Step 1. Secure Housing

Winter gets cold. So the first thing you will need to do, intrepid traveler, is find a place to live.

It's the Valley of the Dolls! In the suburb of Timberlea, where I live, the houses have all been built in the last 5 years. And they are all the

same.

One of the major obstacles to living in Fort McMurray is the inflated cost of living. Fort Mac has gone through a major population explosion in the last 5 years. In 2006, there were 50,000 residents; now there are over 100,000. An additional 200,000 are expected in the next 5 years. The municipality has not been able to build infrastructure to keep up with demand for residential land, and as a result, housing is in major demand. A prefabricated 4 bedroom home in the suburb of Timberlea is easily over $800,000. Million dollar homes are everywhere, and offer little more than the typical suburban home: http://www.remax-fortmcmurray-ab.com/properties/featured.html.

The city has worked to make these suburbs as livable as possible by adding ponds and walking trails, but that doesn't distract much from the otherwise desolate surroundings! Some people move here for work and quickly end up homeless, unable to find a place they can afford. So although the well groomed recreational spaces are inviting, camping out in the winter is not an option here.

Apartments are hard to come by. Major oil sands employers often buy whole blocks of apartments to make available for contract staff. The high level of demand inflates market rates. Before I moved out here, I was looking at a single bedroom in a house for $800 monthly, or a 600 sq.ft apartment for $2000! Not cool. Some people try to avoid these high costs by purchasing a house in groups. It is not uncommon to see a house with five or six cars parked outside where a bunch of people have gone in together. Most employers offer a housing subsidy of $1000 monthly to help their staff; my workplace, however, can not.

Knowing all this, I would not have moved to Fort McMurray unless I had a steal of a deal. And I do! The parents of a good friend have taken me in as a boarder and are giving me a fantastic deal. The best part is that Gary makes my lunch for work each night! I have a bedroom and a bathroom in their basement. It doesn't hurt that they are friendly and welcoming people. Not many transient workers get as lucky!