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@BelugaBean: where east of Toronto? My in laws live in Markham, Scarborough, and North York and all the good school districts there are pretty pricey but Carolina standards. But if you were moving further east, quite a bit out of the city, prices get more reasonable.

Also to add to @Truth Bombs, consider the (likely) higher taxes and exchange rate, particularly if this is a temporary move. You'll also miss paying into SS (not sure if your contributions to the Canadian equivalent will count later on??) and impact to putting retirement funds away (401k, IRAs, etc).

You won't have to "pay double taxes" but you'll need to file taxes in both the US and Canada.

I live in Whitby, which is east (about 15 minutes east of Pickering). It's a perfectly fine suburban area, getting nicer as more independent stores and restaurants open up (but it's still mostly big box supercentres). He definitely wouldn't be looking at a 45-60 minute commute unless you want to actually live in Toronto (and even then you'd be going against the traffic). If you're thinking about living in Toronto you're going to likely be looking at an apartment or condo, because houses are outrageously expensive (I'm not sure about renting but the average house price in Toronto is about $1 million). Toronto to Pickering is about a 30 minute drive assuming no traffic - your husband would be commuting against traffic so it wouldn't be as bad but the 401 (our major highway and the one he'd be probably driving on) is the busiest highway in the world - we apparently have worse traffic than LA. I'm Canadian and my kids are little so I can't help with school or health care but if you have other questions I'm happy to help.

Another thing to add (and I have no experience with Canada), you may want to check on your own eligibility to work in Canada if you desire to. In my experience, expat spouses are not always allowed to work, or they may be restricted in what types of contracts they can hold. Again, no idea how it works in Canada, but it's something to consider if you may be limited to a one income household.

@BelugaBean: You can also look up expat forums and see what is already out there in terms of questions from people that have considered this kind of move.

I found it really helpful and it linked me into some groups.