Vancouver’s no paradise for some fed-up residents
Metro Vancouver, the envy of most Canadians for its temperate climes and picturesque views, is making nearly 20 per cent of its residents so miserable they’re “seriously thinking” of leaving, according to a new poll.
The findings of the Angus Reid Institute poll are in surprising contradiction to international surveys that perennially rank Vancouver in the top 5 for the world’s most livable cities.
The Institute polled 821 Metro residents in June to find out how they felt about their experiences with housing and transportation. It found there are four main groups of people in the region: those who are happy (21 per cent), comfortable (34 per cent), uncomfortable (27 per cent) and miserable (18 per cent).
The miserable are university educated, range in age from 18 to 54 and spend a lot of time in their cars commuting. The source of their unhappiness is one shared by most who answered the Angus Reid poll: the cost of home ownership.
In fact, about 85 per cent of those in the miserable camp are seriously considering leaving because of the cost of owning in a city where a bungalow sells for $1.175 million.
About half of them already own homes and the other half rent. On the other end of the spectrum are the blessed 21 per cent of respondents who said they were happy. Only 10 per cent of them are thinking of moving because of the cost of owning a home.
Those folks tend not to commute, often have no mortgage, and live in their homes alone or with one other person. Also, about nine in 10 of them agree with the statement: “I basically ‘hit the jackpot’ by getting into the market at the right time.”
But almost half of them (45 per cent) think the high housing prices are a problem. They are among the eight in 10 overall respondents who say high housing costs are hurting Metro Vancouver and the nine in 10 who are worried the next generation of people won’t be able to afford a home.
That sentiment has people pointing fingers and looking for politicians to get involved.
About two-thirds of those who responded to the Angus Reid poll believe “foreigners investing in this real estate market” is a main cause of the high prices.
And 70 per cent of respondents want government to step in, largely with the aim of helping first-time buyers.
But don’t mess with the prices of our own homes, say many homeowners. Only 17 per cent of those in the happy and comfortable categories say the value of their own homes is unreasonably high. About 25 per cent of uncomfortable and 35 per cent of miserable homeowners say the same.