Prince George incomes above provincial, national levels

Prince George households continue to rake in more money than most in the country.

According to figures from the 2016 census, released this week by Statistics Canada, the median income for the city and surrounding area stood at $78,427.

The figure is significantly above $69,995 tallied for the British Columbia and $70,336 for Canada.

The outcome follows a trend seen for years.

“Prince George has consistently seen higher median income than the provincial and national levels,” said city economic development officer Melissa Barcellos. “We’ve remained steady and it looks like we continue to do so over the last census.”

She credited the region’s natural resource economy and the jobs it creates in construction and manufacturing for the difference.

“Those are typically higher-paid jobs,” she said.

“As well, Prince George being a service hub for the region, there are lots of professional services as well. From banks and financing organizations to engineering, environmental companies, those are all highly-skilled, highly-paid positions.”

The number will work as a selling point when trying to draw more talent to the city.

“The fact people make more money here but it still costs less to live is definitely one of our key messages that we spread far and wide,” Barcellos said.

The median income for Metro Vancouver is about $73,000. Also, compared to Metro Vancouver, the cost of housing is noticeably less expensive as is the cost of gas.

“Less time stuck in traffic too,” Barcellos noted.

If there is a cause for concern, it’s that income growth has been slower in Prince George. Since 2005, it’s gone up about eight per cent, compared to 12 per cent for B.C. and 11 per cent for Canada.

“We’re increasing at a little bit of a slower rate but Prince George has been really steady and consistent whereas a lot of areas throughout Canada saw a much slower increase for a few years and now they could be considered to be rebounding,” Barcellos said.

The median is the level at which half of households are above and half below the number. The average household income was not provided by Statcan.