You're right about compensation, but cost of living in our major cities is nothing like NYC. I live in the capital and pay under $1000 for two bedrooms very close to downtown. You can get a swanky condo penthouse here for less than a one bedroom in Manhattan. Or split a nice house with two other people for $400-600 each.
Friends in Toronto pay around $2000 for two bedrooms in the middle of downtown. Haven't checked in a while but fairly certain Montreal is somewhere in between. Those same friends were paying more than $3000 for less space in the far end of Brooklyn.
Vancouver is crazy but sort of a special case especially when compared to nearby Seattle, but it's the only major city that is so close to an American metropolis.
And that's leaving out the free healthcare and abundant green space which is a huge boost to my QoL.
I don't think the COL argument works any more. Toronto is at Brooklyn levels (if not higher). Montreal was better, but got worst when Toronto passed new legislation for rentals and rental properties.
The "free" health insurance - which your taxes pay for - is great for some things but non-existent for others (e.g. routine oral care, routine optical care, physiotherapy required by something other than work, etc). Realistically, you need extended health insurance if you're not elderly, disabled, or on some sort of social care.
Now the nice thing about taxes in Canada is that you won't be taxed at anywhere near the highest bracket. As a Canadian software developer you're looking at around 50% of the salary as your US counterparts [1] which means you'll be in one of the medium tax brackets.
It isn't off the bat if the rates are very different. Which seems to be the case: 50% doesn't seem to be in the highest bracket in Canada, according to the OP.
Good points. Though I think the inflation from foreign rental/investment property ownership is semi-temporary - you can bet Montreal is going to pass similar laws soon just as Vancouver and then Toronto did.
Friends in Toronto pay around $2000 for two bedrooms in the middle of downtown. Haven't checked in a while but fairly certain Montreal is somewhere in between. Those same friends were paying more than $3000 for less space in the far end of Brooklyn.
Vancouver is crazy but sort of a special case especially when compared to nearby Seattle, but it's the only major city that is so close to an American metropolis.
And that's leaving out the free healthcare and abundant green space which is a huge boost to my QoL.