Yep! It's because of continuous near zero rental vacancy in Vancouver.
Landlords can continue to increase the rent at the maximum allowed every year and tenants are forced to stick around because where else are they going to go? Move to what apartment? There are none.
So long as there's practically no available apartments landlords will feel free to keep cranking up rent. If we ever get to the point where renters could genuinely have the ability to benefit from moving, then landlords will think twice before raising rents.
Briefly ever so briefly at the start of the pandemic when all the students left rents plunged. That shows what needs to happen. Not kicking out all the students of course, but the creation of a huge amount of surplus homes. Only in such a healthy vacancy environment will rent increases go below inflation.
Indeed!
From my understanding, they are going to make a bunch of very high density towers in north vancouver and kitsilano that should resolve a good chunk of these problems, or that's the hope.
Landlords can continue to increase the rent at the maximum allowed every year and tenants are forced to stick around because where else are they going to go? Move to what apartment? There are none.
So long as there's practically no available apartments landlords will feel free to keep cranking up rent. If we ever get to the point where renters could genuinely have the ability to benefit from moving, then landlords will think twice before raising rents.
Briefly ever so briefly at the start of the pandemic when all the students left rents plunged. That shows what needs to happen. Not kicking out all the students of course, but the creation of a huge amount of surplus homes. Only in such a healthy vacancy environment will rent increases go below inflation.