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Mark A's avatar

I can confirm I'm tearing out my hair. In Victoria, the average asking price for a 1 bedroom apartment is $2,150. That requires a monthly take-home income of more than $5,000, which requires an income of over $80,000 to come in under 40% of take home pay going to the rental. The average household income in Victoria is ~$65k a year. This is for a one-bedroom apartment, not a home suitable for raising a family, or even a two-bedroom suitable for a family with a child.

It's hard to have a discussion about ownership with rental costs that high. Rentals leave less and less room for savings for retirement, saving for a home, and starting a family and having a child. These rents go to owners who in some cases are more than covering their mortgages.

The conversation needs to shift. Something needs to change. Capital gains on principal residences over $1 million, renters should either be entitled to larger TFSA/RRSP contribution room for every year they don't own, or they should be able to make rental payments tax deductible -- or perhaps both. As our own PM said, the difference in wealth between homeowners and renters is very very large. How is it that OAS is paying out retirees $750 a month if they have an income of ~$86k a year, and renters are getting absolutely destroyed with these prices with little hope of just having a single-bedroom apartment that doesn't sabotage their futures?

Look at the happiness rates. Those over 50 in Canada are the 5th happiest in the world, while those under 30 are 58th. Their futures aren't being stolen, they are already stolen.

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Dale Hunter's avatar

Upzoning can have an effect on affordability, but it won't be enough if affordability isn't a condition of upzoning. See Patrick Condon's article https://www.biv.com/news/economy-law-politics/patrick-condon-behold-vancouver-where-there-are-housing-solutions-be-found-8271577 Well worth a read, I think.:-)

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