Published: August 5, 2019
Vancouver real estate is hella expensive, but it’s become ridiculous in recent years. Canadian Centre for Policy Alternatives (CCPA) crunched the numbers to find the wage needed to rent in Greater Vancouver. Breaking down the numbers further, we see how unsustainable the region has become. The average one-bedroom is now unaffordable to over half of the city. That’s if we include distant suburbs, and it’s even worse if we don’t.
For housing to be affordable, shelter expenses need to represent less than 30% of gross (a.k.a. pre-tax) income. Shelter expenses include, but are not limited to, rent, mortgage payments, utilities, taxes.
In Canada, the low-income measure (LIM) is often used to define poverty. LIM considers a household in poverty if their income is below 50% of the median Canadian household income. Even if you spend all of your income on rent, taxes, transport, and not enough food – you’re not in “poverty.”
Make less than $20 per hour, or $41,600 per year? Then there’s only six neighborhoods you can possibly afford in Greater Vancouver. To find a place in the City of Vancouver, we need to jump to lucky number six. Marpole Remainder (Marpole less Marpole South), requires a wage of $19.25 to afford the average one-bedroom. That’s a minimum income of $37,200 per year to afford an average one-bedroom in Greater Vancouver. In the City of Vancouver, you need a minimum income of $40,100 per year to afford an average one-bedroom.
The gap between income and rent in Greater Vancouver seems to be getting wider every day.
Source: Half of Greater Vancouver Can’t Afford A One Bedroom Rental | Better Dwelling