Renting is now cheaper than buying in Vancouver

Renting is now cheaper than buying in Vancouver, according to a recent report by the National Bank of Canada. According to the report, housing affordability in Canada deteriorated for the 14th consecutive quarter at the end of 2018. With that, the worst deteriorations in affordability were in Vancouver, Victoria, and Toronto. According to the report, the city’s housing affordability “deteriorated for the condo sector in fourth quarter.” The average price of a representative condo in the Vancouver market is $638,842 and the annual household income needed to afford a condo at that price is $117,227. The report says that it would take a total of 61 months to save for the condo’s down payment (with a saving rate of 10%). A Vancouverite is looking at an average monthly mortgage payment of $3,127 for a two-bedroom condo, compared to a monthly rental for a similar property costing $1,913.