In the sense that misery loves company, a newly released report on the rental market may come as some comfort to Squamish tenants.
The Canadian Rental Housing Index, a database of rental housing statistics using data from the latest long-form census shows what locals already know: rents are increasingly expensive in Squamish, and there aren't enough of them.
The database — part of a partnership between housing and municipal associations across Canada — also shows that the Sea to Sky Corridor isn't unusual in this predicament.
The report includes rental housing information for B.C. as well as more than 800 regions and municipalities across Canada.
Not surprisingly, B.C. remains one of the most unaffordable provinces in the country to be a renter across almost all data points.
Since the last census in 2016, B.C. has had the most significant increase in average rent price.
What does the data show
The data shows about 2,745 renters in Squamish pay an average of $1,860 per month.
The provincial average is $1,492.
About 10% of renters in Squamish live in “overcrowded” conditions; the provincial average is even higher, at 11%. About 5% of renters in Squamish are living in places that need “major” repairs, the report shows.
Jill Atkey, CEO of the BC Non-Profit Housing Association, told The Squamish Chief that when she looks at the data for Squamish, what stands out for her is that the community's unaffordability crunch, while deeply concerning, is consistent with elsewhere in the province.
"In Squamish, you've got a pretty limited rental supply. So that drives rents up; rents are higher than the average for British Columbia, but incomes are also higher," she said.
The average household income in Squamish, is over $98,000, while the B.C. average is $78,000.
The median income in the District is $79,000, while the median for B.C. is a little over $63,000.
"Squamish renters aren't necessarily benefiting from their higher-than-provincial-average incomes, they're just spending more of it on rent. So the end result is largely the same as it is elsewhere in the province," she said.
While municipalities around B.C. are struggling to build rentals, there were so few built for so long, it is a tricky problem to dig themselves out of.
"In a healthy rental market, we're adding new buildings all the time, and new buildings are more expensive buildings. And that's where higher-income renters would go, freeing up that older purpose-built rental stock that's more affordable for people who aren't earning the median income," she said. "But we don't see that in places like Squamish or other communities in B.C., because we just didn't build rental [housing] for so long. And so people stay in rentals longer because they've been priced out of homeownership."
And that puts downward pressure on the market until there are people that drop right out of the bottom of the system, she added.
One of the primary reasons folks become homeless now is an inability to afford rent, Atkey said.
"That was not the case 20 years ago."
In a healthy economy, typically, about 30% of folks' pre-tax income goes toward housing.
In Squamish, 1,040 households are exceeding that 30% threshold.
Of those, close to 500 renter-households are spending more than 50% of their pre-tax income on rent, which is very concerning, Atkey said.
"That's crisis level," she said. "People really are at risk of homelessness. And it just takes one forced move, or one missed paycheque — if you're sick or taking care of a family member — for your life to unravel almost entirely by becoming homeless. There's such a real risk to a fair number of households in Squamish."
And it is not just the individual households that feel the ripple effect of this, she stressed. It has long-term community impacts as well.
"Rent is always the first thing that gets paid. But then people start cutting back on groceries; they're definitely going to be cutting back on extracurricular activities for kids ... There's long- term impacts, including health impacts, and then it puts more pressure on other community services."
And while the impetus for struggling families may be to look outside Squamish or even B.C. for a more affordable place to live, that isn't a viable solution, Atkey said.
"What we're really pushing for are some solutions to this crisis that don't force people out of their communities because what we've seen through the data over the last almost 10 years is people go further and further out seeking affordability, but they don't necessarily find it there. And then they're leaving their social networks and their community support without finding affordability. That's probably not what people want to hear, but the challenge, particularly for low- and moderate-income households, is very, very real in virtually every community in the province."
The call is for every level of government to work together to do what they can as quickly as they can to address this crisis, Atkey said.
"We just didn't build market rental housing for 40 years, and then we stopped building affordable rental housing for 25 years. So, it was entirely predictable, but now we know the importance of those investments."
What is the municipality doing?
In response to the report and Atkey's call to action, spokesperson for the District of Squamish, Rachel Boguski, noted that Squamish has long been facing a housing crisis and the municipality has been working to address it.
"We know that current housing supply does not meet community needs and that it’s a challenge for renters in particular to find affordable and suitable housing in Squamish," she said, in an email to The Squamish Chief.
"We know this is an issue being faced by municipalities across the province and we are being called to ramp up housing production in order to meet the needs of our community, and the province, in the years to come,” Boguski said, adding that municipalities have limited tools available and thus partnerships are key if Squamish is to achieve its affordable housing targets.
Boguski noted that the District has done or is doing the following:
- Established the Squamish Community Housing Society in 2021 to "increase the supply, availability and access to affordable housing options across the community and the entire housing spectrum."
- Approved the Perpetually Affordable Housing (PAH) Policy "to provide a clear definition of our affordable housing needs, in order for developers to pledge units to the affordable housing inventory from their developments as part of a Community Amenity Contribution (CAC).
- Secured 275 affordable housing units through Community Amenity Contributions over the last five years.
- Created affordable housing, including Under One Roof, which opened in 2020, and the Spirit Creek Apartments, which includes 76 rentals that opened this spring, whereby the District contributed the land, and a local housing provider provided the management, with financial contributions secured from BC Housing.
- The District adopted zoning regulations and "made policy changes to support and incentivize the development of secondary suites and accessory dwelling units (carriage houses)."
- Is continuing to work with non-profit partners and BC Housing to identify potential affordable housing projects and the provision of funding for both construction and operational costs, like at Spirit Creek, which was a partnership between the District of Squamish, Sea to Sky Community Services, Vancouver Coastal Health and BC Housing.
- Is utilizing the neighbourhood planning process in order to "identify opportunities to increase affordability and provide appropriate housing and amenities to a broad range of residents over time."
- District staff are participating in consultation activities with the province government regarding their ‘Homes for People’ initiative. "Staff have been providing input from the Squamish perspective on opportunities and challenges facing the provision of housing in our community, as it relates to the provincial plan," Boguski said.
Short-term rentals
When it comes to what a municipality should do about Airbnb-type rentals, Atkey said anything that can help create more rentals is a good move.
"If [short-term rentals are] removing any units from the long-term rental market, when we've got a rental market that's struggling to provide affordable housing for people, there's real challenges associated with that," she said. "And it's a question of values; what do we want to be using our housing stock for? For housing? For people who need it — workers in our communities and a broad range of others? Or is it to provide cheaper hotels for people who are visiting? So it's a question of values at the end of the day."
In terms of short-term rentals in Squamish, the District confirmed there are 123 active short-term rental licences in town; 21 of those short-term rentals are operated under a Temporary Use Permit (TUP), meaning the unit isn’t a permanent place of residence.
There is a cap of 30 of such TUPs in Squamish.
The rest have to be vacation rentals in a primary residence.
"This limit maintains a balance of protecting the rental stock located in our accessory dwelling units with the need to support tourist accommodation in Squamish as we have a shortage of accommodation. Staff are regularly monitoring the short-term rental market and annually reporting to council on this issue," Boguski said.
To see the full report, go to www.rentalhousingindex.ca.
