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New Member - Introduction and thanks!
#1
Hi everyone.  I am a new member to the forum, and will soon be a new member of your community.  My wife has recently accepted a good job at a great company, so our little family of 4 (me, mommynuck, biglittlenuck 9years old, and littlestnuck 5 years old) will be moving into the region during the summer.  We currently live in the prairies, my home for my whole life.  My wife was born and raised in Hamilton so this is a homecoming of sorts for her.  

Thanks to everyone for the discussions  about the region and all that is going on.  I have been using this site as a source of information about the region and what's going on.  

And I hope there's room in the Photography Forum for another photographer.  I've been taking pictures for about 40 years and have (either part time or full time) done photography as a business for over 10 years.  I look forward to exploring the region and contributing a newbies take on your......um...I guess OUR community!
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#2
Welcome! I hope you find KW is a nice fit for you. Out of curiousity, whereabouts are you coming from on the prairies?
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#3
Welcome, Cartcanuck! Always happy to have another photographer on board, too! Smile What type of photography do you do as a business?
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#4
Welcome aboard!
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#5
Welcome to the site, and of course, to Waterloo Region. I hope the move goes smoothly, let us know if we can be of any help with the transition.
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#6
(05-16-2016, 12:53 AM)Cartcanuck Wrote: Hi everyone.  I am a new member to the forum, and will soon be a new member of your community.  My wife has recently accepted a good job at a great company, so our little family of 4 (me, mommynuck, biglittlenuck 9years old, and littlestnuck 5 years old) will be moving into the region during the summer.  We currently live in the prairies, my home for my whole life.  My wife was born and raised in Hamilton so this is a homecoming of sorts for her.  

Thanks to everyone for the discussions  about the region and all that is going on.  I have been using this site as a source of information about the region and what's going on.  

And I hope there's room in the Photography Forum for another photographer.  I've been taking pictures for about 40 years and have (either part time or full time) done photography as a business for over 10 years.  I look forward to exploring the region and contributing a newbies take on your......um...I guess OUR community!

Welcome CC to Waterloo Region ... it's cold and damp in the winter and hot and muggy in the summer. Spring is an up and down season but fall in this area is my most favourite season because it's "just right" (literary licence to "the Three Bears").
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#7
(05-16-2016, 08:01 AM)jamincan Wrote: Welcome! I hope you find KW is a nice fit for you. Out of curiousity, whereabouts are you coming from on the prairies?

I'm a Saskatchewan boy by birth, but I've been in Brandon, Manitoba for the past 15 years after spending 13 years in Calgary.  Let's just say, we get around  Smile
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#8
(05-16-2016, 08:44 AM)tomh009 Wrote: Welcome, Cartcanuck!  Always happy to have another photographer on board, too! Smile  What type of photography do you do as a business
Thanks Tom!
My business photography has primarily been commercial/industrial.  I've done a lot of work shooting completed building project for a steel building manufacturer.  I've shot from Ottawa to Victoria for them.  Over the past 3 or 4 years I've done a lot of shooting for a company that manufactures steel grain bins and augers/conveyors. I've also shot a lot of events, business head shots (mostly bankers and realtors), and some product work and some live band performances. 
You can check my website if you have some time to kill FischPhoto
I also like dabbling in macro photography and have thousands of pictures of my little girls.  What kind of daddy-photographer would I be if I didn't   LOL
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#9
(05-16-2016, 09:55 PM)Spokes Wrote: Welcome to the site, and of course, to Waterloo Region.  I hope the move goes smoothly, let us know if we can be of any help with the transition.

Thanks Spokes.  The site has been a great resource so far.  I'm sure I'll have more questions about peoples opinions about communities and schools and so on as we get our house listed for sale and get serious about finding a place in the Waterloo Region.  We are all very excited about the move and pressing the "reset" button on our lives  Smile
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#10
To what part of the Region are you planning to move?
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#11
(05-17-2016, 07:59 AM)panamaniac Wrote: To what part of the Region are you planning to move?

My wife's office will be in Kitchener and we have been looking at homes in both Kitchener and Waterloo.  

So far the areas we seem most drawn to are Waterloo: Beechwood and Westvale, and Kitchener: Forest Heights, Country Hills, or maybe Stanley Park areas.. The top end of our house budget is $400k and we appreciate the areas with mature trees and yards.    We have even seen some homes in the Chicopee and Breslau areas that look nice.  But so far it's been online shopping for homes.  Wifey has a realtor she is working with and she will be in Kitchener in early July to start work and will be able to look more in person.

Should we be avoiding any of these  communities?
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#12
(05-19-2016, 12:17 AM)Cartcanuck Wrote:
(05-17-2016, 07:59 AM)panamaniac Wrote: To what part of the Region are you planning to move?

My wife's office will be in Kitchener and we have been looking at homes in both Kitchener and Waterloo.  

So far the areas we seem most drawn to are Waterloo: Beechwood and Westvale, and Kitchener: Forest Heights, Country Hills, or maybe Stanley Park areas.. The top end of our house budget is $400k and we appreciate the areas with mature trees and yards.    We have even seen some homes in the Chicopee and Breslau areas that look nice.  But so far it's been online shopping for homes.  Wifey has a realtor she is working with and she will be in Kitchener in early July to start work and will be able to look more in person.

Should we be avoiding any of these  communities?

I don't think there's anything on that list to avoid.   In Kitchener, my preference from your list would be Forest Heights (or Forest Hill if you're willing to go older), Stanley Park, and Country Hills, in that order.   You've probably already noticed that you pay a premium for equivalent houses in Waterloo over Kitchener.  Kitchener taxes are also lower than those in Waterloo.  The new subdivisions in Breslau seem nice, but it's a "full car-dependent" kind of place.

If you haven't already seen it, and I'm not sure where to find it, there is a list on-line ranking primary schools in K and W, so you might like to look at that in the context of the neighbourhoods you're considering.
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#13
(05-19-2016, 12:17 AM)Cartcanuck Wrote:
(05-17-2016, 07:59 AM)panamaniac Wrote: To what part of the Region are you planning to move?

My wife's office will be in Kitchener and we have been looking at homes in both Kitchener and Waterloo.  

So far the areas we seem most drawn to are Waterloo: Beechwood and Westvale, and Kitchener: Forest Heights, Country Hills, or maybe Stanley Park areas.. The top end of our house budget is $400k and we appreciate the areas with mature trees and yards.    We have even seen some homes in the Chicopee and Breslau areas that look nice.  But so far it's been online shopping for homes.  Wifey has a realtor she is working with and she will be in Kitchener in early July to start work and will be able to look more in person.

Should we be avoiding any of these  communities?

I live in Forest Heights and absolutely love the area.  I recommend it 100%

If you're looking to top out at $400k, that might be your best bet.  I don't know how much you can get in Beachwood for that price.

Are you looking for something newer/older or doesn't matter?  I'm near Fisher Hallman and Victoria and that neighbourhood was built in the early 90s.  On the other side of Highland for example my friend owns a home that was built in the mid 70s.  Depends what you're looking for.
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#14
(05-19-2016, 07:56 AM)panamaniac Wrote: Kitchener taxes are also lower than those in Waterloo.

Caution! Does not apply if you're looking at houses in a specific price range.

Kitchener 2015 final rate: 1.18477%   link
Waterloo 2015 final rate: 1.15969%   link

It's true, Kitchener taxes tend to be lower. But the average house value assessment in Kitchener is also lower. Dollar for dollar of assessed value, you pay more in Kitchener.

That doesn't take into account other things like wastewater management fees and other costs, though.
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#15
I did not know this - I thought that the mill rate in Waterloo was higher than in Kitchener. Learn something new every day!

Suddenly the budget problems of WPL make sense to me! Wink
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