During the epidemic, there is a popular concept in China called "consumption downgrading": reducing the level of consumer experience, personality requirements and tastes, and instead considering low-priced, cost-effective goods to cope with the increasing economic and employment pressure.
Under pressure, many people choose to migrate – in fact, whether before or after the pandemic, many people who choose to immigrate do so just to live a better life.
There are even optimists who think so: the per capita income level of European and American countries is several times that of China, and housing prices in European and American countries may not be as expensive as in China, and it is cheaper to buy a car. As for daily expenses, the exchange rate is definitely higher, but it will not be ridiculously high.
There are also people who have a wishful thinking: I am a white-collar worker in China, and I get 200,000 yuan a year, even if I can't find a white-collar job in Vancouver, I can get 40,000 or 50,000 Canadian dollars a year as a small clerk or even do manual work, which is equivalent to more RMB.
What, immigrating to Vancouver and experiencing a downgrade in consumption? These optimists must think, "Then it must be that you are too incompetent to have a foothold overseas." Besides, people who can immigrate and generally have good economic conditions can go to the "coveted" Canada and become picky and searching?
However, this is not the case......
There is a hot post on the Greater Vancouver Chinese Forum, titled "I, who am middle-class, immigrated to Vancouver and understood what consumption downgrade is!"
First of all, the income is really not much higher than in China
The annual household income standard of the domestic middle class is about 300,000 yuan, which is almost equal to 56,600 Canadian dollars, and the families who can immigrate to Vancouver are at least the middle class, so it is reasonable to use the domestic middle class index compared with the Vancouver average.
The median annual household income in Vancouver is about 85,000 Canadian dollars, which is actually less than 50% higher than the income of the domestic middle class, which is not at all 4 or 5 times the difference reflected in the per capita GDP.
Here's the question: In China, it is the norm for both husband and wife to work, but when they arrive in Canada, they have to be busy taking care of their children, adjusting to life, handling the house, and dealing with various things.
If you look at it this way, the actual income of middle-class families in China after immigrating to Vancouver may not be as high as that in China. If Vancouver is really cheaper than the rest of the country in every way, then the quality of life is guaranteed, however......
Housing prices are close to Beijing, Shanghai and Guangzhou, surpassing second-tier cities in China
The "big items" that everyone needs most in their lives are, of course, houses and cars. It's no secret that domestic home prices have slipped from their peaks, while Vancouver has been firm.
Five years ago, ten years ago, Vancouver's housing prices were equivalent to RMB per square meter, almost between the second-tier cities and the first-tier cities in China, but now it has significantly exceeded most of the second-tier cities and approached the first-tier cities.
For example, the square foot price of a new apartment building in downtown Vancouver is about 1,600 yuan, and an 800-square-foot apartment is 1.28 million Canadian dollars, which is equivalent to the asking price of a 74-square-meter house of 6.78 million yuan, with an average of 9~100,000 yuan per square meter, which is a proper price in first-tier cities.
Even if there are new apartments in Burnaby Metrotown, Coquitlam Center, and Surrey Center 20 or 30 kilometers away, apartments with a price of 1,000+ per square foot are also everywhere, with an average of more than 60,000 yuan per square meter.
Let's ask, with a similar salary, and if you are from a second- or third-tier city in China, and the house is also regarded as a "consumption" category, how can you not downgrade?
There used to be an advantage in car prices, but now it's gone
In Vancouver, including buying a car throughout North America, the advantages used to be the envy of domestic people. For example, in 2014, it only cost more than 80,000 Canadian dollars to buy a high-end SUV of "BBA" in Vancouver, and the exchange rate was very low at that time, equivalent to less than 400,000 yuan.
And to buy these high-end off-road vehicles in China, counting various taxes, the price is almost 1 million. If the salary is about the same, it is much cheaper to buy a car in Vancouver, especially a luxury car.
However, the price of the car has gone through ups and downs since then. For example, the same "BBA" high-end off-road vehicle now needs 100,000 Canadian dollars in Vancouver, equivalent to 530,000 yuan, while the domestic experience is only 600,000 yuan, and the price difference is very small.
What's even more "terrible" is that the current focus is on new energy vehicles, and the cost performance of China's new energy vehicles is "complete" in North America. Taking Tesla as an example, the Model Y costs 400,000 yuan in Vancouver, and it is more than 300,000 yuan in China, which is more expensive.
The price of the car used to be advantageous, but now it is gone, and some of the hot-selling models are more expensive in Vancouver. With a similar salary, it is definitely a consumption downgrade!
The prices of supermarkets and restaurants? Don't compare, it's too hurtful
Housing prices and car prices, combined with real incomes, already make middle-class immigrants from the country frown, and the most painful comparison is, of course, supermarket prices and restaurant prices. If you exchange the price of Vancouver for RMB, it can directly make people "vomit blood", especially for new immigrant families:
In an ordinary small restaurant, the maximum amount of 100 yuan for ordering three dishes in China is not much higher than that in Vancouver? 70 Canadian dollars can't run, plus tips, the proper price difference is 4 times! Let me emphasize again -- after the middle-class immigrants, the income in Vancouver is not much higher than that in China.
Buying a bunch of vegetables in the supermarket costs 100 yuan in China, and the same dish is almost 100 Canadian dollars in a Vancouver supermarket, which is still 5 times the price difference.
Middle-class families who could buy groceries in domestic supermarkets without blinking an eye were forced to look for frozen and discounted vegetables after coming to Vancouver...... No way, it's too expensive.
What, Vancouver's fresh seafood is cheaper? Maybe it's cheaper, but who eats raw seafood every day? It's more home-cooked food, then the price in Vancouver is outrageous.
There is also takeaway: if you order a meal of 50 yuan in China, the actual cost of delivering it to your home may be 51, and if you order a meal of 20 Canadian dollars here, including delivery fees, taxes, and tips, it may become 35 at once, who makes the labor cost here so expensive?
In terms of daily eating and drinking, the consumption downgrade is real and "shocking". What, can free medical care make up for the downgrade? Is it more of a daily expense or more of a medical expense? Moreover, Canada's "free medical care" has made countless people prefer to go to the United States, where they pay for medical treatment.
购物便宜?Temu、Shein"微微一笑"
Once upon a time, fashionistas would say that it was much cheaper to buy clothes in the United States and Canada than at home. It's true that some brands are cheap, like Canada Goose and Arc'teryx, but this also falls into the high-end category. When we talk about daily life, we find that shopping in Canada also has to experience a downgrade in consumption.
Because the "lower limit" of various commodities and clothing in Canada is relatively high. Unless you are willing to go to Walmart or Costco to buy low-cost clothing with no style and no quality, even if you go to Nike to buy a pair of sweatpants, it is now 120 Canadian dollars, which is more expensive than in China.
In Vancouver shopping malls, even if it is a brand that has never been seen, a short-sleeved T-shirt will casually cost 50 Canadian dollars, while in domestic Taobao and Pinduoduo, the same style may not need 50 yuan.
Why can cheap daily necessities stores such as Temu and Shein be like fish in water in Canada and the United States, attracting countless fans? Of course, it is because similar products in the United States and Canada are too expensive, and compared with Temu, they are not cost-effective.
The middle class, forced to "pick up bottles"
A netizen said with a wry smile: "In China, I throw some bottles and cans directly in the trash can downstairs for someone to pick them up, and I won't waste time recycling things for a little money." But in Vancouver, I got into the habit of picking up bottles and recycling them to make a little money. ”
In the same way, if the car encounters some small scratches, it must go directly to the shop to repair it in China, which is not expensive anyway;
If the car is dirty, it may only cost 20 yuan to clean it in China, and here it is 30 or 50 Canadian dollars, which is N times more expensive in RMB.
There is also a toilet change, buy a toilet in China, including freight and installation, 1000 yuan of toilet is actually 1000, but in Vancouver, the toilet price is 200 Canadian dollars, the shipping fee is 100 Canadian dollars, the installation fee is 100 Canadian dollars, the old toilet recycling fee is 100 Canadian dollars, and the actual cost is 500 Canadian dollars......
Before immigrating, many people sang "Life is not only about the immediate future, but also about poetry and distant fields" - after coming to Canada, I found that there are really poems and distant and beautiful fields everywhere. However, life has become more ......
Would you like to go to another city?
Seeing this, there may be potential immigrants who are not familiar with Canada and say: Why go to Vancouver and Toronto, which have the highest housing prices, and go to other cities in Canada?
Yes, of course, for example, in Edmonton, the house price is less than half of Vancouver, and if it is Saskatoon, Winnipeg, it is not even half. But...... It's not disrespectful to these cities, because their problems (such as the cold) can be maddening, and there aren't many opportunities for Chinese people to work.
In short, if you don't go to Vancouver and you don't belong to the wealthy people, you still need to work hard for your own hands. Then after immigrating to Vancouver, you need to be prepared to withstand the consumption downgrade. For the same income, there is obviously less to be gained in Vancouver.
This is not a total denial of Vancouver, let alone a denial of immigration to Canada, but "the need to have a comprehensive and rational understanding of Vancouver and Canada." "After all, there are many aspects here that can still bring you real upgrades, such as the natural and cultural environment, such as the right pace of life.
In addition, in Vancouver, which is diverse enough, as long as you work hard enough, even if it is impossible to achieve great wealth, at least you can find a platform that suits you and you can find like-minded friends. Regardless of ethnicity, there are opportunities to shine in Vancouver.
But it's still the same sentence: a real upgrade, more upgrades are "poetry and distance", which is the icing on the cake for your life. But when your money is not enough to spend, when you are still troubled by consumption downgrades, and you are still "reluctant", what is the use of these poems and distant places?