Best, Most Affordable "bedroom Community" Around Calgary

[Guest 420FLYFISHIN]

why apologize? some one asked for peoples opinions and i gave mine. I know a few guys in the NE and it looks nice, especially having to get a police back ground check just to pick your kid up form school because they had 2 pedophiles and 10 drunks trolling the school yard last week.

 

or how about the higher chances of a B&E of your car or house? Its just statistics of why i would NEVER cross deerfoot to live, i dont even like shopping over there!

 

but thats my 2C

[Hawgstoppah]

I lived in MacKenzie Lake when we lived in calgary. I wouldn't trade that for the world. Great area. *DEEP* southeast is great. If I had to drive through that fakkin city from the NW just to go fishing I would not have done it half as much I am sure.

 

Lived in Dover for a year... was the first house... found out that we might as well just leave the car windows down, saved a lot on glass money. Left nothing in the car at all. It's just easier that way.

 

PS: dover, forest lawn, and anything within a 5 mile radius of THAT area is really, really, full of crime and scumbags.

[graphicguy]

only an idiot would willingly move to the NE/SE! Stick to the DMZ (de militarized zone), no gang shooting and much nicer communities. I will never live on the east side of Deerfoot or south of down town. I LOVE it in the NW

 

I live on the east side and you imply I'm an idiot........and what do you know about militarized zones? You have first hand experience? As a retired member of the armed forces I find your comments insulting to our forces. You my friend should choose your words more carefully

 

[Harps]

I don't like anything east of Hwy 22.

[ÜberFly]

Word!

 

P

 

P.S. Though there are some idiots that willingly move to the NW as well!

 

only an idiot would willingly move to the NE/SE! Stick to the DMZ (de militarized zone), no gang shooting and much nicer communities. I will never live on the east side of Deerfoot or south of down town. I LOVE it in the NW

[acurrie]

There are bonuses to living on the East central side of the city as well. You can get a 2000 Sq foot house for under $350,000! what a deal! Damn Calgary! time to move OUT of the city. I think I may just be sick and tired of being Land Locked for the past 15 years... I need an Ocean!

[AndyW]

There is little doubt that the SE-NE on the east side of the Deerfoot has some very unsavory neighborhoods. Sure you can get bad neighbors in any neighborhood but you would really up your odds of a crack house next door moving to Forest Lawn. There is a reason that homes are more affordable in some neighborhoods...

[bhurt]

I live on the east side and you imply I'm an idiot........and what do you know about militarized zones? You have first hand experience? As a retired member of the armed forces I find your comments insulting to our forces. You my friend should choose your words more carefully

 

 

I don't understand where the insult to the armed forces are, maybe an insult calling people idoits but there is no way any refernce to any armed forces.

 

Please explain to me how calling an area of the city a miltirized zone or a demiltrize zone an insult to our armed forces?

 

I have a pretty good idea who you are and I think yopur argument is weak, as there was no comment, just cause you were in the armed forces and live on the east side does not mean it was directed at you and the use of militrized zone and demilitrized zone was used as a metephore.

 

And I think you are the one that should choose your words carefully as you have to hide behind a second account, cause I have a very good feeling I know who you are and yes you do have another user name on this site if it is infact you, which makes you a coward.

[Guest Sundancefisher]

I all depends on where you wanna be in 1, 5, 10, 20 years from now taking into account job, family, recreation.

 

If you are planning on kids...you can't beat the quality of life in a lake community. If you love the mountains the west half of the city makes sense. Work downtown and never having kids...live in the belt line.

 

Money also comes into play big time and influences where you live. Lake communities tend to cost more...the closer to downtown you are costs more...busier streets means cheaper, slummy areas or the NE is generally cheaper.

 

The NE is deemed to be less desireable in Calgary. More gang issues, more drug dealing, more pot houses, more of almost everything bad. Also there is a garbage dump in the East that one could often smell in Erinwoods.

 

Calgarians as I found out tend to only like the quadrant that they grew up in. I am a displaced Edmontonian without bias. Calgarians growing up in the NW only live in the NW, growing up the SW they tend to live in the SW etc. Best areas are many areas in the NW, SW and SE but only east of the Bow and in some instances the communities just bordering the Bow.

 

Commuting downtown via transit takes a while but I have no problem riding in the big white limo. Express buses are in areas not serviced by rail. Check with the route maps and information on the web.

 

Schools are often over looked. If having kids check out where there are K thru 12 schools which reduces busing pains and costs. If you like fishing...move to Chaparral as those guys living there can't catch a trout to save their own lives.

 

Cheers

 

Sun

[Current]

Watch out for those "crack needles!"

 

 

Lots of great neighbourhoods throughout the city. Sundancefisher's reply is really great. One thing that stands out is that a lot of people who grow up here stay here. This says a lot. Although the city is not quite the one I grew up in it's still a great place to live. FF heaven.

 

Good luck.

[jack]

Appreciate the objective input, guys. The national head office is in Calgary, and I think probably it is his intention to stay for some time, which will include a family. Move will probably not be until late summer. "Fishing" is not on the radar, yet, he is still involved in competitive teams sports, baseball, basketball, volleyball, etc.

j

[scorpiondeathlock]

only an idiot would willingly move to the NE/SE! Stick to the DMZ (de militarized zone), no gang shooting and much nicer communities. I will never live on the east side of Deerfoot or south of down town. I LOVE it in the NW

Hey 420 where do you think all your dope you smoke comes from. Hard working drug dealers in the less than desirble neighbourhoods thats where.

 

[Guest 420FLYFISHIN]

sorry but its BC outdoor, no shitty indoor hydrom from kids in the NE

[hydropsyche]

..unless he's running low and his model citizen connections aren't coming into town for a few weeks....then Falconhood will do.....

[yak]

sorry but its BC outdoor, no shitty indoor hydrom from kids in the NE

aaahh, a NW renter on a low budget. if you moved to dover you could save a few bucks and quit smokin dirt weed .

 

[jimbow]

surely we'd all agree that there are questionable areas in every quadrant of the city. NE and SE should not be dismissed as there are some good options in both esp in the inner city.

 

traffic in caglary is horrendous (for various reasons - right everyone?) and i'd definitely be considering that in the decision as to where to live as they could end up with a hellish daily commute (and public transit is not exactly one of Calgary's strong suits either - this is a car city). if one of the selling features of the neighbourhood is "minutes to downtown" it usually means about 65 commuting minutes.

 

i've lived my entire 23 years in calgary in the inner city: downtown, then NW and now Altadore in the SW (anyone on here own that aluminum drift boat i see hooked up to a pathfinder on 34th Ave at about 15th St?). i'd never move out of the inner city as that's where i work and play (city play that is) and where my friends live. but inner city can be pricey esp for new(er) homes (likely over $600K for 3 bdrm new house although maybe there are deals around right now). more for the money for farther out but then more hassle to get around...but if you don't want or need to go downtown then inner city may not be the place to be. as someone said depends on lifestyle and of course budget.

 

if you really mean bedroom communities (okotoks, cochrane, langdon etc) be cautious as those as prices can be almost equivalent to calgary with a nasty commute and possible selling problems down the road. my 2 cents would be chose a farther out neighbourhood in calgayr rather than a bedroom community.

 

makes sense to rent for a while and learn about the city and determine a neighbourhood that fits all their criteria to purchase a home. may be a good time to buy as things are definitely down. and get a good realtor who knows the city and the market.

[abraaten]

Make sure you visit Cochrane and Okotoks. Cochrane is ideally located if you like mountain sports, plus you don't have to take the Deerfoot in the mornings if you work downtown.

 

I've visited many bedroom communities around Calgary in search of what you speak of. Chestermere, Okotoks, High River, Bragg Creek, Turner Valley, Airdrie, Black Diamond. Cochrane seems to have it all, plus it's right on the river.

 

 

[Guest Sundancefisher]

surely we'd all agree that there are questionable areas in every quadrant of the city. NE and SE should not be dismissed as there are some good options in both esp in the inner city.

 

traffic in caglary is horrendous (for various reasons - right everyone?) and i'd definitely be considering that in the decision as to where to live as they could end up with a hellish daily commute (and public transit is not exactly one of Calgary's strong suits either - this is a car city). if one of the selling features of the neighbourhood is "minutes to downtown" it usually means about 65 commuting minutes.

 

i've lived my entire 23 years in calgary in the inner city: downtown, then NW and now Altadore in the SW (anyone on here own that aluminum drift boat i see hooked up to a pathfinder on 34th Ave at about 15th St?). i'd never move out of the inner city as that's where i work and play (city play that is) and where my friends live. but inner city can be pricey esp for new(er) homes (likely over $600K for 3 bdrm new house although maybe there are deals around right now). more for the money for farther out but then more hassle to get around...but if you don't want or need to go downtown then inner city may not be the place to be. as someone said depends on lifestyle and of course budget.

 

if you really mean bedroom communities (okotoks, cochrane, langdon etc) be cautious as those as prices can be almost equivalent to calgary with a nasty commute and possible selling problems down the road. my 2 cents would be chose a farther out neighbourhood in calgayr rather than a bedroom community.

 

makes sense to rent for a while and learn about the city and determine a neighbourhood that fits all their criteria to purchase a home. may be a good time to buy as things are definitely down. and get a good realtor who knows the city and the market.

 

A relative of mine lives in the inner city and now that they have 2 kids want to move back out to the burbs. Main reason is waking up in the morning and putting the trash out only to find homeless guys camped out in the yard or alley...or stuff stolen over night...or grafiti on the garage...or needles behind the house. They can't let the kids just play in the back yard cause you see guys looking through the fence at you and you always have to watch for needles and broken glass. One neighbour had to dismantle their kids back yard play house as the homeless guys lived in it while they were away on vacation and...shall I say it...made a shitty mess of it.

 

The only benefit his wife see is the automatic free recycling service. Leave anything...and apparently she means anything behind the garage in the alley and it is gone within an hour... Broken furniture, unwanted food, clothing, broken appliances etc. Gone, gone, gone!

[jimbow]

A relative of mine lives in the inner city and now that they have 2 kids want to move back out to the burbs.

 

never had any type of those issues in 23 years but no doubt it's an issue. what neighbourhood are they in?

 

[Guest Sundancefisher]

never had any type of those issues in 23 years but no doubt it's an issue. what neighbourhood are they in?

 

Tuxedo

[jimbow]

Tuxedo

 

i thought for sure you were going to say bankview or sunalta, never would have guessed tuxedo. it seems too far from the core.....

[hydropsyche]

That surprises me too because I live in Renfrew and have never experience anything described, even though I have ADAC just down the block.

[bigbowtrout]

Check out this link http://crimemap.calgarypolice.ca/content/DisclaimerPage.aspx

[Guest Sundancefisher]

Check out this link http://crimemap.calgarypolice.ca/content/DisclaimerPage.aspx

 

Neat site!

 

One thing to really consider is what your recreational preference is and where you work and for how long you will be there. With the ever increasing costs to camp, fish, drive etc., a lake community offers everything within walking distance. That will become only more and more of a premium. With it taking almost 1 hour sometimes to cross the city...if you love skiing and hiking in the mountains you should be living as far west as possible knowing the city is growing west every year. I find the lake is such a focal point in our quality of life that I could not give it up. Whether it is Bonavista, Midnapore, Sundance, MacKenzie or Chaparral...there are lots of homes with lake access. Bonaventure and Heritage Point are expensive. Arbor is very small compared to the other lakes. Still...you can travel to fish but when gas eventually goes to $3 litre with the tree hugger tax...driving a hour or more one way to fish will be taxing. Fishing the Bow down south is another great alternative but the numbers on the river will grow with the gas price also.

 

 

[jonny5]

The only benefit his wife see is the automatic free recycling service. Leave anything...and apparently she means anything behind the garage in the alley and it is gone within an hour... Broken furniture, unwanted food, clothing, broken appliances etc. Gone, gone, gone!

 

 

Its true... as we say in our household... the alley giveth and the alley taketh.

 

The crime problem around beltline was horrible upto about 1.5 years ago. We were calling the police regularly and sometimes they would come. Once we saw a guy set up a small table, and start producing crack over a small burner, and there was a lineup of crack heads waiting to buy some.

 

However, it is back to normal now. Not as many druggies around now that there are beat cops around. Nice enought guys from my perspective, but I wouldn't want to get on their bad side. And living downtown I have the extra bonus that I ride my bike to work every day and don't deal with the commute.

 

According to the crime map the crime-free-est place to live is right near fish creek park by bow bottom trail. Not a bad choice I think.