Running back to Saskatoon, Moose Jaw, Regina ...

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Saskatchewan lures Albertans
9 P- c+ k" P% PMike Sadava, The Edmonton Journal
Published: Friday, March 30, 2007
$ b  g1 \7 |" ~3 k# X; zEDMONTON - Albertans are starting to be Saskatchewan-bound in growing numbers.

For the first time since 1996, more people are moving from Alberta to Saskatchewan than the other way around. It's part of a slight slowdown in Alberta's population growth, which is still increasing at four times the rest of the country.

, N1 W8 ^/ \" y" l0 a# d6 JAccording to Statistics Canada, 128 more Albertans moved one province east in the last three months of 2006.
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"This is a good batch of numbers," said Roy Schneider, spokesman for Saskatchewan Industry and Resources. "We were bleeding so many people to Alberta for such a long time I'd be happy to see (a net increase from Alberta of) two.
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2 i$ b0 F2 |7 p5 J: ?For years, between 2,000 and 4,000 Saskatchewan residents per quarter would head out to Alberta in search of the good life.
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& ]' A! F# u0 V6 k' W9 q. e) NEven in the third quarter of 2006, Saskatchewan experienced a net loss of 994 people to Alberta, and the province launched an ad campaign, extolling the better life of Saskatchewan in billboards popping up around Edmonton.

4 v3 z1 O2 |( |: Y( n' [  GStatistics Canada hasn't tracked who these people are, but Crystal and Cam Hamilton, who moved back to Regina at the beginning of the year, might be typical.
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  f  q% x( e* S5 ]" h: H9 _Cam moved here eight years ago to take a course in architectural drafting.

There were no jobs in Regina in his field, so he stayed in Edmonton to work. Crystal followed him here and they married, eventually buying a house in Lymburn in southwest Edmonton.
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; l, I" Q# G3 y9 N6 X2 V7 |After having their son Brady, who is now 11 months old, they decided it would be nice to be back in Regina with family, and that became possible.
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" f& i% I: O6 k5 Z$ w9 V"Because the economy is so much bigger in Saskatchewan now, there are jobs again," Crystal Hamilton said.

They ended up with a tidy nest egg from the move and managed to pay off their debts. The Edmonton house they bought two years ago for $157,000 got them $306,000, and they built a new, larger home in Regina for $190,000.
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6 ~' l' u" y. r"We're financially set now," she said. "It was perfect timing and turned out to be good idea in many ways."

# t. v4 M2 `  o. W. m) q4 wShe said they liked Edmonton, other than the traffic, and made a lot of friends here who they will miss.

" ~* {' ]& r" s  g+ H0 g1 Q0 ]"It was sad to move, but it's also good to be back."
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Vicki Delnea and her husband Rod had similar reasons for moving to Regina from Calgary -- the difference in the cost of housing enabled them to pay off their mortgage.
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% H* v' n( _4 p3 N+ y. M" Q"In the end you have to figure out your priorities, and for us it was not being on the hamster wheel," she said.
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/ f5 a: W+ R; v8 L3 x$ y# FWhile she is from London, England, Rod was originally from Regina, and it will be great for her three-year-old, Joshua, to know his grandparents, she said.
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Rod, who works in marketing, was able to keep his job and is working out of a home office, which saves him a 40-minute commute.
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) u5 Y9 b* M) ]"Everybody thought we were crazy moving here because there is a stigma against Saskatchewan. When we told them Regina, they said: 'Why?' We said: 'Why not?' "

+ {0 N4 X8 _. Q, O) vSo far Delnea loves the city, finding her neighbours friendly and not missing the traffic of Calgary.

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# e1 D: x1 U) \* g% rFrank Trovato, a demographer in the sociology department at the University of Alberta, said it's not surprising to see more people moving to Saskatchewan after such a long period of net outflow of people to Alberta.

& [% x8 C. u8 Y6 P1 R+ ^"When you see there's a lot of people moving to a place, there's also a countercurrent back," Trovato said.
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1 e8 h# s* C# B* j. g& M6 M5 yThere are likely a number of factors at play, including the lower cost of housing and greater economic opportunities back in Saskatchewan, but there were probably a number of people who found that Edmonton didn't provide the opportunities they were hoping for, he said.
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. }6 ]0 ~8 X8 _0 m" ^6 e"Not everyone who moves to a province is there permanently," Trovato said.

Terry Hincks, a Regina city councillor and realtor, said Albertans are buying a lot of homes in Regina, either as revenue property or to eventually be their place of residence.
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"It seems that every time I pick up the phone it's either 780 or 403 (area codes)."

( y1 O5 t2 Y8 q9 YReal estate prices are still much lower than Edmonton -- $130,000 to $150,000 can still get you a decent three-bedroom home -- but are starting to rise. February set a new record in Regina, with 250 houses sold.

% [: d- U) i) R3 _, q" w- [0 t9 Lmsadava@thejournal.canwest.com
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AGAINST THE TIDE
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( I2 w+ w3 }  k9 s: cNo. of people moving from Alberta to Saskatchewan: 2,838
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No. of people moving from Saskatchewan to Alberta: 2,710

Net loss for Alberta: 128

. r1 r) a& h( \/ e! T' G5 zNet inflow of migrants to Alberta from the rest of Canada: 11,800
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: t6 `' F) O9 v: b- NNet inflow of migrants in the fourth quarter 2005: 17,100

Population growth Alberta: 0.65 per cent

) w: r4 m9 H% h! c3 S; c0 a/ ZPopulation growth for Sask.: 0.21 per cent
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9 @( L& O( ?) sPopulation growth for all of Canada: 0.14 per cent
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Source: Statistics Canada figures for fourth quarter, 2006