janethuggard - 11:08 pm on Sep 25, 2007 (gmt 0)

Any Canadian saying that they shop in the U.S for lower prices is really not comparing apples to apples, and their comparrison is a little deceiving.

I am just back from 3 weeks in Canada, northern Ontario town of 10,000 in a rural area. I live in a town of 10,000 in rural U.S. This is apples to apples.

Products are sold in Canada in metric measures, so I have converted all to the nearest rounded US eqivalent.

50 pound bag of potatoes $9.99 CAD - $.59 pound US
(50 pound bags not even sold here)
50 pound bag of apples $7.50 CAD - $1.29 pound US
(50 pound bags not even sold here)

4 Qt heaped baskets of pears, peaches, nectarines, prisine, firm, not bruised, no fruit flies $2.99-3.99 CAD. Same fruit in US, bruised, rotting, fruit flies hovering in our local store TODAY $1.29 a pound US. These bruised, rotting fruits were $1.49 four hours north in another town of 9,000 population, yesterday, and were $1.49 a pound in this town, only a few days before I went on vacation. We bought and ate plenty while we were there. They were sweet and fabulous, unlike the tasteless, mushy garbage they sell here.

Hamburger $1.59 a pound CAD - $3.29 pound US
Tomatoes - $.59 a pound CAD - $1.48 to $2.29 pound US
Milk $2.99 gallon CAD - Milk gallon $4.29 US
64ct Pampers Diapers $19.99 CAD - $19.99 US
'Mega Blocks' (toys)Big Bag $19.97 CAD - $19.97 US

Four Star hotel, two room suites, with breakfast some with jacuzzi in suite as well, indoor pool, spa and fitness room, $125-$160 CAD in numerous Ontario towns and major cities. I actually paid $139CAD per night for a modern, very clean, huge two room suite, for three adults and a baby, with two person jacuzzi in room, KING bed, and free breakfast for ten days in the town we stayed in the longest.

Same price here, smaller suite, no jacuzzi EVER, maybe a KING bed most likely two QUEENS, in MN, MI, WI, IL, OH, IN, TN, MS towns and cities we stayed in along the way up and back, or within two months before this vacation.

Name Brand Blue Jeans with fancy trims, Size 7, $15.99-$24.99 CAD. I( bought six pairs. Brands not sold here, but equalvalent jeans, with no trims, here are going $19.99 - $24.99.

Major Difference In Real Estate

3 or 4 Multi-family houses, middle class neighborhood in town full of tidy homes owned by working class residents, with 3 to 4 long term renters in each building, earning $1000 to $1200mo in rental income, priced at only $15,000 to $30,000 CAD. Same price here gets a vacant single family home in a run down, crime ridden area of town, boarding the 'projects'.
Houses there are selling like hot cakes. Here they sit on the market for over a year at minimum, and streets are lined with houses for sale. Here, no jobs. There, many businesses were hiring.

A dozen quality Tim Hortons donuts $5.05 CAD - Not available in this US region but local grocery charges $6.95 for generic brand. They have two 24 hour Tim Hortons, we don't have any donuts shops, 24 hour or other wise, and in fact no 24 hours restaurants at all.

Vehicles: This was a HUGE difference. I've converted from kilometers to miles.

Family car, used models, various makes $10,000 CAD value in excellent condition with 30,000 to 60,000 miles gets same exact make, model and year car here, same $10,000 price, only the car has 90,000 to 150,000 miles on it, right here in this town, TODAY.
Used vehicles here for $10,000 with anything less than 60,000 miles on them are like a needle in a hay stack. The car lot there was FULL of them.

Water and sewer bill, on city services, for the family of 7 I visited, living in a huge single family dwelling runs them $45 for THREE MONTHS. I pay that for ONE MONTH for a family of four, when I am frugal.

This was not always so. I lived near that town twenty years ago. There has been a complete reversal of everything in that town and the entire area for that matter. Houses are all remodeled, huge selection of quality products, prices identical or cheaper than here, with the exception of gasoline.

I paid $.99 a liter there, and am paying equivalent $.78 a liter here.

Since I do not smoke nor drink, the much higher cost of 'sin' products, taxed heavily in Canada, has no effect on my household, at all.

Their community center has an ice rink with minor league hockey team, indoor pool with two water slides, jacuzzi, sauna, and fitness equipment. Ours has an indoor pool and fitness equipment with no ice rink, no minor league sports team, no water slides, no jacuzzi and no sauna.

Bottom line is that family earns the same amount as we do, and they are MUCH better off, have more disposable income, more in their savings, and FREE HEALTH CARE.

They deserve a strong dollar, they have earned it.