| location:
Suburbs of Vancouver! One of the hottest real estate markets anywhere... my observation, less than one fourth the property tax for comparable U.S. areas.
However, they have a lot of "sin taxes" but their rents for non owners are often much less than 1/4 portion of a modest income..all these factors conspire to make an accurate overall tax/cost of living comparison difficult, but i know one thing...
the govt used to function quite well as a tiny portion of GDP when I was a kid. They still minted the coins, built dams, bridges and roads, even made corrupt deals, did favors, gave corporate welfare, subsidized farmers... they even had "relief programs" waay before LBJ's "great society" to eradicate poverty (hah!) and even had overpriced military contracts for illegitimate or unnecessary wars...BUT THEY DID IT FOR LESS ! ! ! !
Today, the govt is sucking us dry. Have you ever heard the national tax day announced on the radio? Its the day some anti-tax group says is the first day of the year (sometime in June) you actually begin to work for yourself instead of Uncle Sam.
The date gets later every year. |