5 ms·
You really don't have that much construction in Vancouver. There's a ton downtown, and in spots here and there, but most of Vancouver proper is single-family dw
by ertian 5y ago
You really don't have that much construction in Vancouver. There's a ton downtown, and in spots here and there, but most of Vancouver proper is single-family dwellings. You complain about condos, but houses with yards are incompatible with dense cities and low housing prices. Just the cost of land for a house is over a million, there's no point building a middle-class house on it--they couldn't afford it anyway. So you build condos, apartments, or a luxury home.
And renter protections and limitations on rent increases are fairly strict in BC, which discourages the building of apartments. If you dropped the rent control, developers would be more likely to build apartments, with the possible result that rent might go down.
And having said that, rents are actually pretty low in Vancouver. When I moved down to Seattle from there, my rent went way up, in spite of the fact that housing was way more expensive in Vancouver at the time (2011). Last time I checked, that remained true: rent for a fancy downtown 2-br apartment in Vancouver was about $2k Canadian, equivalent in Seattle was over $2.5k USD.
Look to Tokyo for a city that eliminated zoning and rent controls, and is surprisingly affordable for a huge international city. You'll never see it on a cost-of-living list with Vancouver, New York, Paris, Sydney, etc.
- kennywinker 5y ago> houses with yards are incompatible with dense cities and low housing prices Ever been out east? Row housing is dense, but has a yard and is suitable for families in a way that a condo can never be. > If you dropped the rent control, developers would be more likely to build apartments, with the possible result that rent might go down. We're BARELY rent controlled. Kick your tenant out and find a new one, boom you can double the rent. Technically illegal, but done constantly. If you really want to make it legit you can do a minor reno. > rents are actually pretty low in Vancouver Unfortunately I can't live in Seattle, and that seems like a disingenuous apples-to-oranges comparison. Because of the border/citizenship issue, those are separate markets. https://bc.ctvnews.ca/vancouver-s-rental-rates-are-the-highest-in-the-country-in-spite-of-drop-in-2020-report-1.5272789 https://bc.ctvnews.ca/vancouver-s-rental-rates-are-the-highe...
- ertian 5y agoYes, town houses aka row houses are much better than traditional picket-fence houses. Also, though, cities in the east have far better public transit systems. Vancouver does well for the west coast, but it's system is dwarfed by those in New York or Chicago. And North Americans have firmly decided against public transit. My understanding is that it's fantastically hard to evict a tenant in BC. I've heard stories of landlords taking a year to evict a tenant who wasn't even paying his rent anymore, and destroying the apartment in the process. Though I guess most people will leave when asked. And from what I remember, annual rent increases are capped at 4% or something? The first 3 years I lived in Seattle, my rent went up 50%. Basically, though, rents aren't bad in Vancouver, and that's the most critical aspect of housing. People can afford to live there. The situation could be easily improved, especially regarding housing ownership...by encouraging more building.
- kennywinker 5y agoIf we’re doing anecdotes, I had a neighbor evicted about six years ago. He was carving things into the walls. I can't recall an exact timeline but i think it took under two months to evict him. I’d be worried if it took less time. > Basically, though, rents aren't bad in Vancouver Your argument seems to be “it’s worse elsewhere so quit complaining. I’ll remind you, this is the least affordable rental city in canada.