Hi all, I have recieved some info that I was wondering if you all could help me with.

I have been told that land in saskatchewan canada, is great. AND that it is available for purchase by americans. Does anyone no the laws of canada concerning this? anyone live there now? Anyone move from usa to canada?

Thanks for all your help... Kristean

-- Kristean Thompson (pigalena_babe@yahoo.com), March 20, 2002

Answers

You may want to check out Canada's immigration page, just to make sure you can live on the land as well as own it. I don't have the url handy, but it should come up quickly in a search. I've been there, and it's quite detailed about the requirements for immigration.

-- Laura Jensen (lauraj@seedlaw.com), March 20, 2002.

Hi

I'm a canadian, I live in the province of BC on the west coast and you would never get me to move to saskatchewan. Sorry to anyone living there but, not a chance in h___ will I go there even if the land is darn near free.

The wind never stops blowing and most of the soil has left for warmer climes, winters are really, really cold(right now they're getting - 35C in some places. No specialities(medical) unless you travel to Saskatoon and the wages are so low, with every little work.

Why do you think the land is great, everyone who lived has left or wishes they could aford(sp) to leave for one of the other provinces. If you are really serious about moving there, you better do a little research on climate(they do have the most sunshine in the country) bugs(they have more gnats and blackflies than most places since the upper half of the province is pretty well bog)and work(I really wish you luck here) and their minimim wage is $4 bucks an hour(just over $2.39an hour US)but hey it might be fun if you're a homesteader that is selfsufficant because you can pick up huge farms for very little money(all the farmers lost in the drought the last 4 years)

To each each own and I wish you well, but be prepared for a huge change. About americans owning land in Canada I really don't know what the rules are but the above post should help. Good luck in your adventure. Anne

-- Anne (gabennett@bulkley.net), March 20, 2002.

They have very strict regulations, very high taxes and you will have to have enough money to take care of you in the short time and a skill that will enable you to make a living. Its much easier here than in canada. Check the forum there are people on here trying to move south, and other that would like to. Of course there are some who love it. Personally I just don't want that much goverment.

-- David in North Al. (bluewaterfarm@mindspring.com), March 20, 2002.

Now why would any American want to move to a practically windswept, barren, swamp filled, wheatfield like Saskatchewan? If you think you pay a lot in taxes to your Fed Govt, get ready for the awakening of a lifetime. On top of already high provincial taxes there's the abominable GST (7% on everything including services). And a practically totalitarian government to boot!

First you must qualify for landed immigration status and you must have a skill or already hired into a position prior to arriving. You must not take a job away from any Canadian, including the dog catcher.

Bring in a quarter of a million dollars to start up a new business and they'll be knocking on your door faster than North American can unload the truck.

-- Unca G (native1908@hotmail.com), March 20, 2002.

Ihave to agree with Anne. I'm also from coastal B.C. and wouldnt live anywhere else. Southern Sask is like northern Dakota (or whatever state borders us to the south.) But northern Sask is nasty. Sure foreigners can buy here but you just cant walk in.There are many, many ex-Americans in different regions of Canada. The small town of Sooke and all the small outlying islands near here is full of Vietnam war dodgers who practically created the local back to the land movement in the60s and 70s. You either have to have the mentality to leave your country and learn to LOVE where you go or you dont.( I dont). Nothing worse than leaving home to escape your problems then spend every moment saying how much better, cheaper, friendlyer, warmer, etc,etc,etc it is "back home" Sorry if I sound twisted on this but I have heard it too much lately from people where I live. Good luck

-- karen (karengrandmaison@hotmail.com), March 20, 2002.

Kristean: I briefly entertained the idea of immigrating to Canada. I mostly looked at Ontario and eastern provicences, although western ones did pop up from time to time during my search. This is what I found out. The gov in many instances owns both the trees on your land and the minerals on your land. You have to pay higher taxes if you wish to own the trees and the mineral rights on a said piece of land. Many of the listed properties are mining claims and cannot be built upon. The gov can be difficult to deal with- you have to go through red tape for local and provincial gov lines in order to change or modify the trees or mineral rights. In order to immigrate, you have to go through an equal amount of red tape and have something like X amount of cash and 10k worth of liquid assests. They apparently like Americans with money, not dirt farmers. Be very aware that, if you do purchase a piece of property from one of the companies advertising in County- like magazines (no names mentioned) that they are not NOT on our side. You have fewer legal rights in dealing with an over the border company than an American one, and if you do get ripped, it will be hard, if not impossible to gt it strait. The companies give out very few details about the land as possible. A stuck with trash property buyer is still a buyer. The western properties were signifigantly higher in price (some due to near town proximenty, no doubt) than ones in Ontario. Some of this may just have been the company I was dealing with. Im not trying to scare you. The property prices in Canada are compareable to ones in USA. If Canada is really up your alley, GO FOR IT. This is just a peek into the things that are the downsides to land there- there are upsides. (Beautiful setting, trully rural, you get to say EH alot, moose everywhere, one of the last frontiers in some areas). At any rate, good luck to ya!

-- Kevin in NC (Vantravlrs@aol.com), March 20, 2002.

You guys make me howl!!!!Ya we live in igloos tooo!!!Kevin,I'll fedex you a penguin!!!

-- TERI in Ontario (DNSMACBETH@AOL.COM), March 20, 2002.

Come to Ontario...more trees, nicer climate, more topography (in Saskatchewan EVERYTHING IS FLAT FOR AS FAR AS YOU CAN SEE). Or try the eastern provinces or BC, Alberta...anywhere but Saskatchewan. Aren't we Canadians great? Don't even support our own, eh?

Russ

-- (imashortguy@hotmail.com), March 21, 2002.

I think a previous poster must have been looking at old mining claims in Northern Ontario, truly bush property and yes the companies and gov't reserve mineral rights on some properties.It is very upfront in any listings I've seen. Lots of nice properties in Northern Ontario, you get what you pay for. Saskatchewan is Saskatchewan...One leg of our family landed there after emmigrating from N.Dakota. I still have family there, beef cattle and grain farmers. I think it would be similar to buying property in Wyoming or any of your prairie type states. Look out for the same type of things, water etc. I do not know about Americans emmigrating, but it is probably similar rules to Canadians going to the US. I really don't see Americans just letting everyone through the borders. I am partial to Nova Scotia(similar to Maine) Good Luck.

-- Terri in NS (terri@tallships.ca), March 21, 2002.

Terri: It's not at all like Wyoming. Wyoming is a high plateau desert. No water and no trees, exc in National Forests. Sask has water, lots of it! More like No. Dakota than Wyoming or South Dakota.

-- al (yr2012@hotmail.com), March 21, 2002.

My my what an impresion we Canuks make on the outside world! How did Canada ever get voted the best place to live by the United Nation 3 outa 5 years? Sask is wet and bug infested to the east, dry to drought striken to the west, damn near tundra to the north. Charming place and I havn't mentioned the winters yet! No mistake the people there are first class, I guess beating the elements has left them a good appreciation for good neighbors. Canada needs more imigrants, and Americans would be my first choice. Spent yesterday at an equipment show here in Ottawa with a Vietnam vet who emigrated from Michigan about 10 years ago. Loves it here, and I wouldn't want you guys to think only the draft dodgers would come here. Not when I know a perfect counter example!!
The best land here in Eastern Ontario is worth about 3500/acre Canadian, you can buy houses for 50g 2 hours from a major city, a half hour from a good sized town. No you don't get mineral rights, (do you in the states?) but you do own the trees, all told I'd say 7-10 acres with a house and barn 2 hrs east of Ottawa would sell for 90,000 Canadian which is around 60K USD. Go north of Deepriver and knock 20 k off.
No idea how you become a landed immigrant, but remember for all our taxes we do have medicare for everyone, and they really have come down a lot in the last 4 years. If I remember the discusion here not so long ago about property taxes, some rural Americans pay far more than I do in a major city! I'm thinking our govt.s get us one way or another. Yes our governing system sucks; but please don't try to liberate us again though OK? We'll take care of it.

-- Ross (amulet@istar.ca), March 21, 2002.

Thought that was interesting about no mineral rights in Canada. In Colorado you may buy a piece of land, a second party has mineral rights, a third owns the water on "your" land, the county can decide whether or not they are going to let you build on it, and if you don't have 3 strands of barb wire around your place the range cows can eat you out of house and home and you have no right to complain. The big oil guys seem to have more rights than the homeowner who may suddenly find a drilling rig in her back yard. And then you have to pay taxes every year or lose your home. One community not too far from here suddenly had such a massive tax hike that many homeowners were forced to decamp on their mortgages. They couldn't pay the tax and no one wanted to buy the homes with such huge taxes. So I guess we can stop picking on Canada. :o) kim in CO

-- kim in CO (kimk61252@hotmail.com), March 21, 2002.

Kristean: I live on a farm in Saskatchewan, so I know whereof I speak. The Gov't here is talking about opening up farmland for foreign investors. There is a bit of backlash, but I think the bill will go through.

As for taxes, yes, we are taxed to death here. 13% at the moment. 7% is GST (Federal) and 6% is PST (Provincial).

It gets VERY cold here,(it's been minus 30ish with the windchill) and we have been suffering drought for about 5 years now. Some places are worse than others. Our farm is pretty much toast already if we don't get a VERY wet spring! However, we wouldn't live anywhere else. The people are friendly, and the relative safety more than makes up for the lack of warm weather. We don't have near the violent crime that warmer regions have, and for obvious reasons...You have to be tough to live here. Most criminals want the easiest, most comfortable climates in which to pursue their rackets.

Be very careful about purchasing land, though, if that is your intention. Very few places have usable water, and there is alot of land that is unusable for various reasons. Alkalie, sloughs, rocks, etc.

Whoever wrote that Sask is ALL flat, obviously hasn't been here. We have some beautiful forests and lakes within hours, and the further North you go, the more pristine and beautiful it gets. Yes, some of the province is flat, but we do have our forested areas as well. From Prince Albert and north, it is stunning!

Land is relatively cheap right now, because of the drought, and the ridiculously low prices for your product. I will contact my local NDP, and find out more for you if you'd like. Do you have a specific area in mind? I could snail mail you brochures on any area you may be interested in, as well as some local history. There are also lots of Auction brochures out right now. That may give you some ideas. There are a lot of people retiring, it seems. Let me know okay? I'd be glad to assist. Judy Hill

-- Judy Hill (hillsacres@sk.sympatico.ca), March 22, 2002.

PS. The minimum wage is NOT $4.00, although it's not great. It's around 6.25, and going up to 6.75 in April or May. There is lots of work if you're not picky, and it's not all minimum wage work, either. There's a barn a few miles from our farm that starts @ 12.00, plus benefits. $8. - $12 is pretty average. Just FYI since you were misinformed earlier. Judy

-- Judy Hill (hillsacres@sk.sympatico.ca), March 22, 2002.

I bought 114 acres in northern Ontario; still love it. No probs with the seller or closing and it was done very professionally. Mine has 12 mo road access, with electric and phone on road at property line. Got it 'cheaper' because it was logged a couple owners back (different than in U.S.; they didn't doze like they do in TX) and is rural (about 5 hours from Toronto). Next owner planted replacement pines.

Thought I was buying all rights but it was an error and in title search found out govt owned pine rights. I did the sale anyway and will be buying the pine rights with help from the seller. It was an honest mistake ... he thought he owned them too. Otherwise, I have all mineral and other rights, not the govt. I did find out that it may not be a big deal to not have those depending on the land. It was just a condition of what I wanted. As far as 'higher' taxes, I think it's the other way around. If you don't own 100%, you pay less tax. A matter of perspective I think. I personally think tax is about equal to U.S. (as are govt issues!) I had no fantasies about that.

About the weather, I grew up in MN (therefore my perspective on taxes, govt, and weather! LOL) I recall -50F winters with -80F windchill in MN! (coldest place on earth!!!) Personally, I was looking for acreage with WATER (clean, fresh, drinkable). I got it. This has a natural well (100 gal/min) that you can drink from the ground (arctic melt) that all residents in area use for water supply. Well is on govt land 1/4 mile from my property so no issues with a private owner.

No matter where you go there are going to be benefits and issues. It's all in what you want to personally deal with. I can't move there till my child is older (may move anyway). Otherwise, I consider what I bought a good investment, and the new pines can be cut again in 10-15 years ($$$). Meanwhile, camping, hideout, whatever, with nice neighbors. Personally, there are many 'states' (including TX) with conditions and issues I DON'T want to deal with (like, TX is running out of water fast!, AR and MO state laws, MN taxes, ND climate, etc., etc., etc.) Some are nice places to visit (CO, HI, even CA and east coast), but I couldn't handle living there due to climate, taxes, or cultural attitudes. Whatever.

Whatever you do, you can end up in a remote area OR the middle of a city, with no job, no income, and a lot of problems. Me, I'm going to keep my land (and another to purchase this summer) and just deal with each day as I can.

Good luck! (PS: My land cost $8000.US plus fees; I expect to pay just under $2000.US for my pine rights ... Yes, you can buy them. For the acreage and amenities, I'm satisfied). My seller has others with same and less amenities. I personally wanted one even more remote, which would work for some people, which he also has.

-- mb - texas (beneng@bigfoot.com), March 22, 2002.

Has anyone had any experiences with Dignam? http://dignam.com/

-- Albert (native1937@hotmail.com), March 22, 2002.

Gosh I find it sad to see how some Canadians are down on our country. I am a patriot.

Yes, we pay more taxes. It is a socialist country. We have universal health care and medicare, and we are always in the top 5 of the best countries to live in, in the world. Naturally, we do not want immigrants who will be a drain on the social services instead of contributing their share.

We do not have handguns, or huge violent ghettos. Know how many murders there were in Vancouver last year? 11.. for a city of 1 1/2 million people. I love Canada...

I live in Vancouver, and am looking at property up the coast. Yes, the government owns a lot of the forestry and mineral rights... and we have some of the best environmental policies in the world. You cannot rape the land and leave it devastated. Those resources belong to all the people.

Northern Saskatchewan is lovely, full of lakes with native trout still thriving and gentle mountains. Southern Saskatchewan .. the prairies are getting ass kicked by global warming, and I do not expect the drought to improve anytime soon.

-- A. Serpent (Mystress@fire-serpent.com), March 23, 2002.

Actually I enjoy going to Canada about twice a month for auctions and sales. I do the majority of my big shopping in Edmonton, a considerable distance from where I live.

Canada's population remains at a steady 10-13% of the USA and than the majority of her citizens live within 100-miles of our border.

True the crime rate is lower, as is your population as noted before. But so is the immigration in relationship to the amount of land available for use.

In the USA, only 5% of the land is used for dwellings. 5% of 3.7M sq mi. Thats roughly 70 persons/sq mi.

Now compare that with Canada 32M people on 3.8M sq. mi and you'll see less than 7 persons/sq mi.

-- al (yr2012@hotmail.com), March 23, 2002.

I am the cause of all this commotion. I am ugring Kristean to move to Saskatchewan because Saskatchewan IS a good place to live and one of the best places to farm. Dont take my word for it. Contact Bill from Phoenix, he came up here, looked at the towns, cities, walked the land, talked to locals. I hope he doesn't mind, his email: wsutton210@hotmail.com

-- Alexander Levin (morsealexlevin@hotmail.com), March 23, 2002.

This is my first try at website design. a little crude, but ample information about land for sale in Saskatchewan, Canada. www.store.yahoo.com/bigbluesky

-- Alexander Levin (morsealexlevin@hotmail.com), April 09, 2002.