Hey,
This is my first newsletter and I'm really glad you're here.
I started the From Away community because I was looking for other people who had done what I did. Moving here was hard in ways I wasn't prepared for, and I felt it. If you don't have a 902 number, it can be genuinely difficult to get someone in Nova Scotia to pick up the phone. The whole idea was to connect people who felt lost in the process with real boots-on-the-ground professionals and with each other.
That's still the mission. Finding real people to help other real people make this giant transition, and giving everyone a place to land together while they figure it out. A lot of people in the group have made genuine friends through it. Some have said it made the difference in their adjustment. I hope being here, in the group or in this newsletter, makes yours a little smoother too.
The money conversation
A couple of weeks ago I asked the group two questions back to back. Where are you actually saving money after moving here? And what was the biggest surprise utility cost after you arrived?
The thread got hundreds of responses and the picture that came out of it is honest and a little complicated. Car insurance is the most consistent win, almost everyone who moved from the 401 corridor mentions it. Property taxes are lower for a lot of people, but with a catch that trips people up at closing. Heating, whether that's oil, electric baseboards, heat pumps or all three at once, is the thing that makes people stare at a bill and wonder what they've done.
Car insurance is noticeably cheaper. We raise our own pork and chicken and use a local butcher to buy a half cow. So we don't buy meat at the grocery store anymore. The easier by-laws alone here allow you to do more with your land food-wise. What went up? NS Power. And firewood if you're not splitting your own, which we were until we recently had another baby.
The real answer to whether Nova Scotia is cheaper is that it's not cheaper, it's different. The friction just moves.
I turned both threads into a full blog post this week with real numbers from real people who live here. If you're still running the financial math before your move, or if you want to understand your bills better after arriving, it's worth a read. You'll only be able to see it from the link below, because it's not released yet! You'll get blogs here first, before anywhere else.
The Real Financial Picture: Where People Save and Where Nova Scotia Gets You
The Drive
Every spring the group fills up with people asking where to stop overnight on the drive from Ontario. A recent thread got nearly 200 responses so I turned it into a proper guide.
Short version: most people stop in Edmundston, NB on night one. Montmagny and Lévis in Quebec are the other popular spots. Book ahead if you're moving in summer because Edmundston fills up.
Honestly my favourite part of that post isn't the hotel list. It's the reminder that this drive is going to mean something. You're dragging your whole life across the country. Pull over somewhere above the St. Lawrence with a coffee. Stop when something is beautiful. By the time you see the Nova Scotia welcome sign, something is going to happen in your chest. Let it.
Best Places to Stop Overnight on the Drive from Ontario to Nova Scotia
What's happening in the group right now
It's spring and you can feel it. A lot of people are closing on houses, booking trucks, and hitting the road. The group is loud in a good way right now, which is my favourite version of it.
If you're wondering about what life is like here, our life here page on the website is always updating along with the Where We Landed Map. You can see how many people are happy in the areas they moved. Click the button below to check it out!
If you just closed or you're about to, drop where you're headed in the comments of the latest post. There are people right behind you in the process who want to know what it's actually like on the other side of closing day.
That's it for now. If something is on your mind, a question, something you're trying to figure out, something you want me to dig into, just reply to this. I read every reply.
Talk soon,
Kristina
