Vancouver rents reaching new highs: $2,200 for one bedroom, over $3,000 for two

VANCOUVER (NEWS 1130) — The cost of buying a house in Vancouver may be going down, but it seems housing costs for renters are still climbing.

Rent for a one-bedroom apartment in Vancouver could break a new record this month. According to rental listing website Padmapper’s mid-month numbers, the median rent for a one bedroom apartment is $2,200 a month, nearly $70 or 5 per cent higher than the last record set in April.

Tonight: Padmapper's preliminary rent stats for May show we are on tap to reach a new high for one-bedrooms in Vancouver at $2,200 a month @NEWS1130

— Renee Bernard (@Renee1130) May 24, 2019

As for two-bedroom units, median rents are now at $3,195, up 3.9 per cent from last month.

Rent for multi-bedroom apartments have also risen at a shocking rate: rent for a four-bedroom unit is up more than 10 per cent from April to almost $5,000, and rent for a three-bedroom unit is up to $4,475.

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Housing activist Derrick O’Keefe says he’s surprised, given efforts by the city to encourage homeowners to become landlords.

“We see more supply through some of the effects of the empty homes tax now with mansions being rented out, so there have been some measures to increase supply, but we’re still seeing rents increasing,” he says.

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He says the current laws aren’t solving the problems renters are facing.

“I support the demand for vacancy control, which is rent control tied to the unit not the tenant, because when long-term tenants move out, we need to keep those units at an affordable rate,” he says.

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Data from the rental listing website shows median rents for studio apartments have climbed 0.28 per cent to $1,800 a month.