Expat Canadian and world famous blogger Mr. Money Mustache was featured on the Tim Ferris podcast this week. I've often wondered if his approach to low cost living and retirement is possible in Calgary.
Short answer is no, Calgarians would need to relocate elsewhere.
He lives in Longmont Colorado, a small city with a mild climate (could have selected anywhere in the US or beyond). This makes it a lot easier to bike everywhere plus his dollar stretches much farther for anything from food to cellular bills. Much of this doesn't work in Canada. His family of three can live well on just over $20k per year. I'll spend that much this year in property tax. A house in the kind of neighbourhood he espouses (good neighbours, convenient location, ability to make renovations and efficiency upgrades dictates you'd have to live in the inner city and spend at least $600k on a house) could have been found in Longmont for 1/3 of that when he bought his house. Nevertheless his blog and perspective are interesting and enlightening. I'd highly recommend a listen and a review of his blog archives.
Check out the episode at https://itunes.apple.com/ca/podcast/the-tim-ferriss-show/id863897795?mt=2&i=1000381189204