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To comfortably afford a Victoria one-bedroom, you now need to be making $75K

Victoria is the ninth-most expensive city in Canada to rent a one-bedroom apartment

By Jolene Rudisuela
June 19, 2022
Latest News
News
Based on facts either observed and verified firsthand by the reporter, or reported and verified from knowledgeable sources.

To comfortably afford a Victoria one-bedroom, you now need to be making $75K

Victoria is the ninth-most expensive city in Canada to rent a one-bedroom apartment

Photoillustration: Dash Dixon / Capital Daily
Photoillustration: Dash Dixon / Capital Daily
Latest News
News
Based on facts either observed and verified firsthand by the reporter, or reported and verified from knowledgeable sources.

To comfortably afford a Victoria one-bedroom, you now need to be making $75K

Victoria is the ninth-most expensive city in Canada to rent a one-bedroom apartment

By Jolene Rudisuela
June 19, 2022
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To comfortably afford a Victoria one-bedroom, you now need to be making $75K
Photoillustration: Dash Dixon / Capital Daily

The cost of renting a one-bedroom apartment continues to soar across the country, and Victoria is no exception. According to the latest monthly Rentals.ca report, the average monthly rent for a currently listed one-bedroom in Victoria rose to $1,870 in May 2022—up 13.4% from May 2021.

In the report’s ranking of Canada’s most expensive cities for one-bedrooms, Victoria has risen from #14 a couple months ago to #9 (Vancouver is #1). For two-bedrooms, Victoria continues to be #3 in Canada.

At an average of $2,896 per month, the cost of a two-bedroom has nearly tripled in the past 10 years. May’s two-bedroom average also represents a huge 36% jump from just a year ago—the biggest increase out of any of the 35 major Canadian municipalities in the report.

The math

It’s recommended that renters should spend no more than 30% of their monthly income (before taxes) on housing, but these days that may be inconceivable for many. For one person to comfortably afford a one-bedroom at current prices, they would need to make at least $74,800 per year—and that’s assuming all utility costs are included in the rent, which they often are not.

In Victoria, the median household income was listed at $70,197 before taxes in a 2016 CMHC report. This means an affordable rent would be $1,755/month.

One person could comfortably afford a two-bedroom at the current average if they brought home $115,840 annually. Two people could afford to live in the average two-bedroom if they each earned an annual salary of $57,920. For comparison, a person making BC’s new minimum wage would make $31,300 by working 40 hours/week for 50 weeks of the year.

On top of high prices, few places are available

Even for those who can afford current prices, finding a rental is still challenging because supply remains so low. Victoria realtor Curtis Lindsay tweeted last month that one of his clients listed their one-bedroom condo for rent at $1,800 and received 45 applications in 12 hours.

"I don’t think anyone fully grasps the rental crisis here in #VictoriaBC," he tweeted on May 5. "They were completely overwhelmed with personal stories/situations."

As prices continue to balloon, more and more people will struggle to find and keep housing in Victoria. And as Capital Daily reported last month, there are limited avenues for would-be renters to find a place to live.

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