american drive across into British Columbia, rent apartment or problems..? :\
 

curious here... was thinking of driving across the border from Washington state into B.C. (taking ferry) and heading up to Victoria, and would like to stay for a good 6-months up there, but am not sure if this is possible or not...

i'm a US citizen and would just be showing my passport at the border when entering B.C., but would i be able to rent an apartment up in Victoria and get utilities (i.e broadband!) hooked up not being a Canadian citizen? would i be relegated to just being able to stay in hotels while up there or can i rent an apartment w/out problems and just show my U.S. passport as ID?

any input would be most appreciated, thx in advance friends..!

http://twash.com/iku/itsfullofstars.gif

what is the purpose of your stay in Canada?

US citizens can go there for up to 180 days with out needing anything.

I don't know about trying to get an apartment and utilities in your name for that short of a stay ...

it would be easier/faster to just rent a long term vacation property
http://www.vrbo.com/vacation-rentals/canada#104

La migra! Andale, andale!! :helpme

in all honesty, i would like to wait out the 'witch hunt' in friendlier climes, and have always like Victoria the few times i've visited... just wasn't sure whether i would be able to just walk in and rent myself (and wife) an apartment or if i would run into hurdles right off the bat..

Just rent a short-term furnished apartment

www.elitehomevacations.com

okay, i'll let you in for six months..

be VERY careful what u say to the border guys
they have a way to intimidate people

ya, dont mention any thing about working in Canada..

You'll love it here :thumbsup

:thumbsup

best advice..

Just say your visiting a very sick uncle who is in the hospital.

They used to have a car ferry from washington directly to victoria called the 8-ball or somethiing.

Rent wont be a problem , and you likely wont have a problem getting cable or telephone.. Cash and a name usually does it.

You can run but ...

Dog, the bounty hunter, will find you even in Victoria

Yeh and don't tell them you're bringing goods for resale or delivering goods to another business

thx for all the input friends...

to those who responded who i notice actually live w/in B.C., was i misinformed when a friend told me that i would be unable to rent apartments/condos not being a Canadian citizen then? he is an american living in Toronto (so maybe that is the difference, B.C. vs. Ontario?) and claimed that he needed a local friend to rent an apartment for him, that he could not... nor get utilities turned on himself... i'd like to avoid spended more than i have to so executive-housing and short-term rentals/hotels would be a last resort to me. i'd prefer to pick up the local paper and rent a unit w/ a regular lease & price if possible, but want to be somewhat prepared w/ what to expect when arriving...

thx again all, anything else would be very welcome..!

Just be discreet about the reason why you're coming to Canada. The border boys may try to intimidate you but you are legally allowed to stay in Canada for up to 180 days once you made it into the country.

It won't be a problem getting any services. Canadians love American.................money :winkwink:

Tell a landlord that you have plenty of identification, just not that it's American ID. If they're not happy with that answer, rent somewhere else. There are plenty of overseas students who manage to rent places in my neighborhood so I'd be surprised if you had problems with that.

As far as getting utilities like telephone, internet and whatnot, the companies may ask you for a social insurance number. They will tell you it's required. Tell them it's none of their business and they will usually drop the issue. If they push it, make a 9 digit number up. Just remember that the first 3 digits tell the place of birth so do some research on that and make a number. You may need to have a credit card to use as a deposit.

Hit me up if I can help any, I'm in Vancouver and my icq is 277-416-860.

lots of US tourists come here for up to 6 months and rent houses, condos, trailers etc.....but remember your max stay will be 6 months...

You want to rent an unfurnished apartment for 6 months? Are you going to bring your own furniture?

Renting wont be a problem at all. All you need is $$. If the utility companies ask just tell them you forgot it , or it go tlost or something , they dont need it.They wont bug you about it..

Toronto has alot of immigrants ,might be harder to rent ( i.e. need canadian references ) , it should be easier on the west coast. I wouldnt worry about either of those things.

being an american is alot easier.

heres the steps to creating an alternate i.d.

#1 lookup old land records for ss #'s of dead people ( or just get one however )

#2 get any job with a paystub ( jobs dont ask for a ss card they just ask for the number ) use any name you wish

#3 get a drivers license ( they need i.d. , OR a paystub from your job ) :)

voila , you now have a drivers license under any name you wish , now you can apply for any other i.d. / passport / gun license / bank account / etc

I'm in victoria, if your not a total douche i'm sure we could work something out.. I don't know if they would rent to you or not to be honest; It might be up to the renter. Think of exchange students same shit right?.