a mix of all. Is it a good thing? Maybe. Maybe not. All we know is that Canadian culture was successful enough that people all over the world wanted to come here.
Not all cities are for all people. It’s good to hear an honest perspective from a resident instead of the usual “Canada is perfect” attitude. Those rent prices are INSANE. Sounds like Toronto is turning into Los Angeles.
I'm from Montreal, I remember in the early 90's, going to Toronto, it always impressed me the way the city was so clean, so neat. It was very similar to Montreal in terms of diversity in communities, but they were all very respectful and people were very polite, even car drivers were more polite than Montrealers. Nowadays, I go to Toronto, it looks like Vancouver, more and more homeless people on the streets, buildings look not only old but like no maintenance done at all in years, not saying Montreal is better, we have a lot of liberals here and woke people, just look at our mayor, her last name goes well she's a plant, like a real plant does nothing, says nothing, only pushing the freaginf 2030 agenda and 15 minute city initiative to make Montreal a prison. But yeah, Toronto use to be more fun, it looks like a lot of good business has also gone and I don't blame them.
If Montreal become a 15 mn City, it would the best in the world, even Europen mayor come to visit and learn from it. New REM and Subway are very amazing.
You torontonians are responsible for the miseries by ALWAYS BLINDLY voting Liberal no matter what. Trudiot has increased the yearly immigration level from the past sustainable 250,000 to now 500,000+ per year. Where are the affordable housings for them and for us every year for that numbers?
I still remember lots of immigrants living in New Zealand moved to Canada for a better life, good money and greater opportunity. They said New Zealand is too small, small industry and has slow economy... Now several of them want to go back.
Montreal is not what I would call a good city but Toronto is impossible for young people to get started on their own...good luck in Montreal, hope you speak French
I have lived here for almost 2 years for university and I'm leaving in a few weeks. It was the worst time of my life. I would frequent Toronto 4 years ago and it's changed so much since then
Sad and true. After 40+ years we moved from downtown Toronto to Stratford in late 2019. Life is much better now. When I make infrequent trips back to Toronto I see worsening situations. It's harder to notice anything good.
I left the city way back in 2001 after almost 20 years there. I could see what was going to happen, between affordability and crime. I've never looked back! I so agree that there is no soul. a total wannabe place, with nothing of themselves. Yes Montreal has it's issues, but its alive!
I live in New Brunswick, Canada and I’m glad my cities are good and the people here are nice. Like you said about some people can curl up and sit there in Toronto and people will walk past, people in New Brunswick would probably acknowledge that and help them but maybe some people might not. Although the weather here is not the best, it’s been pretty sunny and sometimes rainy here. I’m glad I live in New Brunswick and not Toronto.
Hey, Toronto resident here. Born and raised here. I’m shocked with all the negativity in the comments, but I suppose the video asks for it. All the things you said have validity and I won’t dispute that. I too, am dismayed by the recent unsafe conditions on the TTC for example. I also think Covid has brought out the worst in people, not just here but internationally as well. I was hella depressed during Covid too, but thankfully I’m getting out of that rut. Toronto is experiencing the same issues a lot of big cities are. High rent, crime rates, many services not being up to par, etc. are not new to any big, metropolitan city. Every place has its issues. Construction needs to happen for any city to improve. Sure it’s a headache but how else will a place tangibly improve? But the length of time it takes to complete a lot of things is frustrating, so I understand. On the weather, it’s what you make of it right? There are plenty of indoor activities, facilities and options around (believe me, you just have to look) and snow at least can melt and be cleared relatively quickly here. We don’t have to worry about hurricanes, forest fires, or a lot of natural disasters that many people experience around the world. And I wonder what your definition of “soulless” is, it could mean different things to different people. And with the ethnic cliques issue, people interact with each other here all the time. I see multiracial, multiethnic groups of friends walking together, having fun, I just think people are scared to go outside whatever bubble they are in. People are people and we have to give each other a chance. This isn’t unique to Toronto either. This is just my take, and there are people who love the city too. I am sorry you feel this way and that the final straw was pulled. I hope life is good to you where ever you go. Best wishes!
Yep, I'm still optimistic about this City, though i may be biased given that i was raised here. Transit projects; while construction may take forever we DO have quite a few Transit projects here. (Ontario Line, Line 2 extension, the infamous Eglinton LRT as well as some LRT plans for Mississauga/Brampton I believe and a BRT for Durham) Rent is absurd and I would be fine with that if taxes weren't so high as well. However, that is also a Canada wide issue. Construction is with just about any major city, especially North American. But we do need to make better choices and stop letting these businesses milk our taxes. Health Care is a Canada-wide issue as well Weather i don't understand, I do get Toronto is filled with immigrants from warmer countries but I DO NOT understand people's hatred for it. I personally LOVE the weather here, mostly due to the fact I was raised here and conditioned to it, just as people from other countries are. Something I've noticed is many people form the same opinions about the weather as their parents do which is why I think there's so much hatred towards it; even from people who were born here. I love that we get hot summers and cold winters though, and I enjoy the "gloomy" weather people hate so much as well.
He is right, Toronto has become not good at all as it once was, the building going on and large immigration that keeps continuing is purely SICK, like those who are behind the agenda
I’ve lived in the GTA since 2007. Everything you have said is true. This city is going downhill. I was physically assaulted on the bus this winter. No one helped. I live in Scarborough. It’s taken me as long as three hours at times to get the core because of transit issues. Many of these random acts of violence are happening during the day! I used to love it here. Not anymore.
We moved out of Hamilton to a village around Lake Erie over 2 years ago, because we could see the homelessness and crime climbing. My niece was living in downtown Toronto, but moved back home because it wasn't safe for a young lady to live there anymore. She got a new job that isn't in downtown Toronto, so she has no reason to go back. Big cities everywhere are becoming bad news.
@Ali Koca Good sir, I live in New Jersey, USA. With family in Brooklyn, NY. New York is a bit of a sh*t hole. It's not what it used to be. I remember when they were still cleaning up the impact of 9/11 on the subway system near ground zero (ash looking dust literally everywhere in certain areas). Glad you think highly of it though. Cause the citizens don't. The 🐀 and coked up wealthy folk own NYC at this point.
@@TheAliKocaust admit you're broke and don't let the door hit your f@t a** on the way out. NY is far more expensive than Toronto. Toronto is way more fun far more attractions and cultures.
When I left Toronto in the early 90's it was am amazing city! Clean, polite, affordable and fun. It basically had none of the problems like it does today. Shame what's happened to it.
I think you take one man's views too seriously, although I'll admit housing is out of hand, especially in a country where space was never an issue to begin with.
@@TheAliKoca don't forget corruption and cynism. I mean boomers outnumber any other age class so if there are happy, you get re-elected right ? so increase the immigration so their home increase in value.
lady next door where i live passed away she used to live here for 22 years she had a two bedroom an apt. she was paying 1400 a month all inclusive now new couple moved in for 2800 a month + No Reno No Nothing was Done !!!!! Welcome to World Class City Toronto !!!! SHAME ON HR PROPERTIES
I was gonna say should have moved out to Edmonton here but it's almost the same here except the traffic is only bad in a few spots like rush hour in the downtown core and on the Anthony Henday ring road! 😵💫
I live in Washington state I swear he's talking about Seattle it's exactly like he described. Good luck doll I hope u continue to have great success and stay blessed
Congrats on getting out Brother! I'm so happy for everyone who is able to escape Toronto. I was born and raised in Toronto moved to Quebec when I was 34 two years ago. My entire family was also born and raised in Toronto and they have all fled the city as well. Mom and Dad had to move to NB because they could not affored their rent on their pensions, lmao (not funny but still lmao). My brother fled to the USA and married an American, and as I said I live in Quebec now with my wife and we are trying to move to the USA as well. I too LOVED Canada and Toronto growing up but in the last 10 years Canada is not the same country I grew up in. Toronto is NOTHING like the beautiful city I grew up in. Such a shame.
The transit system, I can fully understand. One of the main bus routes here are overly congested. On average each bus is over capacity by 10-20ppl. For the most part, it's students and they do little/not enough to accommodate this. I have heard that if you do live there to have a car, and really good insurance. I hope you find it a lot better in Montreal. Go Habs! Lol
You need a small automatic that's cheap in insurance. Like a really well taken care of Corolla from mid 2000's, or an Echo from early 2000's. You can't have any fun anymore. Anything that's manual and turboed is a nightmare now.
@@donnajean3202 where I'm at, doctors have just up and left. They didn't pass their patients on to another doctor, so a lot of elderly people are left waiting. Calling the medical line does nothing but provide false hope and if inquiring about a medical issue they tell you to go to outpatients (3-13hr wait) or see your family doctor (which many no longer have). The wait time to get a family doctor is about the same length of time, which some people don't have.
Back in the 90’s Toronto was an awesome place to live for so many reasons. All that gave Toronto a soul, made the city such a great place to live, is gone now. I realized that for the cost of living Toronto no longer holds value. I left 5 years ago and I’m glad I did. From what I’ve heard the city has just gotten worse since I left.
hello there... i also lived in toronto.. for 30 years. im now 40 and in 2020 my wife suggested to me that we make a change in our lives for the better and move to Calgary alberta to have a more comfortable & fun life because toronto was just getting way to expensive to comfortably live in and retire in... i hated the idea of it and wasn't anywhere interested in leaving toronto and everything and everyone i knew. but after a few years researching and watching youtube videos about Calgary alberta i started to realize that toronto was not the right city i wanted to live in anymore, with the extremely high rising crime in the city, super busy traffic everywhere all the time, and the crazy high housing market and like everything else you had mentioned. calgary alberta started to seem like where i needed to be.. so in 2022 we packed up everything said goodbye to everyone we knew, sold our house and left toronto for Calgary alberta with our cat, and its definitely by far been the best, best, best move we've ever made and we absolutely love it here in Calgary and will in no way be moving back to that crazy busy flat landscape toronto city we came from. not because we now live here in calgary but because our lives are now so much better, and relaxed ovet here with all the open spaces, endless bike trails, walking trails hiking, kayaking, mountain hikes, and so, so, so much more and way less crime... now some of our friends over in toronto see what we have and are trying to make the move here to.. calgary...we're now so happy and privileged to be here in this wonderful mountain city.. 😃. and were so glad we left toronto...
I get why people leave. I left about 10 years ago after being there for 10. I still miss living there. I hate almost everywhere i've lived since. The rent is the reason I feel I will never be able to live there again. Sadly there is no city I feel like i'm myself like I feel in Toronto. I don't agree about public transit. Try living in any other city and you'll see just how good the TTC is. I never had a car in Toronto and I had no trouble getting around. Bad drivers are in every city. lol Excellent and balanced video, a lot more rational than I was expecting. Best of luck in Montreal. I hear it's an amazing place to live.
Bro I lived in Toronto and finally moved west to Victoria BC. Still Paying less for rental but amazing winters and beautiful landscapes. As a RUclipsr these days major cities is just unaffordable
I agree with you. I moved here from Montreal in 1977. Toronto was clean, fresh, lively and exciting compared to Montreal at that time. Highways were good and rents were OK. Nothing has improved much or changed in Toronto since I arrived, yet there are so many more people. I don't even venture into the downtown core anymore, and I stay close to home if I go out at all. Luckily, I'm retired, so I don't have to commute, but I have my older children and a grandchild living with me due to the cost of real estate and rents. It's the only way for them to remain "middle class" and have something in the future, in my opinion. I am pretty sure most major cities are like this now. It's a little depressing for sure. 😐
Lived in TO for 3 years in Lawrence Park N. I loved the neighborhood but everything else you memtioned I agree. The cost of living in TO is insane. The quality of life everywhere else is much higher. Just sold my house this summer, moving to SW Ontario where I grew up. Mortgage free and much better. Good Luck TO. You are gunna need it.
Ali is so accurate with his analysis of Toronto. I have been reflecting on these issues myself. He has put together a very good summary. I warn my family that want to visit Toronto to be careful and aware of their surroundings. Toronto isn't as safe as it used to be. Also, Yonge Street is decrepit. I call Toronto, Gotham North. We will soon need Snowman (cousin of Batman). A problem that Ali does not realize is that he may find Montreal may have some of the same issues. The good thing is Montreal is more compact so the commute isn't as brutal, the transit system has always been better, prices are a little less expensive thanToronto, the social life is better than Toronto, Montreals' downtown core is starting to come back alive, taxes in Quebec are crippling (Ontario is catching up). The weather in Montreal is more brutal than Toronto. In Montreal people work to live in Toronto people live to work (some by choice and some by necessity).
Toronto had a subway by 1954 .When did Montreal get a subway ? We move more people in Canada's largest city in one day , than Montreal does in three days .
I used to love Toronto back in the 90's to early 2000's but it has changed quickly and lost most of its heart and sole. Montreal reminds me of Toronto in the 90's, I hope it doesn't suffer the same fate.
yeah, Toronto still had character and was fun in the 90s and 00s. Now it's just all condos and people posing like downtowners who don't even know it's real history.
Toronto night life USED to be amazing. Back in the 2000s Toronto was an amazing rave destination. Lots of underground stuff in the Drum and Bass and Hardcore scene. I'm talking parties that would go 9pm to 9am - stuff like that. It all puttered out and is frankly just a weak and watered down version of what it once was. In general I very much agree with this video. Toronto was a GREAT city like mid 90s to around 2010. Once all the foreign real estate money started coming it in ruined everything - now all the entertainment district was condos and the condo owners complained about the noise and worked to close everything down more. So the district became less fun, so people stopped going, so it just sort of dies. Toronto also used to have a heart. Now it's just glass condos and maybe there's a shoppers drug mart or a rexall in the bottom of it lol. It's just not worth living there anymore.
I'm from Montreal and the first time I went to Toronto was in September 2001 and I was there mainly to go to the Sam the Record Man record store, there was one in Montreal but everyone told me that the one in Toronto was fascinating and indeed it was worth going there and the thing that always fascinated me at that time was the incredible number of record stores that there were in the city center, it was sure that there was the sam store which was the biggest but there was a bunch of small cd shops which each had their own specialty I remember that there was one which only sold rock group albums but on import Japanese, the albums were very expensive but the sound quality was amazing, I remember buying an Elvis album that I probably still have
Im a Montrealer that lived in Toronto for 7 years. Loved it and its an amazing city. Unfortunately, the cost of living was just too much to keep carrying. So I came back to Montreal in November 2022. Thankfully i love this city as well. Welcome to Montreal Ali...hope you love it as much as i do.
I live near Toronto, but I do go down there a lot for cons and stuff, and I've generally had positive experiences there, but of course I imagine it's quite different than actually living there. All the best, bro! 👍🏻
So Toronto's basically New York City, but with landlords not doing their job for lazy/selfish reasons, and "Free healthcare" affecting income as bad as rent
@TheAliKoca Toronto is way more fun than New York. Way more and better attractions both man made and natural. Way better transit. Keep telling yourself that. By that logic compared to Toronto Montreal is smaller than a village
Actually it's mostly the other way around, tenants have far too many rights here so many potential landlords will not rent or go the Air BnB route. I certainly wouldn't want to rent out a house or apartment when I know the tenant can just stop paying rent and it can take me months to get them out. The bigger problem is there's not enough rental properties available or being built and they keep flooding the city with new arrivals to the country.
I'd say plenty of cities around the world are facing the same problems. It's not as if you're better off somewhere else, unless you move to the boonies.
Bro, I absolutely hear you - the family and I bugged out almost 5 years ago, after realizing we were running a hundred miles an hour and not getting ahead. Oh, and not enjoying so much of what the city offered because the traffic/TTC was so crappy, it wasn't worth trying to get there. I can't imagine trying to make it in Toronto as a 20-something year-old these days. Every city has it's problems and challenges, but Toronto is adrift, with no vision and no balls to make change on the part of city council. In the 5 years since we left, the traffic has gotten exponentially worse - Toronto is an hour's drive away from Toronto. Best of luck in Montreal, I miss living there and get back every chance I get. Hope it works out great for you!
Hello good morning my name is Brian Campbell I live in Atlanta Georgia United States I recently visited Toronto and Hamilton. I drive from Atlanta to my brothers house in Hamilton the driving took me by myself 20 hours. It was my first driving in Canada. Driving back to Atlanta took me 19 hours. I heard horror stories about the cost of living in Canada
Hey Ali, It’s funny you mentioned Eglinton Avenue. In 2017 I actually got a job with the TTC as an operator but of course…they offered me the bus route along that nightmare of a road. I was hoping for subway or street car. I asked myself…do I want this? Nope. I moved to Vancouver Island instead. Everything you’ve said here is 100% true.
I move to Abbotsford from Toronto recently and can't be more happier. Vancouver Island is ofcourse way more pretty but price wise it is comparable le to Abbotsford.
@rommelangus It got flooded due to USA dikes breaking a few years back but this is now addressed. Yes it is a flood zone but floods happens rarely and having the option the flood is beneficial for wildfires. Although, luckily we didn't had to. I love it here, less traffic, lower gas, lower taxes. Pros overweight the cons. Been here for a while now and I am not moving elsewhere now that speaks for itself.
It's cocaine money laundering. These owners refuse to rent to anyone, even for $2,600+/mo as tenants just aren't worth the hassle. That's not just Toronto but all of North America and probably most Western countries including the UK, Australia, etc.
I used to live in Vancouver. It has better public transport. However the rent is expensive 🫰, especially downtown. It was amazing. The lines are extending towards White rock. I was referring to sky train.
My hometown is Toronto and I'm now living in a small town. I will never go back to Toronto. Such a shame of what it's turned into. Toronto once was clean and low in crime and tourists loved it. Not anymore.
Don't blame you for leaving. Left in 1997 after 4th generation being born there. Haven't regretted it yet there's the vibe of a large city that is attractive. Everything you say is true. The cost, segregated neighborhoods, poor job prospects, violence, drove me out.
Everything is correct in this video, I grew up in GTA and left for 14 years, I came back in 2021 from Asia and I am just suffering. Rent is sky-high, good jobs are extremely difficult to find, groceries are garbage and expensive, the winters are unbearable , the environment is isolating and lonely, I just wanna leave but unfortunately my kid's are still young and they are the only reason I came back, I am not even sure the school system is any good with the woke mentality and all the crime going on, when they get older I will try to leave in a heartbeat again... not just GTA but Canada in general..
I am listening right to why you left Toronto. My friend lives near Montreal and loves it ❤❤❤maybe I will move there ? Been contemplating since 2020 settling to Canada 🇨🇦
I left Toronto over 20 years ago for many of these same reasons, nice to see nothing has changed except for the worse! The quality of life is so terrible there, the worst part is most people who live there doesn't even see it or realize it.
As a montrealer, I can say the same thing about the “non-stop” construction, like the ‘ils des tortues bridge’, which is the only bridge that links the A40 (autoroute 40), between Vaudreuil and the Island of Montreal. It’s like a two or 3 lane highway and one or two of them are blocked off last I checked. Seems to be a Canadian thing 🫠
I grew up in Montréal and lived 2 and half years in Toronto hated every second of it. I agree that the city's best days are behind it. The transport is terrible, the city is ugly and without a soul. I also agree that people have very little leisure time since everyone is so cash-strapped they constantly work. People have no lives here it's crazy. There's also few green spaces here. I also laughed every time a politician compared Toronto to New York it's such a strange model to try to emulate lol. But word of warning from a Montréalais: our current mayor for better or for worse is trying to make our city more bike-friendly. As a result many streets have been closed to traffic. It's nigh impossible to drive in le plateau these days so you better ready yourself for even worse traffic. We also have a huge corruption problem that is as bad if not worse than Toronto. Two of our mayors from 15 years ago were found guilty of taking bribes. Our infrastructure is falling apart and there is constant construction. Imho it's worse than in Toronto in this aspect. Thought Toronto weather sucks? Hope you like -20/-30 blizzards in the winter, 1 month of la slush in the spring and 35c with 60% humidity in the summer.
Bike lanes are a great add to infrastructure where it is not frozen for 2/3 of the year. The weather in Montreal will never allow for the city to be bike friendly.
i lived in T.O. for 13 years and it was great, there is so much more to the city than Yonge & Dundas. The potential to make a lot of money is definitely in Toronto not Montreal. A friend of mine lived in Montreal for 14 / 15 years and boy she struggled, she finally moved and life has greatly improved.
I agree with everything you said, especially chapter 7, everyone talks about being inclusive yet everyone here seems to stick with their own tribe. Lots of great people here but too many fake people.
Ali all we can do is just to be proud of where we want to live. I remember when I met with my aunt and uncle they absolutely insisted I move to Canada after my studies in the UK instead of the USA due to the gun violence and murder in the US. I pray that you find peace in your new home and be proud about it. 👊
I visited Toronto last month and even though I really liked my time there, there was a shit ton of construction and I did see homeless people sleeping in the middle of the sidewalk in doorways of buildings and it was in the negatives there. Traffic also was really bad when I went to Niagara Falls. Probably going to visit Montreal next so hopefully that will be better though!
I am 75 years old and lived all of my life in downtown Toronto. It was amazing during the 60's 70's 80's and 90's. Moved to a small town in 2002....it was a big change but I got used to it. Decided to move back to Toronto in 2022 to the Manulife Bldg. at Bay and Bloor and lasted 6 months. Traffic, construction, noise and condos everywhere you look. No new park space or infrastructure, Yorkville is now condo lane and the whole city is one big traffic grid. Moved back to my small town east of the city where there is everything I need, all major stores, lots of good restaurants and beautiful Sandbanks Park for swimming in the summer. Ali is 100% right on all points. Good luck in your move.
What city did you move to? I hate the high prices in Toronto, it’s all gone downhill
@@jlau04probably Belleville
Or Kingston
Picton it sounds like. Lovely,don't blame you one bit
I might as well make a guess also - Trenton .
As an American the only thing I’ve heard Canadians say is how all their cities are perfect and wonderful, especially compared to our cities. Glad to hear not all Canadians are self-righteous
Lol i don’t know what they’re basing it off of
@@TheAliKoca if you’re familiar with J.J. McCullough he breaks it down to Canadian nationalism, kind of a lazy self righteousness
@@Will0398 thats really true lol
@@TheAliKoca lol
Not really, many canadians aren't like that anymore. we realize that our cities have gone to shit.
Born and raised in Toronto, 1955. Looking at Toronto today 😢 Moved out 12 years ago. You nailed it.
As a lifelong Torontonian I have to say I agree 100% with everything you are saying. Ludicrously expensive, infrastructure sucks, mostly unfriendly and aloof people, has become dangerous and crime-ridden and don't even get me started on the traffic or politics and wokeness. It's disgusting. Having said that, I think that is the norm for most big cities these days. If you live in a metropolis expect to live in the shite.
Your message really resonates with some of us living in Toronto. Thanks for being brave and sharing your voice.
you mean USA cultural cities like Toronto . Toronto does not define Canada .... Indian and Chinese city living in ghettos ..
Same in small towns you cant escape it.
Was Rob Ford the best era?
Toronto is not a crime ridden city and I’m someone who has grown up in metro housing and has been indirectly and directly affected by the crime in this city! Yes there are pocket areas where crime is prevalent but so what! Toronto is a very safe city outside of some outlier neighborhood’s!
Cant really blame him
Yeah fr he is so right
Same
Good
fr
Fax
I've never felt more relief than when my daughter moved out of Toronto.
I live in Mississauga, been here my whole life. I’ve watched both Toronto and Mississauga crumble, it’s very sad. I’m glad you posted this video, people need to hear the truth✊🏽
Yeah I used to live in Mississauga-stan years my self
@@gerihugo7704Mississauga is still good.
@@carymnuhgibrilsamadalnasud1222 not exactly, only good for people who are scammers. I grew up here, coming back here from the US was a mistake (not of my willing)
@@gerihugo7704 where are you now?
@@harrisn3693 I moved out west. BC, That used to be nicer too dammit..now ..even traffic is getting worse and worse I questions if im still in canada?
My wife and I moved to Toronto a few years ago to start our careers. Made some money and got out after a year. It was awful. Everything was so expensive, gross and concrete. We bought a house 100 km north of Toronto just before the pandemic. Have already made $500k in equity. The quality of life in this province is tanking. I'm very concerned about the future our kids are going to face a two tier society; rich and poor, because so many of my peers are dropping out of the middle class due to home prices/inflation.
Agreed city will be left to the very rich and very poor. Middle class got the f*** out while the going was good
@JJL I don't think u get it... what hes saying is the middle class is now the poor class. In a few years, it will go back to what it once was. Poor class and rich class. There will be no middle class.
Glad you made some money in this crazy housing market 💰
…Toronto used to be a great City their Political Class try to emulate New York, I remember the 1980’s-90’s Downtown I used to enjoy every weekend going to restaurants etc.. Unfortunately those Mayors of the City they are detached from the reality only they concentrated in Downtown and special interest groups, and the way of inmigration in the last 25 years completely destroyed the identity of this City serving the Globalist Agenda,like Sweden 🇸🇪 use to be a great country now Sweden became a Cesspool of decomposition infected with lower humanity, the rape Capital of Europe and across Europe, Germany, Poland,France Etc…
@@notgivingoutname8976 Agree. The middle class is the strength of an economy. It is the tax base. And as it erodes, so does the economy. Social programs cannot continue to be financed if the tax base is gone. Mental health becomes affected. All of the elements that we've come to expect as citizens are now very much at risk. So, here we are. If you can move out, do it. Your salary might not be as high, but you housing will be cheaper (but not cheap....very little of that left now)...but the quality of life is much better.
Born and raised here, my kind sir you were spot on with every single thing you mentioned. Impeccable description. Toronto my friend is honestly a nightmare!
I've lived in Toronto almost my entire life and I agree with you. Rent and cost of living is insane and I am looking forward to leaving soon hopefully. It is impossible raising a family here.
Canada in general sucks now.
100%, I can’t even think how much stress if would be having a family here, in my mind it would be impossible
@@TheAliKoca i live in Toronto and have 3 kids. it's constant back and forth all over the place. What should be a 15 minute errand ends up being an hour
Classic government failure that for some reason has not been well addressed. Canada needs to deregulate the housing sector and become more business friendly in general. Government needs to get out of the bureaucracy business and into the infrastructure business (like a federal highway system comparable to the US Interstate system). The government let in many more immigrants than the system could handle. The Canadian economy is just not open enough or dynamic enough to deal with the millions of people recently let in to the country. The public sector unions are a huge drain on the economy as well.
Toronto has been drowning in darkness for years now there’s no hope for this city anymore what has become of it. i’m glad you are moving out of that city and I hope the next place you stay at will be better
It’s sad, toronto is no longer a city to have fun but a city to work and sleep
@@TheAliKoca it’s not true! I have lots of leisure time. One needs to make sacrifices.
I was born and raised in Toronto, spent my first 27 years here. I worked also in the USA and the UK. I am grateful to Canada and to Toronto for many things but sadly I plan to do the same as Ali in the next three to five years. Toronto once lived up to it's nickname Toronto The Good but it has been in decline for at least the last twenty years. Once a person regardless of socioeconomic standing could get a good foothold and progress in this city. Now, that is a near impossibiliy. The worst part, our politicians and bureaucrats push the lie of how great Toronto and Canada are for newcomers and immigrants. They NEVER tell them the full story. I will be out of here as soon as possible. Good for you, Ali. I hope that things are working out better for you in Montreal. At the very least, Montreal has a better public transit and subway system - which is a huge advantage!
I grew up in Toronto and last lived there a little over 30 years ago. I still go home to visit my family. I must say that a lot has changed. It's a beautiful city don't get me wrong. But I would much rather live in this little city in the States. What ya'll are paying for in rent for a 1 bedroom shoe box, I can get a nice 3 bedroom home in the suburbs over here. And what's up with the unfriendly, standoffish people over there. It's refreshing to come across a friendly face up there and unusual at the same time.
It’s how you make it. Nobody is stand-off’ish to me when I smile and say hello to everyone.
Living in Toronto all my life and I fully resonate with him. Unless you have family support the majority of people can’t afford to live on their own. Right on point as well with the TTC it’s completely atrocious.
The majority of people should work harder
@@brucewayne3892 to be around Godless woke degenerates ? You can keep Portland , San fransico , Vancouver and Toronto . Godless dumpster fires .
Try taking Hamilton Street Railway, St Catherines and Niagara Falls Transit then come back and tell me how bad the TTC is. People in Toronto have no idea how good they really have it compared to other places.
@@lancelange9377 Ste Caherines, Hamilton, Brampton , Oshawa , London are on the top 10 most high crime cities in Canada
@@jeanbolduc5818 This is true, but it doesn't change that they all suck for public transit and make the TTC look amazing in comparison.
I was born at Toronto General Hospital in 1952 and lived in Willowdale growing up. I remember going to the Ex on public transit and having a great time as a kid . I was making $2.00 per hour as a shipper/receiver in 1970 and asked for a $.50 raise and was refused. I had a friend return from B.C. where he was making $4.50 per hour so I left to make my fortune. At that time, 1971, they were talking about building a subway line across Eglinton out to the airport and I thought what a great idea, I hope they do it. Came back in 1980 and made a pretty good living in construction and lived in Richmond Hill but worked in the downtown. My commute in the morning was about 50 minutes stopping for a coffee. Coming home home at 5:00 pm was about 2.5 hours. Married a Bulgarian girl and retired in Sofia. Here we have one of the most amazing transit systems I have ever experienced, and cheap. As a senior I pay about $8.00 Canadian per month to use all transit and it goes everywhere. I only use our car to go to the Black Sea or Greece so I have to fill up once a month.
I love Toronto as a Torontonian but man they really need to get their act together if they want to be the cosmopolitan city that they claim to be.
That subway line u speak of..... They finally got around to it. 50 years on, the work has begun (its only a tram tho, not a subway line)
Native Bulgarian here. The Sofia subway definitely alleviated the traffic, but still traffic jams are atrocious in peak hours. When I was a kid some 30 years ago, there were literally 2 cars parked on the street. Now I live in the city center and parking is next to impossible. Still, it looks like the points brought up in the video are valid for most major cities. The weather especially looks quite depressing, cannot see myself living in Toronto...
It's a shame ... I lived in Toronto between 1978 and 1980, and it was an amazing city. The subways were awfully loud from the metal wheels, but otherwise transit was excellent. I heard languages from all over the world, and Toronto the Good still meant something. It was a very safe city. The book stores on Queen Street were great fun, with stock from Britain. My rented room for weekdays and my small apartment in Westdale for weekends were both affordable, and finding a place to park was hard but not impossible. The traffic was already out of hand, but people put up with having to do odd tactics to get where one needed to be. Looking at RUclips, Hamilton isn't quite what it was, either.
Nothing stays the same but we adapt.
Congratulations for moving. I live in Toronto myself and I’ve been here all my life. The city is definitely turning for the worse every year
😢
The timing of him saying soulless city and the honking was perfect. Wish you luck in your new journey 🤝🫡
I recently visited Toronto and Hamilton I my brother lives there I drove from Atlanta Georgia to Hamilton it took me 20 hours to drive there. I noticed how horrible traffic is I heard horror stories about the cost living is ridiculously expensive
As a former resident of Toronto for about 27 years, he nails it on all the points mentioned. Toronto used to be an amazing city to live in back in 2010 or so. I got out of Toronto in 2022 officially and don't regret it. I was paying 1050,00 for a bachelor apartment. The place was not bad only that the heating system was not in my control and would only be shut off "legally" in like May and sometimes it would get very hot in May some years. I would guess that same apartment costs like 1800 by now.
I live in Oakville for $1500 for a whole basement. Home was built in 2012. It's awesome. Free parking in the driveway. I guess 30 minutes away it wayyy more expensive. It's about 30 minutes to get from Oakville to Toronto
@@benjamins8082 Oakville is nice if you work nearby or have a car and don't mind driving in the heavy traffic into Toronto and back.
The only reason why you would pay that much for rent is because you have probably been living there for more than 4 years or you simply got a good deal. There is no way one would get your apartment for that price in Oakville in 2023 unless it's a friend etc. My friend lives in a 2 bedroom apartment building in downtown Toronto and she pays $1200 but she has been there for over 10 years. But landlords are now kicking out tenants that they've had for over 5 years so that they could start afresh and charge rent at market value, which is at least $1000 more in any area on the GTA.
@@SammySam316 Yes I have to agree with you. My rent always would go up after 1 year by a certain percentage allowed by the provincial government. The rent is out of control in Toronto and most of the horseshoe valley region. Soon only very wealthy people will be able to afford living in Toronto. Not to mention the cost of food and everything else continues to go up and up.
@@nickmusttravelbecause Rob Ford was the best, right?
Been living in Toronto for 28 years, and every word in this video is absolutely true
I have lived here since 2007. He is spot on.
Dang doesn’t that mean you have cheap apartment rent?
no more coke eh
I'm here since the 70s as a child,and grew up here but everything you say holds true.Everything. Can't wait to leave.
I also dont like where i live. I feel you. It's all expensive and dont forget how hard it is to find work
OMG. I am aware of the problems with the city but I could never have put it all together or said it out loud the way you did. So true. I came to toronto in 2011. Since then the city has been on a downward spiral. Its a dying city. Rotten to the core.
That’s too bad you didn’t make enough money during such a strong economy.
I've never heard a negative review of Toronto from a Toronto citizen, so this is a first. And it was very well-explained. If you want to leave, that's your choice and we'll always support you no matter where you are in the world 🙏
Well now you know. Some people like toronto, I can’t take it anymore
Well here is your second negative review - Toronto is disgusting,
Eastern Canada 🇨🇦 except for the far east are not great people in general. You get money from the west you don't deserve and you get everything from the government because of your monopoly on the election system. Canada need the electoral college system to make things fair
@@TheAliKoca love your channel
... read more
*because Canadians can’t handle reality. If you say the truth about Canada . Canadians will become very angry.*
I moved out of Toronto in 2021 after 6 years. If rent could go down, I would go back in a heartbeat. I love Toronto and still go often and it breaks me to admit that he's telling the truth.
good he said the truth as leftists be trying to silence everyone.
I went to North Bay last weekend for a wedding and it’s amazing how much friendlier the people are there than in Toronto. A lady at A&W complimented my shirt and the taxi driver was super friendly. In Toronto people are scared to make eye contact and think you’re weird if you say hi
Yeah but the problem there is they have winter for a solid extra month+ over southern Ontario. A buddy lives there and he called me a few weeks ago, down where I am (London area) the temp was 28C, up there it was 7C. No thanks!
I liked North Bay too, got really cool summers and plenty of lakes to fish in. Only downside was the mayflies infesting everywhere.
You get used to the cold I'm from up there lol
They Knew you were from the City, if your local it's the same. That Girl at the A&W does that with everyone.
was in north bay in 1986 from the uk and i loved it. lake nippissing if i remember correctly.
I lived in Switzerland my entire life and facing with the problem of unbearable costs of living, especially renting and obligatory health insurance, not only in 2023 but instead since basically forever is a struggle well known to me. Even with something that here would be considered a normal paycheck, folks still struggle to get by the end of the month. It's not the absolute perfect country everyone thinks it is, even here there are some huge problems.
You did the right move, I feel ya.
Thanks for sharing! And yea can confirm, everyone I know including myself assumed your country was just Heaven on Earth. From 🇺🇸. Sorry about everything!
Switzerland is the MOST expensive country to live in, in the WORLD!!! And it's always been this way, from what I can remember back 35 years ago!!!
I can feel that bro
@LeafBoi obligatory health insurance (which in some cases might actually costs half the price of your rent) and constant taxes and contributions sucks you dry
Switzerland is a very conservative country , with a very old neutrality act 1907 and does not make sense in 2023 in Europe , every canton has its own way , it is like more than one country , everything is about making money in Switzerland , there are so many Swiss german dialects that nobody understand each other at the governement level plus the french language.
Living in Toronto all my life and i gotta say hes 100 % right and i agree with him hes so right.
I left Toronto behind twenty years ago, believing it to be an expensive city back then. However, having settled in South Florida, I've come to realize that the cost of living here has reached unprecedented levels. Even in less desirable neighborhoods, houses are now priced at over $500,000. Home insurance rates range from $5,000 to a staggering $15,000. Rent prices are exorbitant, with one-bedroom apartments demanding anywhere between $2,800 and $3,000. The cost of food is high, and education expenses are simply astronomical.
I feel SO LUCKY that I was able to pay off my mortgage in 2005. My house price has quadrupled since then, I could never afford to buy it now. It's no use owning a house which is "worth" so much more, because I couldn't find a place I could rent or buy if I sold the house.
As a Canadian. And been to Toronto many times in my life, I can fully relate to this video. Toronto is always super busy no matter where or when you are in Toronto. and the places to rent are not in the best condition.
It’s disgusting what toronto landlords consider acceptable conditions
@@TheAliKoca I know right?!
Toronto does a good job of keeping up the illusion and convincing people that it's good and okay. Notice all the people in the comments talk bad about you but don't refute your points. Typical Torontonian mentality. It's because you're right on the money. To add to what you said, Toronto also does a good job of convincing you that there aren't better places to move to and keep you hopeless about moving. Toronto is world class in pricing only.
I lived in Rexdale for five years in the late 80s and 90s. It was a cheap, quiet and safe neighborhood. Now, I hear they call it the "Killing Fields" because there's so much crime out there now. Great analysis by the way. Loved it.
I don't live in Toronto but every time I go there I see homelessness and traffic jams. I wish you good luck In Montreal and I hope it's better than what Toronto has become.
Homeless and traffic jams exist in basically any big city. Toronto is better than Montreal in nearly every way.
@@jeanbolduc5818 yeah Montreal has always been a better and more interesting place to be. Even during the Great Depression people flocked to Montreal for its superior night life. I think the only reason people live in Toronto is for work.
@@eventusvantos2770 The transit system is way better in Montreal, you don't need your car.
@@stockeyWhen we moved to Montreal from Laval, my family had 2 cars, but we released how useless it was. Now we have only one car but we almost never use it!😂 Subway is amazing!
Ali hitting 2 birds with one stone. Making a banger video while getting his cardio on. Keep up the great work!!
Lol huge w
This same issue is happening to California, New York, Chicago........ It's happening to Toronto too for all the same reasons you mentioned. It's a culture shift and a crumbling infrastructure (morally and physically) and a spiritual issue as well. We moved out of the GTA and have never been happier. I'm not saying Montreal won't fall prey to some of the same issues Toronto has - it will likely too but you can stretch your dollar, enjoy the diverse food and culture as well. The winter might make you long for somewhere else but I still think you've made the right move.
Christ the winter is the best thing about Quebec if you're a real Canadian. I'll take -10 over +30 all year round. I hate the heat. Well..except for how the women dress...i love that part about the heat.
Lived in Toronto all my life and I agree with you 100%. I plan to get out of here within the next few years. Transit ( and lets take up the roads that are usable with constructions and full bike lanes on each side). Politicians are horrible. WOKE WOKE WOKE Over whelming majority of immigrants come here. Where are they going to live ?We already have a housing shortage and a homeless problem. And God help us if Olivia Chow becomes mayor, I can see her taxing us into bankruptcy
People in Toronto are just trash and miserable.
Yea lol, it’s only gonna get worse and more expensive, 1 bedroom rent will probably be around $3,300 in 2 years
Exactly JM. The TTC is by far the WORST transit system in North America. I remember one time I was on the line 2 train coming home from work, and they forced everyone off the train at Woodbine station to wait OVER AN HOUR in -20 degree weather for shuttle buses that NEVER CAME. They then, after an hour and a half of waiting, told everyone they could go back on the train. I live around Queen and Spadina, and I work in Scarborough around the STC area, so it takes me an hour to get to work on a good day, 2 hours on a slow day. Toronto is also full of unfriendly and rude people now due to the culture of fear we live in. I went to university in Kingston, there I was used to women crossing the street when they saw me approaching, but until I moved back to Toronto, I’ve never seen them take one look at me and run. One morning (very early around 6am, I was coming home from working a 12 hour graveyard shift lol 😂) I stepped off the SRT at Kennedy station at the same time as a young woman in her 20s. She took a couple steps, looked over her shoulder at me and just tore into a full sprint. Another time, I was sitting on the line 2 train when a teenage girl was about to get on at Warden station but this girl took one look at me and just froze, letting the train pass her by. Then one night, I got on the bus around Cedarbrae Mall, and I sat down next to this elderly lady who immediately pulled her purse closer to her when I sat down, like she was scared I was going to snatch it. People are way more scared of you than they ought to be in Toronto these days, especially when you’re a man my height who’s well over 6 feet tall. Any recommendations on better cities?
Chow is a t**t. Horrible woman.
lmao...Olivia Chow ended up becoming mayor
This is the sad reality of most major cities in the USA and Canada
multiculturalism and diversity
even montreal has had a decline (despite it being more affordable and lower crime rate)
at least the US has jobs that supports their citizens first. Trudeau is giving prs to literally everyone who goes to sham colleges. Here in Canada, every job will accept a temp permit for jobs meant for Canadian Citizens. Stop all immigration.
@@retrobluemusic does it hire people on temp permits? that is your problem.
@@algroulx1774 ah yes if they were all white the rent would just disappear
I was born in Toronto 60 years ago. It was horrible then...just can't imagine what's it's like now though you have given us a god idea. Happy for you!!!
Here on 🇳🇿 New Zealand, housing is so unaffordable that my friend, she's married, 30 years old, has a 4 year old daughter and she still lives 4 days a week with her parents and 3 days a week with her husband's family as her husband (32 years old) also lives with his parents.
Neither of them can afford rent here in Auckland, let alone buy a house despite the fact they both earn about $60k per year before tax.
The only reason I haven't left Auckland is because my grandmother gave me her house in Howick as an early inheritance, for me and my daughter to have a place to live in.
My husband is 🇺🇸 American and if my grandma didn't give me her house as an early inheritance, we would have just moved to North Carolina where housing and cost of living is still generally quite affordable.
Auckland seems very nice.
put your house on rent to your friend and move to America with your American husband.
He is totally right! I lived in Ottawa my whole life but from April 2022 to Feb 2023 I lived in Toronto and dude....everything he said is FACTS! Waaaaay too expensive, I was regularly stuck in traffic for 2+ hours, people are rude, and you really do feel alone. Don't get me wrong its fun there and there's tons to do but it's so costly. Also it's extremely dangerous and crime is rampant. Moved back to Ottawa in Feb! Way safer and muuuuuch cheaper! Montreal is dope also!
I'm assuming the people in Ottawa, Montreal etc are much nicer than the people in Toronto.
@@carymnuhgibrilsamadalnasud1222 a lot nicer! It's shocking to be honest
@@AKN94 I feel like certain groups of ethnic and racial groups have ruined Toronto.
@@carymnuhgibrilsamadalnasud1222 No it's not that. It's just the federal, provincial, and municipal government dropping the ball so hard for so long in that city. Everything so expensive along with everything else you mentioned in the video that it just makes people angry and rude cuz they're so stressed
@@AKN94 no there's also other reasons why people are rude and aggressive.
I visited Canada for the first time two weeks ago, and the city I went to was Toronto. Was really excited to go, have heard of it for a long time, I know Drake is from there and I wanted to see how multicultural the culture of the city was.
My first impression was weird. The traffic was bad, and I couldn't shake off the feeling that Toronto was trying too hard to be like New York rather than itself. It was a nice change of pace that there was ANY public transit compared to Houston, where I flew in from, but having been to New York, I noticed that it was sparse in comparison. The most useful public transit was renting a bike (in my experience).
I grew up part of my childhood in Japan, Im also half-Russian half American, and I was pleasantly surprised that I could practice all of those languages A LOT when I was there. Im also learning Spanish, so I got to practice that as well, just like I do in Texas. But I absolutely noticed that everybody is very disconnected. In New York, despite everybody having their diaspora and own culture, there was always a sense of everybody is united under our American identity. Was missing a Canadian version of that in Toronto, didn't even feel like there was any sort of uniting Canadian identity. I guess in a way Toronto is like a train station - it unites a bunch of different people from all walks of life, but nobody has anything in common.
Finally, everything seemed super expensive. I obviously had USD, so things were 20% cheaper for me, but the hotel room was expensive, food was expensive - even in New York you could find something cheaper that tastes just as nice without having to default to fast food. I cant imagine how expensive it must be if you are in Canada with a salary in Canadian Dollars.
The conclusion I came to, is I probably wont go back to Toronto unless I find a cheap stop-over deal with Air Canada on the way to Europe or the Middle East. Because flying direct at the time I went cost $800, and with a stopover thru Florida (which is what I did) was $500. Too much. To Vancouver it costs about $300 which is a lot more reasonable. So basically what Im saying is that I'll only be in Toronto again if I find a ticket with a stopover that goes through there thats reasonable.
Good luck on your move to Montreal, I know you posted this 4 weeks ago so Im gonna assume you've already posted videos from Montreal, excited to see them!
yea toronto is just a city of hate
You're absolutely right about the Canadian identity. I'm an immigrant and it makes me sad because I'd like to be part of Canadian culture, however it's being replaced by excessive multiculturalism with no common identity. Everyone has its own version of English, many times you can't even understand each other with all the different accents. Small towns are still mostly Canadian but big cities are like this. It's the liberal push for multiculturalism and anti-Canadianism that created this.
@@jbc22112 Canadianism is accepting each others. I’m friends with everyone, newcomers or not. Some of them have thick accent but mostly easy to understand.
If you go to different places and be friendly, people are friendly back.
You probably just stay downtown. Try to explore different places. Toronto is huge.
@@TheJlee28 Maybe you're right. Time will tell. But I think the whole point of immigrating somewhere is that you prefer that country over your own. Your own country failed you in some way. So, you should probably have a lot of respect for the country of your preference. And try to become part of that culture. And I don't think it's happening anymore. I think Canadian culture is disappearing. It will become a mix of all. Is it a good thing? Maybe. Maybe not. All we know is that Canadian culture was successful enough that people all over the world wanted to come here.
Much respect for you Ali, and I wish you well with your move to Montreal!!!!! 💯🇨🇦
Not all cities are for all people. It’s good to hear an honest perspective from a resident instead of the usual “Canada is perfect” attitude. Those rent prices are INSANE. Sounds like Toronto is turning into Los Angeles.
LA is better at least they got good weather and good jobs that they don't dump to foreigners in a drop of a hat.
I'm from Montreal, I remember in the early 90's, going to Toronto, it always impressed me the way the city was so clean, so neat. It was very similar to Montreal in terms of diversity in communities, but they were all very respectful and people were very polite, even car drivers were more polite than Montrealers. Nowadays, I go to Toronto, it looks like Vancouver, more and more homeless people on the streets, buildings look not only old but like no maintenance done at all in years, not saying Montreal is better, we have a lot of liberals here and woke people, just look at our mayor, her last name goes well she's a plant, like a real plant does nothing, says nothing, only pushing the freaginf 2030 agenda and 15 minute city initiative to make Montreal a prison. But yeah, Toronto use to be more fun, it looks like a lot of good business has also gone and I don't blame them.
you are non sense .
Chapter 4 when he moves to Mtl🤨
Don't forget her bike lanes taking up entire streets
If Montreal become a 15 mn City, it would the best in the world, even Europen mayor come to visit and learn from it. New REM and Subway are very amazing.
Construction literally never ends in Montreal. He makes some very valid points, but Montreal isn't much better imo
As a Toronto citizen, Ali you need to stop
SPITTIN FACTS
Facts are all I know how to spit
You torontonians are responsible for the miseries by ALWAYS BLINDLY voting Liberal no matter what. Trudiot has increased the yearly immigration level from the past sustainable 250,000 to now 500,000+ per year. Where are the affordable housings for them and for us every year for that numbers?
Spitting salty lies*
@@eventusvantos2770 have you been to toronto? it feels like the donetsk of north america
@@eventusvantos2770clearly you never stepped in Toronto.
I still remember lots of immigrants living in New Zealand moved to Canada for a better life, good money and greater opportunity. They said New Zealand is too small, small industry and has slow economy... Now several of them want to go back.
In all seriousness I hope your doing better after leaving this depressing place
Thanks dude, Montreal is so much better
@@TheAliKoca good to hear
I thought Montreal wasn’t so great, but compared to how you described Toronto, it doesn’t seem so bad lol
Montreal is not what I would call a good city but Toronto is impossible for young people to get started on their own...good luck in Montreal, hope you speak French
@Ali Koca funny, I left Montreal for basically the same reasons.... hope it's better for you
I have lived here for almost 2 years for university and I'm leaving in a few weeks. It was the worst time of my life. I would frequent Toronto 4 years ago and it's changed so much since then
I really loved this video:
.Your confidence
.The tone of your voice
.Integration of your ideas
❤❤
Sad and true. After 40+ years we moved from downtown Toronto to Stratford in late 2019. Life is much better now. When I make infrequent trips back to Toronto I see worsening situations. It's harder to notice anything good.
Stratford is in Ontario?
@@carymnuhgibrilsamadalnasud1222 Yes.
I left the city way back in 2001 after almost 20 years there. I could see what was going to happen, between affordability and crime. I've never looked back! I so agree that there is no soul. a total wannabe place, with nothing of themselves. Yes Montreal has it's issues, but its alive!
I live in New Brunswick, Canada and I’m glad my cities are good and the people here are nice. Like you said about some people can curl up and sit there in Toronto and people will walk past, people in New Brunswick would probably acknowledge that and help them but maybe some people might not. Although the weather here is not the best, it’s been pretty sunny and sometimes rainy here. I’m glad I live in New Brunswick and not Toronto.
Good but we love Toronto.
Hey, Toronto resident here. Born and raised here. I’m shocked with all the negativity in the comments, but I suppose the video asks for it. All the things you said have validity and I won’t dispute that. I too, am dismayed by the recent unsafe conditions on the TTC for example. I also think Covid has brought out the worst in people, not just here but internationally as well. I was hella depressed during Covid too, but thankfully I’m getting out of that rut. Toronto is experiencing the same issues a lot of big cities are. High rent, crime rates, many services not being up to par, etc. are not new to any big, metropolitan city. Every place has its issues. Construction needs to happen for any city to improve. Sure it’s a headache but how else will a place tangibly improve? But the length of time it takes to complete a lot of things is frustrating, so I understand. On the weather, it’s what you make of it right? There are plenty of indoor activities, facilities and options around (believe me, you just have to look) and snow at least can melt and be cleared relatively quickly here. We don’t have to worry about hurricanes, forest fires, or a lot of natural disasters that many people experience around the world. And I wonder what your definition of “soulless” is, it could mean different things to different people. And with the ethnic cliques issue, people interact with each other here all the time. I see multiracial, multiethnic groups of friends walking together, having fun, I just think people are scared to go outside whatever bubble they are in. People are people and we have to give each other a chance. This isn’t unique to Toronto either. This is just my take, and there are people who love the city too. I am sorry you feel this way and that the final straw was pulled. I hope life is good to you where ever you go. Best wishes!
Yep, I'm still optimistic about this City, though i may be biased given that i was raised here.
Transit projects; while construction may take forever we DO have quite a few Transit projects here. (Ontario Line, Line 2 extension, the infamous Eglinton LRT as well as some LRT plans for Mississauga/Brampton I believe and a BRT for Durham)
Rent is absurd and I would be fine with that if taxes weren't so high as well. However, that is also a Canada wide issue.
Construction is with just about any major city, especially North American. But we do need to make better choices and stop letting these businesses milk our taxes.
Health Care is a Canada-wide issue as well
Weather i don't understand, I do get Toronto is filled with immigrants from warmer countries but I DO NOT understand people's hatred for it. I personally LOVE the weather here, mostly due to the fact I was raised here and conditioned to it, just as people from other countries are. Something I've noticed is many people form the same opinions about the weather as their parents do which is why I think there's so much hatred towards it; even from people who were born here. I love that we get hot summers and cold winters though, and I enjoy the "gloomy" weather people hate so much as well.
Toronto is trash.
Toronto has always been a copy of USA culture , not Canada .
He is right, Toronto has become not good at all as it once was, the building going on and large immigration that keeps continuing is purely SICK, like those who are behind the agenda
It's because we've been living here. It's awful.
I’ve lived in the GTA since 2007. Everything you have said is true. This city is going downhill.
I was physically assaulted on the bus this winter. No one helped.
I live in Scarborough. It’s taken me as long as three hours at times to get the core because of transit issues.
Many of these random acts of violence are happening during the day!
I used to love it here. Not anymore.
are you single? i'll protect you
Never knew they were still white people in Scarborough.
Everytime a place turns into a "multicultural" city, it always ends up in SH!T.
@@carymnuhgibrilsamadalnasud1222 I thought I was the only one who thought this...
Sad to see how it deteriorated to this
We moved out of Hamilton to a village around Lake Erie over 2 years ago, because we could see the homelessness and crime climbing. My niece was living in downtown Toronto, but moved back home because it wasn't safe for a young lady to live there anymore. She got a new job that isn't in downtown Toronto, so she has no reason to go back. Big cities everywhere are becoming bad news.
Live away from downtown and it’s fine.
As A Canadian who lives in toronto I can confirm those prices for rent are like that. I will miss a youtuber who lives in toronto!
Rent is so damn high it takes away from the rest of the experience. It’s not like new york where the city is amazing, it’s a village compared to it
@Ali Koca Good sir, I live in New Jersey, USA. With family in Brooklyn, NY. New York is a bit of a sh*t hole. It's not what it used to be. I remember when they were still cleaning up the impact of 9/11 on the subway system near ground zero (ash looking dust literally everywhere in certain areas). Glad you think highly of it though. Cause the citizens don't. The 🐀 and coked up wealthy folk own NYC at this point.
@@TheAliKocaust admit you're broke and don't let the door hit your f@t a** on the way out. NY is far more expensive than Toronto. Toronto is way more fun far more attractions and cultures.
@@TheAliKocajust admit you're broke and don't let the door hit you on the way out
@@TheAliKocaNY is far more expensive than Toronto. Toronto is way more fun... far more attractions and cultures.
When I left Toronto in the early 90's it was am amazing city! Clean, polite, affordable and fun. It basically had none of the problems like it does today. Shame what's happened to it.
I think you take one man's views too seriously, although I'll admit housing is out of hand, especially in a country where space was never an issue to begin with.
Greed and bad politics
@@TheAliKoca don't forget corruption and cynism. I mean boomers outnumber any other age class so if there are happy, you get re-elected right ? so increase the immigration so their home increase in value.
We came from Ottawa in 1994 and it was OK.
lady next door where i live passed away she used to live here for 22 years she had a two bedroom an apt. she was paying 1400 a month all inclusive
now new couple moved in for 2800 a month + No Reno No Nothing was Done !!!!!
Welcome to World Class City Toronto !!!!
SHAME ON HR PROPERTIES
This is not just a vlog, this is a pain a scar that Toronto has become. Cannot believe this cool city would turn this trash really quick.
I was gonna say should have moved out to Edmonton here but it's almost the same here except the traffic is only bad in a few spots like rush hour in the downtown core and on the Anthony Henday ring road! 😵💫
Liberals.
This is very much a relevant and applicable description of Vancouver as well, on every single point.
OMG, I can support every single word. That's exactly why, word-for-word, I moved to Montreal 2 years ago after 20 (!) years in Toronto.
Toronto is now 51.9% foreign born residents. There is no other major city on earth, other than Miami, that has a majority foreign born population
The difference is that miami has only one race who is foreign born and they are hispanics ...
I live in Washington state I swear he's talking about Seattle it's exactly like he described. Good luck doll I hope u continue to have great success and stay blessed
Congrats on getting out Brother! I'm so happy for everyone who is able to escape Toronto. I was born and raised in Toronto moved to Quebec when I was 34 two years ago. My entire family was also born and raised in Toronto and they have all fled the city as well. Mom and Dad had to move to NB because they could not affored their rent on their pensions, lmao (not funny but still lmao). My brother fled to the USA and married an American, and as I said I live in Quebec now with my wife and we are trying to move to the USA as well.
I too LOVED Canada and Toronto growing up but in the last 10 years Canada is not the same country I grew up in. Toronto is NOTHING like the beautiful city I grew up in. Such a shame.
The transit system, I can fully understand. One of the main bus routes here are overly congested. On average each bus is over capacity by 10-20ppl. For the most part, it's students and they do little/not enough to accommodate this. I have heard that if you do live there to have a car, and really good insurance. I hope you find it a lot better in Montreal. Go Habs! Lol
Thanks lol. And at this rate I actually might become a habs fan
You need a small automatic that's cheap in insurance. Like a really well taken care of Corolla from mid 2000's, or an Echo from early 2000's. You can't have any fun anymore. Anything that's manual and turboed is a nightmare now.
Two people on here today say there are no family doctors in Montreal and you have to wait 7 years to get a doctor.
@@donnajean3202 where I'm at, doctors have just up and left. They didn't pass their patients on to another doctor, so a lot of elderly people are left waiting. Calling the medical line does nothing but provide false hope and if inquiring about a medical issue they tell you to go to outpatients (3-13hr wait) or see your family doctor (which many no longer have). The wait time to get a family doctor is about the same length of time, which some people don't have.
Back in the 90’s Toronto was an awesome place to live for so many reasons. All that gave Toronto a soul, made the city such a great place to live, is gone now. I realized that for the cost of living Toronto no longer holds value. I left 5 years ago and I’m glad I did. From what I’ve heard the city has just gotten worse since I left.
It is gonna continue to get even worse sadly, you made the right call by leaving
Bullseye!
Are you kidding? Toronto was a boring, soulless city even back then. The only difference is that it was cheaper back then
@@mindgames7411 To each their own experience. I have plenty of great memories of 90's Toronto.
@@TheAliKoca it’s too bad you didn’t have good experience here. It’s still going strong for us and my hood is full of friendly and nice people.
hello there... i also lived in toronto.. for 30 years. im now 40 and in 2020 my wife suggested to me that we make a change in our lives for the better and move to Calgary alberta to have a more comfortable & fun life because toronto was just getting way to expensive to comfortably live in and retire in... i hated the idea of it and wasn't anywhere interested in leaving toronto and everything and everyone i knew. but after a few years researching and watching youtube videos about Calgary alberta i started to realize that toronto was not the right city i wanted to live in anymore, with the extremely high rising crime in the city, super busy traffic everywhere all the time, and the crazy high housing market and like everything else you had mentioned. calgary alberta started to seem like where i needed to be.. so in 2022 we packed up everything said goodbye to everyone we knew, sold our house and left toronto for Calgary alberta with our cat, and its definitely by far been the best, best, best move we've ever made and we absolutely love it here in Calgary and will in no way be moving back to that crazy busy flat landscape toronto city we came from. not because we now live here in calgary but because our lives are now so much better, and relaxed ovet here with all the open spaces, endless bike trails, walking trails hiking, kayaking, mountain hikes, and so, so, so much more and way less crime... now some of our friends over in toronto see what we have and are trying to make the move here to.. calgary...we're now so happy and privileged to be here in this wonderful mountain city.. 😃. and were so glad we left toronto...
And you're not so far from Banff ....
@@susank4878 ... so true 😃
I think a lot of these problems mentioned are more and more common in every city/town I've seen in Ontario, and probably Canada.
Exactly. Some people need to see for themsleves.
Tbh in Montreal it really isn’t that bad, the only city in Canada I’d even consider living in right now
Manitoba's cities are straight up sadness. Panhandlers everywhere.
@@TheAliKoca Montreal is bad lol. Rent is wild here. Maybe not as wild... but it's still crazy.
No.
I get why people leave. I left about 10 years ago after being there for 10. I still miss living there. I hate almost everywhere i've lived since. The rent is the reason I feel I will never be able to live there again. Sadly there is no city I feel like i'm myself like I feel in Toronto. I don't agree about public transit. Try living in any other city and you'll see just how good the TTC is. I never had a car in Toronto and I had no trouble getting around. Bad drivers are in every city. lol Excellent and balanced video, a lot more rational than I was expecting. Best of luck in Montreal. I hear it's an amazing place to live.
Bro I lived in Toronto and finally moved west to Victoria BC. Still Paying less for rental but amazing winters and beautiful landscapes. As a RUclipsr these days major cities is just unaffordable
I agree with you. I moved here from Montreal in 1977. Toronto was clean, fresh, lively and exciting compared to Montreal at that time. Highways were good and rents were OK. Nothing has improved much or changed in Toronto since I arrived, yet there are so many more people. I don't even venture into the downtown core anymore, and I stay close to home if I go out at all. Luckily, I'm retired, so I don't have to commute, but I have my older children and a grandchild living with me due to the cost of real estate and rents. It's the only way for them to remain "middle class" and have something in the future, in my opinion. I am pretty sure most major cities are like this now. It's a little depressing for sure. 😐
Hope you're doing well in your new home, king.
Lived in TO for 3 years in Lawrence Park N. I loved the neighborhood but everything else you memtioned I agree.
The cost of living in TO is insane. The quality of life everywhere else is much higher.
Just sold my house this summer, moving to SW Ontario where I grew up. Mortgage free and much better.
Good Luck TO. You are gunna need it.
Ali is so accurate with his analysis of Toronto. I have been reflecting on these issues myself. He has put together a very good summary. I warn my family that want to visit Toronto to be careful and aware of their surroundings. Toronto isn't as safe as it used to be. Also, Yonge Street is decrepit. I call Toronto, Gotham North. We will soon need Snowman (cousin of Batman). A problem that Ali does not realize is that he may find Montreal may have some of the same issues. The good thing is Montreal is more compact so the commute isn't as brutal, the transit system has always been better, prices are a little less expensive thanToronto, the social life is better than Toronto, Montreals' downtown core is starting to come back alive, taxes in Quebec are crippling (Ontario is catching up). The weather in Montreal is more brutal than Toronto. In Montreal people work to live in Toronto people live to work (some by choice and some by necessity).
Montreal used to have very cheap rent, not sure about now..
Toronto had a subway by 1954 .When did Montreal get a subway ? We move more people in Canada's largest city in one day , than Montreal does in three days .
@@josephforest7605 Nobody cares! It's what have you done for me lately.
I used to love Toronto back in the 90's to early 2000's but it has changed quickly and lost most of its heart and sole. Montreal reminds me of Toronto in the 90's, I hope it doesn't suffer the same fate.
yeah, Toronto still had character and was fun in the 90s and 00s. Now it's just all condos and people posing like downtowners who don't even know it's real history.
Toronto night life USED to be amazing. Back in the 2000s Toronto was an amazing rave destination. Lots of underground stuff in the Drum and Bass and Hardcore scene. I'm talking parties that would go 9pm to 9am - stuff like that. It all puttered out and is frankly just a weak and watered down version of what it once was. In general I very much agree with this video. Toronto was a GREAT city like mid 90s to around 2010. Once all the foreign real estate money started coming it in ruined everything - now all the entertainment district was condos and the condo owners complained about the noise and worked to close everything down more. So the district became less fun, so people stopped going, so it just sort of dies.
Toronto also used to have a heart. Now it's just glass condos and maybe there's a shoppers drug mart or a rexall in the bottom of it lol. It's just not worth living there anymore.
I'm from Montreal and the first time I went to Toronto was in September 2001 and I was there mainly to go to the Sam the Record Man record store, there was one in Montreal but everyone told me that the one in Toronto was fascinating and indeed it was worth going there and the thing that always fascinated me at that time was the incredible number of record stores that there were in the city center, it was sure that there was the sam store which was the biggest but there was a bunch of small cd shops which each had their own specialty I remember that there was one which only sold rock group albums but on import Japanese, the albums were very expensive but the sound quality was amazing, I remember buying an Elvis album that I probably still have
Im a Montrealer that lived in Toronto for 7 years. Loved it and its an amazing city. Unfortunately, the cost of living was just too much to keep carrying. So I came back to Montreal in November 2022. Thankfully i love this city as well. Welcome to Montreal Ali...hope you love it as much as i do.
I lived in Toronto for 1 year and I really like it. But I prefer Montreal
I live near Toronto, but I do go down there a lot for cons and stuff, and I've generally had positive experiences there, but of course I imagine it's quite different than actually living there. All the best, bro! 👍🏻
Have you been to Anime North
bro got the drah man subtitles
i applaud you for putting effort into the background not just subway surfers
So Toronto's basically New York City, but with landlords not doing their job for lazy/selfish reasons, and "Free healthcare" affecting income as bad as rent
And nowhere near as fun as new york, it’s an illusion. Compared to new york, toronto is a village
@TheAliKoca Toronto is way more fun than New York. Way more and better attractions both man made and natural. Way better transit. Keep telling yourself that. By that logic compared to Toronto Montreal is smaller than a village
@@eventusvantos2770 Montreal is a great summer hippie town. That's it. It's a big Kensington Market.
Actually it's mostly the other way around, tenants have far too many rights here so many potential landlords will not rent or go the Air BnB route. I certainly wouldn't want to rent out a house or apartment when I know the tenant can just stop paying rent and it can take me months to get them out. The bigger problem is there's not enough rental properties available or being built and they keep flooding the city with new arrivals to the country.
Toronto is much more of a Chicago than NYC
Public transit in Toronto is still probably better than 90% of American cities though.
Probably but not the big cities, other big us cities all have better public transit
@@TheAliKocalol no they don't. Toronto literally has the best public transit in North America
I left 10 years ago today. Moved to Montreal. Even Montreal became unbearable, now I live on another continent altogether.
Which continent and which country
@@pyschoclaw9330 Africa, Senegal.
@@spades911 you know its bad when you're going back to Senegal because of how much of a sh!tshow the country is lol
@@pyschoclaw9330 I didn’t move back, I’m 100% French Canadian and immigrated there. I’m actually eligible for my citizenship here soon. Wild.
sorry for the misunderstanding still crazy though
I'd say plenty of cities around the world are facing the same problems. It's not as if you're better off somewhere else, unless you move to the boonies.
I love the boonies :)
Bro, I absolutely hear you - the family and I bugged out almost 5 years ago, after realizing we were running a hundred miles an hour and not getting ahead. Oh, and not enjoying so much of what the city offered because the traffic/TTC was so crappy, it wasn't worth trying to get there. I can't imagine trying to make it in Toronto as a 20-something year-old these days. Every city has it's problems and challenges, but Toronto is adrift, with no vision and no balls to make change on the part of city council. In the 5 years since we left, the traffic has gotten exponentially worse - Toronto is an hour's drive away from Toronto.
Best of luck in Montreal, I miss living there and get back every chance I get. Hope it works out great for you!
Hello good morning my name is Brian Campbell I live in Atlanta Georgia United States I recently visited Toronto and Hamilton. I drive from Atlanta to my brothers house in Hamilton the driving took me by myself 20 hours. It was my first driving in Canada. Driving back to Atlanta took me 19 hours. I heard horror stories about the cost of living in Canada
Hey Ali,
It’s funny you mentioned Eglinton Avenue. In 2017 I actually got a job with the TTC as an operator but of course…they offered me the bus route along that nightmare of a road. I was hoping for subway or street car. I asked myself…do I want this? Nope. I moved to Vancouver Island instead. Everything you’ve said here is 100% true.
I move to Abbotsford from Toronto recently and can't be more happier. Vancouver Island is ofcourse way more pretty but price wise it is comparable le to Abbotsford.
@@brownnomad6805is Abbotsford lower terrain flood prone city east of Vancouver city? 😮😮
@rommelangus It got flooded due to USA dikes breaking a few years back but this is now addressed. Yes it is a flood zone but floods happens rarely and having the option the flood is beneficial for wildfires. Although, luckily we didn't had to. I love it here, less traffic, lower gas, lower taxes. Pros overweight the cons. Been here for a while now and I am not moving elsewhere now that speaks for itself.
I wish I could shake this man's hand just for making this video
It's cocaine money laundering. These owners refuse to rent to anyone, even for $2,600+/mo as tenants just aren't worth the hassle. That's not just Toronto but all of North America and probably most Western countries including the UK, Australia, etc.
I never been to Toronto and now I never want to after what you said.
They ruined the beautiful city
@@TheAliKocano they didn't. It's still beautiful you're just broke
I used to live in Vancouver. It has better public transport. However the rent is expensive 🫰, especially downtown. It was amazing. The lines are extending towards White rock. I was referring to sky train.
My hometown is Toronto and I'm now living in a small town. I will never go back to Toronto. Such a shame of what it's turned into. Toronto once was clean and low in crime and tourists loved it. Not anymore.
Don't blame you for leaving. Left in 1997 after 4th generation being born there. Haven't regretted it yet there's the vibe of a large city that is attractive. Everything you say is true. The cost, segregated neighborhoods, poor job prospects, violence, drove me out.
Everything is correct in this video, I grew up in GTA and left for 14 years, I came back in 2021 from Asia and I am just suffering. Rent is sky-high, good jobs are extremely difficult to find, groceries are garbage and expensive, the winters are unbearable , the environment is isolating and lonely, I just wanna leave but unfortunately my kid's are still young and they are the only reason I came back, I am not even sure the school system is any good with the woke mentality and all the crime going on, when they get older I will try to leave in a heartbeat again... not just GTA but Canada in general..
I am listening right to why you left Toronto. My friend lives near Montreal and loves it ❤❤❤maybe I will move there ? Been contemplating since 2020 settling to Canada 🇨🇦
I live in Montreal and I love it.
@@charlie.j6446 thanks for your feedback Charlie
I left Toronto over 20 years ago for many of these same reasons, nice to see nothing has changed except for the worse! The quality of life is so terrible there, the worst part is most people who live there doesn't even see it or realize it.
Oh we do. Yet at the same time there are things present that counter the negatives.
@@benizjammmin you must be an American who can get work in US companies easily here...
As a montrealer, I can say the same thing about the “non-stop” construction, like the ‘ils des tortues bridge’, which is the only bridge that links the A40 (autoroute 40), between Vaudreuil and the Island of Montreal. It’s like a two or 3 lane highway and one or two of them are blocked off last I checked.
Seems to be a Canadian thing 🫠
It's probably even worse in Montreal with the mob infiltrating projects
Also Eglinton Street in the video could be compared to Pie IX.
Thats true@@gucciblackbaby5867
Seattle traffic, any time, any day, any time of day. Where are all these people GOING?????
God dame ..you bloody NAILED IT MAN ..😊
I grew up in Montréal and lived 2 and half years in Toronto hated every second of it. I agree that the city's best days are behind it. The transport is terrible, the city is ugly and without a soul. I also agree that people have very little leisure time since everyone is so cash-strapped they constantly work. People have no lives here it's crazy. There's also few green spaces here. I also laughed every time a politician compared Toronto to New York it's such a strange model to try to emulate lol. But word of warning from a Montréalais: our current mayor for better or for worse is trying to make our city more bike-friendly. As a result many streets have been closed to traffic. It's nigh impossible to drive in le plateau these days so you better ready yourself for even worse traffic. We also have a huge corruption problem that is as bad if not worse than Toronto. Two of our mayors from 15 years ago were found guilty of taking bribes. Our infrastructure is falling apart and there is constant construction. Imho it's worse than in Toronto in this aspect. Thought Toronto weather sucks? Hope you like -20/-30 blizzards in the winter, 1 month of la slush in the spring and 35c with 60% humidity in the summer.
Exactement ce que j'allais dire...
The bike-friendly infrastructure is what we need!
Bike lanes are a great add to infrastructure where it is not frozen for 2/3 of the year. The weather in Montreal will never allow for the city to be bike friendly.
i lived in T.O. for 13 years and it was great, there is so much more to the city than Yonge & Dundas. The potential to make a lot of money is definitely in Toronto not Montreal. A friend of mine lived in Montreal for 14 / 15 years and boy she struggled, she finally moved and life has greatly improved.
Yeah he's really in for a treat
I agree with everything you said, especially chapter 7, everyone talks about being inclusive yet everyone here seems to stick with their own tribe. Lots of great people here but too many fake people.
You nail it man , on spot...the nice years are gone...forever, I am leaving in two months, after 34 years of great memories, "from other past times"
Ali all we can do is just to be proud of where we want to live. I remember when I met with my aunt and uncle they absolutely insisted I move to Canada after my studies in the UK instead of the USA due to the gun violence and murder in the US. I pray that you find peace in your new home and be proud about it. 👊
I visited Toronto last month and even though I really liked my time there, there was a shit ton of construction and I did see homeless people sleeping in the middle of the sidewalk in doorways of buildings and it was in the negatives there. Traffic also was really bad when I went to Niagara Falls. Probably going to visit Montreal next so hopefully that will be better though!