West Vancouver-Sunshine Coast-Sea to Sky Riding is among the worst federal riding for rental affordability in Canada, according to a new data compiled by Canadian Rental Housing Index.
The rental housing index examines the state of rental housing across the country by assessing the affordability and suitability of the rental housing stock.
West Vancouver–Sunshine Coast–Sea to Sky Country ranked 13th in the top 20 worst rental markets in the country, with 28 per cent of renters spending up to 50 per cent or more on paying their rent.
Vancouver-Quadra and Richmond Centre are other BC ridings that are among the worst 20 federal ridings to rent in the country.
The country’s top five worst places to rent, however, are in Ontario with Willowdale in Toronto being the worst riding in Canada where nearly two-thirds (59 per cent) of all renter households spend 30 per cent or more of their income on housing, while 39 per cent allocate half or more.
Neighbouring GTA ridings of Thornhill and Richmond Hill are not much better, placing second and third most unaffordable in the country, according to the survey.
The 2019 Canadian Rental Housing Index uses data from the 2016 long-form census, and examines rental housing affordability and overcrowding of various demographic groups for over 800 municipalities and regions across Canada, as well as all 338 federal electoral districts.
“These numbers clearly demonstrate why Canadians and housing advocates have been calling on our political leaders to take more immediate action to address the affordability challenges impacting so many families and individuals across the country,” said Jill Atkey, CEO of BC Non-Profit Housing Association.
“Whichever party forms the next government will need to increase the investments into the National Housing Strategy in order to achieve its goals before this crisis gets even worse.”
Other key findings of the 2019 index show that renters under the age of 30 and seniors are more likely to live in unaffordable conditions. Nearly one-quarter (23 per cent) of young renter households are at a crisis level of spending, and over half (50 per cent) of senior-led renter households spend over the recommended benchmark of 30 per cent.
The rental market situation is also challenging for single mothers, Indigenous renter households as well as new immigrants.
