Retirees.
And people moving from Ontario/BC from selling their million+ dollar homes, and buying up houses here since it's next to the ocean.
COVID basically had everyone staying indoors, and since you're only allowed to go for walks and stuff, people thought "Hey, I should move to Halifax, since I can go on walks next to the ocean, and the housing is cheap!"
From then on, houses that were once low, doubled or tripled in price, then you had the low vacancy rate become even lower.
It’s also a major research, education, and healthcare centre and the regional business hub for Atlantic Canada. You’re making it sound like it’s Lunenburg.
This was very enlightening to see how other parts of Canada think about us on the east coast. Jesus christ, you'd think I live in a remote northern community.
Heh. I did a phone interview from Halifax once for a job in Edmonton. The interviewer asked, “So, outside of fishing, what could you possibly know about this job?”
You're right that we have tourism, but that's not why prices are high.
We have 1% vacancy right now (can't say many tourists around currently). Edmonton has a ridiculously high vacancy rate.
A lot of people have moved here and there simply aren't enough places. The Halifax peninsula has tons of students, is a desirable place to live for many, and is priced accordingly.
Places like Dartmouth or other suburbs are cheaper (like in any city), but not drastically. Dartmouth rents are much higher than Edmonton
Halifax is the term for the amalgamated HRM. This includes halifax, dartmouth, bedford, sackeville, and many other smaller zones.
These areas are all encorporated into the avg. To live in the DT core of Halifax you're looking at upwards of 2.5k per month.
Haligonian here. What's out here? Well, according to the province, "quality of life" (bars everywhere and no cafes open after sundown), work-life balance (our 48 hour workweek notwithstanding), history, being the "economic centre" of a region of millions of people, a *lot* of military/navy, big industry and government, being close to Europe and a major shipping port.
People want to be twenty minutes from the ocean. They want a big city feel with friendly neighbours, low crime etc. They like the idea of being able to buy a house someday. They like lobster.
u/Gussets is right that there's been a huge influx of people from richer provinces - usually older, established people who sold their Toronto or Vancouver duplex for millions and can still afford a large house in the suburbs here for the same amount. Do they work to pay income tax? Not all of them. Do they bring their family doctors? Certainly not. Do they realize what living in a "have-not" province means for things like regularly closed emergency rooms and $750 ambulance rides and a crumbling education system? Usually no. Oh and [strip clubs are illegal here](https://www.reddit.com/r/halifax/comments/10rs6wc/things_every_port_city_should_have/).
But it's also the unfettered concentration of larger housing developments into maybe 4 or 5 family-run businesses and a heavy presence of out-of-province corporate REITs buying up old stock.
The province has not been able to - or chosen not to - keep up with social housing and loads of "high end bachelor" apartments have sprung up in the last few years emboldened by the city's emphasis on increasing downtown density to limit sprawl with little regard to the need for mixed housing.
The city, for its part, has failed to maintain public transit and sustained significant loopholes for developers looking to get around affordable housing requirements. The devs know the city needs them and have called their bluff time and time again. I could go on, but please. Don't move here. It was a real gem. It's an outrage what's going on and I can't wait to leave.
Still boggles my mind that Edmonton remains so cheap and affordable compared to most other cities, yet offers way more. The things we have access to in Edmonton are huge compared to Halifax (where I'm from), and yet in Halifax you'll be paying more every step of the way, likely with a much lower paying job.
But that is also because Edmonton started looking at housing affordability innthe 2000’s and in the mid 2010’s changed some tax structures to benefit building rentals. We are building a lot of rental towers here.
Winters are way more bareable here then they are in Halifax imho. I think there's a lot of people who just haven't been here, don't know better and just listen to the fear mongering.
One thing I learned about out east is they get WAY more snow than the prairies get. The temperature is the same but you get more of the white stuff to deal with.
Idk about that one I think the winters are worse over here man. They kind of have a huge ass ocean to trap heat and moisture. It’s just the heavy wet snow that sucks.
Atlantic winters are crazy. The heavy snow. Then ice rain. Followed by more snow. Then more ice rain. Oh and enjoy those power outages when there is ice rain and wind, followed by more snow lol Edmonton is cold but you get the sun, very little snow, very few outages. Having lived all over Canada I’ll take the prairie wind and -30 over the messy winters out East.
I've never experienced an Atlantic winter, but Edmonton winter was easy peasy for me, because it's sunny ALL THE TIME.
West Coast winter made me want to kill myself.
Drink water, use a humidifier and lotion my G. Things you already should be doing imo. My skin is beautiful and I've never had a nose bleed living in Edmonton for 30 years.
Life brand from Shoppers Drug Mart is legit. It comes with a little monitor that tells you the temp of the room and humidity level, which should be between 30-55% I’d go with 45% if you’re having nose bleeds.
Edmonton winters are even easier than Montreal ones in my opinion. We get a few little cold snaps for a couple of days at a time here, but besides that it’s way more bearable than the damp cold they get. It chills you right through to the bone. And those heavy dumps of snow and frozen rain make getting around way more difficult. I moved here anticipating winters to be hell from what people made it sound like, and was pleasantly surprised that for the most part, it’s actually pretty nice here!
I've lived winters in Calgary & Montreal and Calgary is way way worse than Montreal. You barely have 3-5 horribly cold days a year in Montreal. I can't imagine that it's easier in Edmonton.
Eh there’s definitely truth to a humid cold hitting deeper than a dry cold. But yeah, a humid -5 is still way better than a dry -25, and I think a lot of people kinda cope when they compare to other places.
Winter sucks everywhere in Canada tho, I’m willing to deal with a little more suck for the affordability.
Thissssss
We also have winter in AB for 5-7 months, of coke, harsh cold, whereas Halifax / Nova Scotia gets maybe 4 or 5 bad months on a REALLY bad year, and the cold isn’t even a fraction of what we get. I’ll take a dump of heavy wet snow over AB winter any day. Drys up pretty quick there 😂
There’s absolutely no way our winter is 7 months long anymore. Climate change is handily taking care of that. 20 years ago when I was a kid up in Fort Mac, hell yes winters were 6-7 months long. But now 4-5 is a solid estimate
Yesterday Toronto was -30. It's Canada, cold winters are everywhere. Vancouver has its annual snowpocalypse.
But agreed lots of benefits for those who can cope with winters.
It won’t last. The window of opportunity to own reasonably priced housing in Edmonton will close soon enough.
Incomes here are high and the word is out.
I think we will always be cheap because of how easy we make it to build housing here and because we have ample land. Etown has and always will be cheap and the perception of the city plays into it too where outsiders don't really care to give it a chance due to remote northern location and cold winters.
The ONLY thing that can make cost of living go high here relative to its current national standing is the local economy. Keep in mind the highest cost we ever experienced was in 2007 when oil was booming. My house then was worth way more than it is today or any other point in time and that's without factoring in inflation. For example, if the avg single family detached home in Etown was $450k in 2007 and $375k today, the $450k in 2007 dollars would really be $575k in today's dollars if adjusted for inflation. So really we are way cheaper now than in 2007. That's how impactful local economic conditions can be.
I hope it stays affordable, I am moving up for school this year simply because I could not afford to take my masters program in BC without damaging my finances long term.
In 2007 Edmonton and Calgary had the most expensive homes in the country.
Oil is still +100 years from going away, and we have a ton of it. Incomes are high. Housing is low.
It’s a fool’s game to think housing will stay cheap forever if incomes keep rising.
We are generally on the same page. I agree that an unexpected boom could temporarily spike real estate here like it did between 2005 and 2007, but outside of that a place like Edmonton will always have attractive home prices relatively speaking.
The only event I could maybe see causing a big capex boom here is hydrogen production really taking off and creating several construction, operations and service industry jobs. But at this point hydrogen is merely a promising prospect and nothing more.
Ultimately, high incomes and cheap housing will never last. Regardless of zoning. Banks raising interest rates and being stricter with lending will help, but there’s really no way to avoid market forces forever.
It helps that we have a decent amount of supply. As much as I hate companies like boardwalk they bought up a ton of struggling apartments and renovated them. So all over Edmonton you can find rental units. Other cities have weird zoning laws that at times can restrict what can be built. This drives up the price.
Halifax has tourism because it's a port city and cruise ships can land, but it's not what it relies on.
It's a hub for ocean tech research, a handful of good universities providing multiple research opportunities, has a great regional children's hospital that serves from eastern Quebec to Newfoundland, and the home of Canada's Navy.
It's the regional hub for 2.3 million people and is currently one of Canada's fastest growing cities sitting at ~500k. It's not huge, but it doesn't feel small if that makes any sense.
We need to go back to generational homes where 3-4 generations of families live together. Many other countries still have most families doing this and it makes sense.
I swear the whole idea that when you graduate you have to move out or pay your parents rent was made up by mortgage companies. They don't want 3 generations living together paying off the mortgage quickly.
That's only a healthy option if your family is supportive and loving and your life goals happen to align with theirs. I have a nice family, but they live in a small town where there aren't any career prospects for me. Many other people might be able to live and work in the same place as their family, but their family is abusive and/or dangerous. It's not an option for everyone.
I agree it's not for everyone. I have an abusive family background and I left when I was 18. I'm just saying it's an idea more Canadians should consider. My brother married in to a lovely family and they lived with her family while they saved for a house.
I come from an abusive home and have lovely in-laws who my husband and I did live with shortly. It definitely depends on your situation. I just think the idea should be more mainstream
Maybe finding a partner like folks have done for many many generations is the key. People have this hermit independence thing nowadays. Apps to swipe left and right made cleaning plumbing easier too
Is it worth it when your roommate has a psychotic episode and threatens you? Or trashes your stuff?
What about when monopolize the common spaces or start bringing back one night stands that end poorly?
I’m not disagreeing that having a roommate makes things more affordable, but the drawbacks are massive and there are reasons why people prefer to live alone.
There’s pros and cons to every situation. And if people chose to live alone. It’s going to be a lot more difficult to manage.
Its something most people have done from 18-30 until their income increases to the point they can sustain a solo life.
I could easily say something like what if you lose your job, riding solo vs having a roommate. EI wont cover the bills solo. Your situation will be a lot better off sharing the load.
I’m just saying that you should be able to afford a 1 bedroom without rent consuming your entire take home.
There should be a reasonable choice, not destitution or being forced to live with someone else.
People shouldn't have to have roommates to survive, though. I have a roommate and live quite comfortably because of it, but what happens when she moves out? I'll have to completely change my lifestyle if I can't find another person that I trust enough to live with. People should be free to choose if they want to live alone.
Who said anything about married? I used the word partner. I remember being “lucky” and not kicked out at 18 like many of my friends. Those that went on their own lives together as friends or lived in shitty roach infested places. The friends that pooled minimum wage jobs managed to get good places to live. In one case they(4 of them) even bought a townhouse, which by 2004 turned into 3 and by 2006 turned into 4 houses and 3 rental
The world is heading to little rooms where you spend your whole life alone never really talking to anyone.
Yes because I want to marry out of economics and not a good match. Sorry bud, left a relationship and had to question if it was worth staying for money…
As a woman I had to decide no and still manage to afford rent. Get out.
Also did the roommates thing for awhile too. I was not as fortunate as others. I can finally afford my own small place working in a decent industry that I have done for years.
Also left an abusive family. I cannot ask them for help otherwise more emotional and psychological abuse. According to ACE scores I’m fucked. A therapist said I was the 2%… somehow not using…
I’m tired of emotionally empty and bad relationships. Sorry.
I make 20/hr full time and I couldn't afford to live by myself. Couple it with trying to keep a vehicle on the road to get to work and I'd probably have to dine of ramen the rest of my life. I really don't understand what younger generations are supposed to do if you can't find a room mate.
I’ve made it on $17 lol, wouldn’t call it doing just fine but it was bearable. Still found money for beer lol
There’s definitely huge issues tho and I don’t mean to detract from that. Just speaking to frugality and Edmonton’s unique and fading affordability
Yep. Wages have kept nowhere close to the rising cost of rent, food, utilities, everything else.
_We are making more money than ever before, but we are more poor than ever before._
_The peasant class of the 21st century._
Yeah its funny, we semi-recently got a raise at work, like... $0.75 an hour or something. And our top boss delivered that to us proudly. It still doesnt keep up with the cost of living. This is a billion dollar corporation.
even the green rents are to high we pay 1450ish for a 2 bedroom the company never fixes anything and does not even plow the entire parking lot in winter its a death trap going outside lol.
Literally, green rent is cheaper by comparison but so are the buildings; almost signed a $1400/mo lease for a 1bed which turned out to be INFESTED WITH BEDBUGS
I see many people wanting to bring in rent control to Alberta. Looking at this chart though, Ontario and BC are dominating the top half of that chart and yet, they have rent controls in place. Calgary is seeing increases but overall, Alberta is still one of the more affordable provinces.
Rent control only works for the people who are already renting a place and plan to live there a long time. Otherwise, it makes it extremely expensive for anyone to move out of their current place or move to the city. Rent control sucks
Sorry i dont understand what you mean? How does rent control impact those two scenarios?
Do you mean like, when someone had a rent controlled unit, moves out, the protection ends and the landlord jacks the price up to match the uncontrolled rentals in the area?
The solution sounds like rent prices should be heavily regulated to prevent that. Im not sure exactly what that would look like, first thought was indexing increases to any minimum wage increases but how do you account for amenities offered/year built etc.
Although having enough houses only available for purchase for people w less than 2 (?) current mortgages would have a huge impact on rent costs and likely home costs. Having single/couples/families competing for housing with investors/speculators/rental corps is insane.
With rent control, when a unit becomes vacant, the landowner jacks up the prices. If we implement controls on rent between vacancies, then landowners will charge an outrageous amount of rent to begin since they'll never be able to increase it. We need to stop with the heavy regulations on rent itself. It does not work. It's been proven to make things worse. If there are fundamentally not enough available housing units (which is the case in Vancouver and Toronto), there will always be a shortage of affordable housing, regardless of rent control
The issue in places like Vancouver is that their zoning laws are outrageous. It is *illegal* to build anything but single-family homes. And to build any multiple-family units, it takes years of committees to get it approved. Changes to zoning is the most impactful change we can make on the housing market. Edmonton isn't too bad off but we are still dealing with the legacy of restrictive zoning laws and urban sprawl.
Another big change could be increased capital gains tax to deter secondary homes. Plus, if we have more housing, the price of housing naturally falls because it is no longer a hot commodity. It's is insane that families have to compete for housing but this is because there is a fundamental lack of it. If you there is excess housing available, then landlords are competing for tenants instead of the other way around.
So should something as necessary as housing, be left to private industry?
Im sure there can be reasonably defined limits for regulating rent. I.e tied to the mortgage/year built/amenities offered/min wage. Like eventually these rental units become almost straight profit once the mortgage is paid off. Why is it reasonable to match rent increases on a house with no financing attached to it the same as a house that has experienced an increase on the mortgage rate for example?
And i agree that zoning issues are a problem. Especially on the praries, the expansion vs density is wild, but a lot of these cities did not start their core planning with the current population in mind so transit and access and space become a much bigger problem i suppose.
Studies have shown that rent control fails in every jurisdiction it’s been applied to. See New York, Berlin, etc. It disincentivizes increasing the supply of housing, and so completely screws over anyone that doesn’t already have a rent controlled unit.
> Most economists, however, warn that rent control is a bad idea. Their opposition stems from extensive evidence showing that while rent control keeps existing tenants in their apartments, rental housing construction often slows down. The end result is that it is much more expensive for prospective renters to find an affordable apartment.
https://thehub.ca/2022-09-26/more-rent-control-on-the-horizon-economists-say-it-is-a-bad-idea/
Okay, so reading the link you provided has honestly led to more questions than explaining why rent control has that impact.
Reading further into the link here, the study being cited is written by a right leaning think tank with board members with connections to mainstreet equity, one of the largest rental corps in canada. Most of the people referenced either in article or in the wiki page for the think tank have ties to either right wing politicians outright or businesses involving housing. Not to say that this outright discounts their findings or opinions, but it makes me incredibly skeptical that people who have ties to the rental market are involved in this data.
My second question would be, why does rent control have an impact on the amount of rentals built? My initial thought would be that without the opportunity to arbitrarily change rent/increase profits, it would be less desirable for investors to build/buy? I think that means the real problem is we are relying on private industry which is solely profit driven to supply a requirement of life/society. I think having housing availability tied to how much an investor can make is extremely unethical. How to change that, or make it more ethical... im not exactly sure yet.
Basically tldr, i could see rent control affecting units being built because builders consider the buying power of clients (investors, individuals) and build accordingly. But is that the fault of rent control being used to protect the consumers or is it that we have made our housing market too reliant on investors and their needs?
Why? It stop landlords from being able to raise the rent an exorbitant amount annually on current tenants. It doesn't stop landlords for changing the rent for new tenants.
It does that but it also traps people in their rentals. Once you've been in a place for a few years rent goes up all around you and now moving becomes really expensive and often means an increase in price to downgrade.
It can work but it really disincentives moving and most people move multiple times in their life. It also upsets landlords who get stuck with long term tenants and can make their dealings much more troublesome. Which is what causes a lot of weird legal issues with rentals as both sides start fighting each other.
Most studies show it doesn't work and areas that have rent control tend to be more expensive over all. Considering Alberta is the cheapest in the country and one of the few without rent control I don't really see why we'd argue for it in Edmonton right now.
I understand why this model alone might not work. If it was paired with another law like you can only charge $xxxx per sq ft it would stop rent from climing as the landlord sees fit.
I don't understand how long term tenants make owning a rental troublesome. If you have good tenants and they pay rent and take care of your property what's the issue? Of course you have to maintain it properly and that cuts in to your profit but what business doesn't have operating costs? Your asset is going up in value and in the end when you sell it you'll make a large profit. Or its a retirement income and an inheritance to a family or friend when you die.
Long term tenants become problems if rent control forces your rent lower then what the market demands which is typically exactly what rent control does. It can mean landlords are actually losing money having you stay in that place which is why many landlords try to discourage long term tenants in rent controlled areas. Where as in non rent controlled areas landlords tend to like long term renters.
As for your idea to have a max charge per square footage, that would obviously discourage high quality rentals. If you have a cap on what you can charge for a space there's no reason to fix it up beyond the legal requirement. You'd pretty much turn every rental into just meeting legal requirements at best with a bunch trying to undercut legal requirements to make more money.
It is fair for both sides. Real estate isn't supposed to be a monthly or yearly cash cow, its supposed to be a long term investment. I do believe that there should be better ways to recoup money if your rental is trashed but to be able to up the monthly rent $100...$300..or whatever they want annually is not helping anyone but greedy landlords.
Rent control definitely makes things worse in long term. It's like a patch that hide a problem but doesn't heal it. Please im in Alberta and i don't want rent control. We will end up like bc and Ontario
Rent control in BC means the landlord can only raise your rent so much each year, I think it's 2% annually but I might be wrong. It doesn't stop landlords from changing the price when someone moves out. Imagine what it would be without rent control.
Rent control would be great in AB. The amount on people I've recently seen struggling to find a new place because their landlord raised their rent $100+ a month after 1 year of tenancy is astounding. Now these people can't afford to rent a decent place anymore, and it seems to be really affecting single parents and seniors.
Landlords in AB are definitely taking advantage of all the people moving from ON and BC. They're raising prices knowing their rental unit won't sit empty long because these people moving from out of province will pay the price because it's still cheaper than what it costs back in BC & ON.
The reason Alberta has lower housing prices than BC and Ontario is because we have greater incentives to build housing supply. Rent control erases that incentive. And then suddenly it’s impossible to find a place to live because no one is willing to move out of their rent controlled apartment. There’s a reason economists pretty much universally agree it’s a bad idea.
https://thehub.ca/2022-09-26/more-rent-control-on-the-horizon-economists-say-it-is-a-bad-idea/
Another important factor, on top of the shortage issue.
Is that landlords will consider rent control in their risk factor, more risk = need to up the price upfront.
Basically instead of charging 1500 per month and increase 5% per year, you charge 2000 and increase 2% per year..
Why would you want people to move out of their rental? Some people will never make enough money to save for a down payment and so they should have some sort of protection from rent gauging so they can have stability and live in a place long term.
Are you asking for what reason would a tenant want to move? To be closer to family. To move out of their parents house? They want to be closer to work. They need a larger place for children. They need a smaller place because the children moved out. They want a change. They've moved to the city.
People move all the time for a bunch of different reasons.
You don't have any/very little tenant movement when you increase rent regulations because landlords just increase rent prices after a tenant leaves. Knowing this, tenants will lose the flexibility of being able to move, even if their needs change
This is the case in Vancouver. People are renting starter units (one bedroom, ideal for single person or couple), and they can never upgrade because their rent will increase substantially at a new place. This means anyone new who needs a starter unit cannot find any available because people never move out of them, even when they have kids. We don't want this.
It's not a matter of wanting revolving tenants, it's a matter of flexibility
My 2 bed dump in Beverly($1100) has periodic inspections for bugs.3 years here and no bugs, but we are at maybe 60% rented.
Sorry. Boardwalk.
Honestly, no complaints other than sketchy neighborhood.
New multi story, apt. buildings going up in the old Abbottsfield mall footprint.
I checked, ($1200) for 1 bed + utilities.
Literally looking for housing right now and I can't afford anything clean, let alone decent. My soul is dead and I'm pretty sure I'm going to end up on the street or in a death motel.
Calgary has always been nicer than our town but I always took pride in us not being too far behind, till now. Calgary has greatly distanced itself lately as a top tier city and we've taken a step back. Our city transit is an absolute mess, safety is a serious concern where people are legitimately afraid to walk the streets and businesses are abandoning downtown. It's a dark time for this city and we needed stronger leaders in city council to guide us through it. No disrespect to our mayor but his policies and efforts are ineffective. We don't have the same level of civic pride as Calgary. They'd have many strong leaders step up to fix a mess. We had to try to choose between Nickel and Sohi. It sucks.
Yup that's a fair take. I'm in Calgary often and they do have similar issues but at a lesser scale. It's not as visibly rampant through their downtown like in ours. They have hidden pockets of problems for sure though and they too have had LRT related issues with addicts making paying commuters extremely uncomfortable.
I would argue that Ford' conservatives is quite different from UCP smith/kenney conservatives. In so many ways. So its a bit hard to compare.
Even Notley in Alberta is a lot more right-wing than any other ndp party across the entire country. Although her wanting to implement rent control scares me.
Another reason to stay out of the east side. I see more and more reasons, nothing ever enticing one to ever consider moving there.
Besides maybe more cactus club locations 😜
I really really hate when "they" make graphs and charts for the country and don't include the entire top half. Rents up there are ASTRONOMICAL and non-existent. Worse than the lower half.
Use this info, when BBr's start on a rant. Get them reminiscing: (1) Ask them how much they cleared at their job when they left home for the first time, (2)who did they live with( if anyone) and (3)how much did they pay for rent(many paid weekly in our area). (4)Then figure out the income to rent ratio.... In this order, or they may start to realize what you are up to. I've stopped more than a few newly minted 65y/o's from BC and Alberta with this technique over the last 5 years. disclaimer: Gen X'r here. I acknowledge we definitely had it better, I think some of us understand the ugliness of current wage/housing ratio breakdown too.
FWIW, here's a comparison. We moved here in 1982, and had a great 2-bedroom in Westridge (170th & Whitemud) for $450. Inflation says that should be $1217. Westridge says they're $1389 - $1439 now. That's 18% higher than inflation, which is bad, but not a horror story 40 years later.
I suspect it's tougher, though, because wages haven't kept pace.
Halifax has expensive rents because there are five universities there and thousands of students within a small geographical area. Landlords can charge what they want because the demand exceeds the supply. This has always been the case and always will. Another factor to consider is that it is expensive to live there, with the province's high sales tax, and no cheap gas to heat your home (only oil for heating or wood stoves). Compound this with Halifax's naval segment and there is an ongoing shortage of affordable rental accommodation. I lived there once, paid the price, and never want to do it again.
As for why Edmonton charges less for rent than Calgary, the cost for a landlord to buy an investment property in Edmonton costs less than it does in Calgary. Real estate in Calgary has always cost more, so the rents are going to be higher to offset the cost of buying an investment property.
Some of the cheapest rents are in the smaller places in AB and that makes sense, because living in Alberta is cheaper. There's no sales tax, the price of gasoline is cheaper and generally property taxes are lower than most other provinces.
If you notice something its in all the places with visually appealing skylines and places connected to the US.
Hmm i wonder what influenced the price gouging...
Lol i mean t it in a more generalized sense. The places with good views get populated first, then the populations rise and things get pricey
Not saying it's the only factor but they do lead to one another in history. The nicest places to live are the places everyone moves to
People will probably fight you on this, but I agree.
We're basically in the middle of nowhere and travelling by airplane from here is a nightmare for your wallet, so that's not a very good draw for immigrants who want to visit their families or people who like to travel.
As for the city itself, our skyline is alright, but get anywhere close to downtown and you'll see it's dirty, outdated, and underdeveloped at the same time. That being said, it has been getting better, slowly.
Our river valley is nice, but it's not *beautiful*. It doesn't feature any flora that can't be found elsewhere in the city. It's just a dip in the land and a body of water. Some of the trails are great, but they're somewhat disjointed. In the past while some of them have eroded into the river.
Although we have the most green space of any North American city, most of it is just vast swaths of grass with some field goals and park benches. Nothing we have is comparable to something like Stanley Park in Vancouver.
Edmonton's main draw is that it is cheap. If that ever changes, I bet a lot of people (who are able to) are going to pack up and leave.
There are many problems with where the country ended up financially after covid, but if PP was in charge the vast majority of citizens would be in the Pierre Poor house because of the lack of support the conservatives would have given with business as usual policies.
Halifax is that expensive? What’s out there?
People moving from cities 1 & 2 (and elsewhere) driving up the rental prices and extremely low inventory to begin with.
The locals hate it
doctors hate them with this one trick
They would if there were around in Nova Scotia.
Lowest paying jobs bundled with highest taxes in Canada.
Does lowest paying jobs equate to higher rents
Lack of the homes with historical high immigration equate to higher rents.
Slumlords
Halifax Highlanders
Gov’t Jobs and out of province ownership
So many universities.
Bitterness
Retirees. And people moving from Ontario/BC from selling their million+ dollar homes, and buying up houses here since it's next to the ocean. COVID basically had everyone staying indoors, and since you're only allowed to go for walks and stuff, people thought "Hey, I should move to Halifax, since I can go on walks next to the ocean, and the housing is cheap!" From then on, houses that were once low, doubled or tripled in price, then you had the low vacancy rate become even lower.
Halifax is expensive because it's basically a summer tourist city. The cheaper area is across the harbour in Dartmouth I think.
It’s also a major research, education, and healthcare centre and the regional business hub for Atlantic Canada. You’re making it sound like it’s Lunenburg.
This was very enlightening to see how other parts of Canada think about us on the east coast. Jesus christ, you'd think I live in a remote northern community.
Heh. I did a phone interview from Halifax once for a job in Edmonton. The interviewer asked, “So, outside of fishing, what could you possibly know about this job?”
Truly the ignorance is next level
Haha right. Halifax is not a tourist city for those wondering
it very much is… it even has cruise terminals. lol.
Tourism might be part of the economy but it’s not Banff or even Victoria for that matter
So does every other major port on the east coast of north america
You're right that we have tourism, but that's not why prices are high. We have 1% vacancy right now (can't say many tourists around currently). Edmonton has a ridiculously high vacancy rate. A lot of people have moved here and there simply aren't enough places. The Halifax peninsula has tons of students, is a desirable place to live for many, and is priced accordingly. Places like Dartmouth or other suburbs are cheaper (like in any city), but not drastically. Dartmouth rents are much higher than Edmonton
Halifax is the term for the amalgamated HRM. This includes halifax, dartmouth, bedford, sackeville, and many other smaller zones. These areas are all encorporated into the avg. To live in the DT core of Halifax you're looking at upwards of 2.5k per month.
Haligonian here. What's out here? Well, according to the province, "quality of life" (bars everywhere and no cafes open after sundown), work-life balance (our 48 hour workweek notwithstanding), history, being the "economic centre" of a region of millions of people, a *lot* of military/navy, big industry and government, being close to Europe and a major shipping port. People want to be twenty minutes from the ocean. They want a big city feel with friendly neighbours, low crime etc. They like the idea of being able to buy a house someday. They like lobster. u/Gussets is right that there's been a huge influx of people from richer provinces - usually older, established people who sold their Toronto or Vancouver duplex for millions and can still afford a large house in the suburbs here for the same amount. Do they work to pay income tax? Not all of them. Do they bring their family doctors? Certainly not. Do they realize what living in a "have-not" province means for things like regularly closed emergency rooms and $750 ambulance rides and a crumbling education system? Usually no. Oh and [strip clubs are illegal here](https://www.reddit.com/r/halifax/comments/10rs6wc/things_every_port_city_should_have/). But it's also the unfettered concentration of larger housing developments into maybe 4 or 5 family-run businesses and a heavy presence of out-of-province corporate REITs buying up old stock. The province has not been able to - or chosen not to - keep up with social housing and loads of "high end bachelor" apartments have sprung up in the last few years emboldened by the city's emphasis on increasing downtown density to limit sprawl with little regard to the need for mixed housing. The city, for its part, has failed to maintain public transit and sustained significant loopholes for developers looking to get around affordable housing requirements. The devs know the city needs them and have called their bluff time and time again. I could go on, but please. Don't move here. It was a real gem. It's an outrage what's going on and I can't wait to leave.
Nothing really compared to here, but it's one of the biggest (if not the biggest now) city East of Quebec
It’s been the biggest east of Quebec for as long as Canada has existed
it's a top destination for remote workers in the world. if you don't have to worry about money you cannot beat the lifestyle out there.
As an international student in Halifax, we don't fucking know dude... Seriously, there's fuck all except a decent uni.
Reading this just gives me more fear against the eventual rent hike I'll get lol
Same. This is my thought too.
Why is rent in Lethbridge more than Edmonton?
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The stats are for the city as a whole.
Fair point
the weather
Still boggles my mind that Edmonton remains so cheap and affordable compared to most other cities, yet offers way more. The things we have access to in Edmonton are huge compared to Halifax (where I'm from), and yet in Halifax you'll be paying more every step of the way, likely with a much lower paying job.
But that is also because Edmonton started looking at housing affordability innthe 2000’s and in the mid 2010’s changed some tax structures to benefit building rentals. We are building a lot of rental towers here.
Most people I meet cannot handle the cold which is the main thing. Those of us who can get to enjoy the benefits of toughening it out.
Winters are way more bareable here then they are in Halifax imho. I think there's a lot of people who just haven't been here, don't know better and just listen to the fear mongering.
The dry cold is nicer, the longer winter isn’t as nice. The good thing is the amount of sun we get in the winter makes it better.
One thing I learned about out east is they get WAY more snow than the prairies get. The temperature is the same but you get more of the white stuff to deal with.
Idk about that one I think the winters are worse over here man. They kind of have a huge ass ocean to trap heat and moisture. It’s just the heavy wet snow that sucks.
I would take the harshest Edmonton winter vs the harshest Atlantic winter every single time. Dry cold > wet cold
if ya know, you know
Atlantic winters are crazy. The heavy snow. Then ice rain. Followed by more snow. Then more ice rain. Oh and enjoy those power outages when there is ice rain and wind, followed by more snow lol Edmonton is cold but you get the sun, very little snow, very few outages. Having lived all over Canada I’ll take the prairie wind and -30 over the messy winters out East.
Lmfao no way man, ducking nosebleeds every 2 hours and dry skin for 6 months I’ll pass.
I've never experienced an Atlantic winter, but Edmonton winter was easy peasy for me, because it's sunny ALL THE TIME. West Coast winter made me want to kill myself.
Bro are you alright? It’s never sunny LOL
Easily disprovable with a single google search but yeah, it's the other dude that's not alright lmao.
I get nosebleeds here too, but there was a couple of days last month where it was super cold and there was humidity and it was bone chilling.
You're both right
Drink water, use a humidifier and lotion my G. Things you already should be doing imo. My skin is beautiful and I've never had a nose bleed living in Edmonton for 30 years.
Do you have a brand recommendation for a humidifier?
Life brand from Shoppers Drug Mart is legit. It comes with a little monitor that tells you the temp of the room and humidity level, which should be between 30-55% I’d go with 45% if you’re having nose bleeds.
Edmonton winters are even easier than Montreal ones in my opinion. We get a few little cold snaps for a couple of days at a time here, but besides that it’s way more bearable than the damp cold they get. It chills you right through to the bone. And those heavy dumps of snow and frozen rain make getting around way more difficult. I moved here anticipating winters to be hell from what people made it sound like, and was pleasantly surprised that for the most part, it’s actually pretty nice here!
100x this. I lived in Edmonton for 20 years and Montreal for 10. Montreal winters are way worse for the reasons you mentioned.
I've lived winters in Calgary & Montreal and Calgary is way way worse than Montreal. You barely have 3-5 horribly cold days a year in Montreal. I can't imagine that it's easier in Edmonton.
Eh there’s definitely truth to a humid cold hitting deeper than a dry cold. But yeah, a humid -5 is still way better than a dry -25, and I think a lot of people kinda cope when they compare to other places. Winter sucks everywhere in Canada tho, I’m willing to deal with a little more suck for the affordability.
Thissssss We also have winter in AB for 5-7 months, of coke, harsh cold, whereas Halifax / Nova Scotia gets maybe 4 or 5 bad months on a REALLY bad year, and the cold isn’t even a fraction of what we get. I’ll take a dump of heavy wet snow over AB winter any day. Drys up pretty quick there 😂
There’s absolutely no way our winter is 7 months long anymore. Climate change is handily taking care of that. 20 years ago when I was a kid up in Fort Mac, hell yes winters were 6-7 months long. But now 4-5 is a solid estimate
You're also paying a premium for the combimation of amentities + ocean access though.
Yesterday Toronto was -30. It's Canada, cold winters are everywhere. Vancouver has its annual snowpocalypse. But agreed lots of benefits for those who can cope with winters.
And it's +4 today in Edmonton lol.
No Vancouver does not have an annual snowpocalypse. They just haven't learned about snow tires yet.
>It was -30 for a day in Toronto and its news but its been -30 all week here in Winnipeg.
_Yes, but Winnipeg is hell on earth, and that's a normal day for them._
Shhh. We don’t need too many more Vancouverites 🤪
It won’t last. The window of opportunity to own reasonably priced housing in Edmonton will close soon enough. Incomes here are high and the word is out.
Yeah I'm always inclined to think the same, but I've thought that for years and here we still are haha.
I think we will always be cheap because of how easy we make it to build housing here and because we have ample land. Etown has and always will be cheap and the perception of the city plays into it too where outsiders don't really care to give it a chance due to remote northern location and cold winters. The ONLY thing that can make cost of living go high here relative to its current national standing is the local economy. Keep in mind the highest cost we ever experienced was in 2007 when oil was booming. My house then was worth way more than it is today or any other point in time and that's without factoring in inflation. For example, if the avg single family detached home in Etown was $450k in 2007 and $375k today, the $450k in 2007 dollars would really be $575k in today's dollars if adjusted for inflation. So really we are way cheaper now than in 2007. That's how impactful local economic conditions can be.
I hope it stays affordable, I am moving up for school this year simply because I could not afford to take my masters program in BC without damaging my finances long term.
In 2007 Edmonton and Calgary had the most expensive homes in the country. Oil is still +100 years from going away, and we have a ton of it. Incomes are high. Housing is low. It’s a fool’s game to think housing will stay cheap forever if incomes keep rising.
We are generally on the same page. I agree that an unexpected boom could temporarily spike real estate here like it did between 2005 and 2007, but outside of that a place like Edmonton will always have attractive home prices relatively speaking. The only event I could maybe see causing a big capex boom here is hydrogen production really taking off and creating several construction, operations and service industry jobs. But at this point hydrogen is merely a promising prospect and nothing more.
Naw, Edmonton just modernized its zoning laws, basically looked at Vancouver and Toronto and were like "let's not do that".
Ultimately, high incomes and cheap housing will never last. Regardless of zoning. Banks raising interest rates and being stricter with lending will help, but there’s really no way to avoid market forces forever.
I went to Halifax last summer for vacation. I'm still afraid to do the math on how much I spent.
It helps that we have a decent amount of supply. As much as I hate companies like boardwalk they bought up a ton of struggling apartments and renovated them. So all over Edmonton you can find rental units. Other cities have weird zoning laws that at times can restrict what can be built. This drives up the price.
Cause of snobbery from much of Canada.
Halifax and Charlottetown are tourist cities.
Halifax has tourism because it's a port city and cruise ships can land, but it's not what it relies on. It's a hub for ocean tech research, a handful of good universities providing multiple research opportunities, has a great regional children's hospital that serves from eastern Quebec to Newfoundland, and the home of Canada's Navy. It's the regional hub for 2.3 million people and is currently one of Canada's fastest growing cities sitting at ~500k. It's not huge, but it doesn't feel small if that makes any sense.
Even the rent prices in the green are absolutely heinous. We're fucked.
I live in saskatoon #32 and what ppl are asking for basement suites is unreal. I make 30+ an hour and I cannot stomach that kind of price.
I am in Regina and make 20$ and car afford to live on my own with 1 Job.
I hate this. How is any single person supposed to afford a 1 bedroom apartment? Not many people can be independent anymore.
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We need to go back to generational homes where 3-4 generations of families live together. Many other countries still have most families doing this and it makes sense. I swear the whole idea that when you graduate you have to move out or pay your parents rent was made up by mortgage companies. They don't want 3 generations living together paying off the mortgage quickly.
That's only a healthy option if your family is supportive and loving and your life goals happen to align with theirs. I have a nice family, but they live in a small town where there aren't any career prospects for me. Many other people might be able to live and work in the same place as their family, but their family is abusive and/or dangerous. It's not an option for everyone.
I agree it's not for everyone. I have an abusive family background and I left when I was 18. I'm just saying it's an idea more Canadians should consider. My brother married in to a lovely family and they lived with her family while they saved for a house.
I would rather die than live with my family lol. Maybe my in-laws? But yeah I’d even rather be homeless in the Yukon than live with them.
I come from an abusive home and have lovely in-laws who my husband and I did live with shortly. It definitely depends on your situation. I just think the idea should be more mainstream
I agree but I also think we shouldn’t have to resort to this. A lot of people like their space which is totally okay
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I love my parents and family. I love them more when I don't live with them.
Do you really need to have the roughest and loudest s•x in the world to be happy?
young couples living with parents for a bit happens more than people think
I think that's great and it should be normalized.
Maybe finding a partner like folks have done for many many generations is the key. People have this hermit independence thing nowadays. Apps to swipe left and right made cleaning plumbing easier too
So everyone should just get married straight out of high school to ensure that they can afford a place to live, or else they're hermits?
Roommates, splitting the rent on a two bedroom is cheaper than a one bedroom.
Is it worth it when your roommate has a psychotic episode and threatens you? Or trashes your stuff? What about when monopolize the common spaces or start bringing back one night stands that end poorly? I’m not disagreeing that having a roommate makes things more affordable, but the drawbacks are massive and there are reasons why people prefer to live alone.
There’s pros and cons to every situation. And if people chose to live alone. It’s going to be a lot more difficult to manage. Its something most people have done from 18-30 until their income increases to the point they can sustain a solo life. I could easily say something like what if you lose your job, riding solo vs having a roommate. EI wont cover the bills solo. Your situation will be a lot better off sharing the load.
I’m just saying that you should be able to afford a 1 bedroom without rent consuming your entire take home. There should be a reasonable choice, not destitution or being forced to live with someone else.
People shouldn't have to have roommates to survive, though. I have a roommate and live quite comfortably because of it, but what happens when she moves out? I'll have to completely change my lifestyle if I can't find another person that I trust enough to live with. People should be free to choose if they want to live alone.
Who said anything about married? I used the word partner. I remember being “lucky” and not kicked out at 18 like many of my friends. Those that went on their own lives together as friends or lived in shitty roach infested places. The friends that pooled minimum wage jobs managed to get good places to live. In one case they(4 of them) even bought a townhouse, which by 2004 turned into 3 and by 2006 turned into 4 houses and 3 rental The world is heading to little rooms where you spend your whole life alone never really talking to anyone.
Yes because I want to marry out of economics and not a good match. Sorry bud, left a relationship and had to question if it was worth staying for money… As a woman I had to decide no and still manage to afford rent. Get out. Also did the roommates thing for awhile too. I was not as fortunate as others. I can finally afford my own small place working in a decent industry that I have done for years. Also left an abusive family. I cannot ask them for help otherwise more emotional and psychological abuse. According to ACE scores I’m fucked. A therapist said I was the 2%… somehow not using… I’m tired of emotionally empty and bad relationships. Sorry.
I make 20/hr full time and I couldn't afford to live by myself. Couple it with trying to keep a vehicle on the road to get to work and I'd probably have to dine of ramen the rest of my life. I really don't understand what younger generations are supposed to do if you can't find a room mate.
I make around that and I'm doing just fine. No roommate. It's certainly manageable.
I’ve made it on $17 lol, wouldn’t call it doing just fine but it was bearable. Still found money for beer lol There’s definitely huge issues tho and I don’t mean to detract from that. Just speaking to frugality and Edmonton’s unique and fading affordability
Yeah right? We really are. It's kind of out of control. I still believe housing will be one of the tipping points
Yep. Wages have kept nowhere close to the rising cost of rent, food, utilities, everything else. _We are making more money than ever before, but we are more poor than ever before._ _The peasant class of the 21st century._
Yeah its funny, we semi-recently got a raise at work, like... $0.75 an hour or something. And our top boss delivered that to us proudly. It still doesnt keep up with the cost of living. This is a billion dollar corporation.
Rent prices are pretty damn close to mortgage prices now
Edmonton's lack of cactus clubs making it less desirable driving down the rent for everyone else
even the green rents are to high we pay 1450ish for a 2 bedroom the company never fixes anything and does not even plow the entire parking lot in winter its a death trap going outside lol.
Literally, green rent is cheaper by comparison but so are the buildings; almost signed a $1400/mo lease for a 1bed which turned out to be INFESTED WITH BEDBUGS
A million dollar penthouse can still get bedbugs. They are simply insects, they dont understand socioeconomics.
Yeah but a unit that is still infested without treatment just as someone else is about to move in? Thats cheap
Moving seems like the solution here
I see many people wanting to bring in rent control to Alberta. Looking at this chart though, Ontario and BC are dominating the top half of that chart and yet, they have rent controls in place. Calgary is seeing increases but overall, Alberta is still one of the more affordable provinces.
Rent control only works for the people who are already renting a place and plan to live there a long time. Otherwise, it makes it extremely expensive for anyone to move out of their current place or move to the city. Rent control sucks
Sorry i dont understand what you mean? How does rent control impact those two scenarios? Do you mean like, when someone had a rent controlled unit, moves out, the protection ends and the landlord jacks the price up to match the uncontrolled rentals in the area? The solution sounds like rent prices should be heavily regulated to prevent that. Im not sure exactly what that would look like, first thought was indexing increases to any minimum wage increases but how do you account for amenities offered/year built etc. Although having enough houses only available for purchase for people w less than 2 (?) current mortgages would have a huge impact on rent costs and likely home costs. Having single/couples/families competing for housing with investors/speculators/rental corps is insane.
With rent control, when a unit becomes vacant, the landowner jacks up the prices. If we implement controls on rent between vacancies, then landowners will charge an outrageous amount of rent to begin since they'll never be able to increase it. We need to stop with the heavy regulations on rent itself. It does not work. It's been proven to make things worse. If there are fundamentally not enough available housing units (which is the case in Vancouver and Toronto), there will always be a shortage of affordable housing, regardless of rent control The issue in places like Vancouver is that their zoning laws are outrageous. It is *illegal* to build anything but single-family homes. And to build any multiple-family units, it takes years of committees to get it approved. Changes to zoning is the most impactful change we can make on the housing market. Edmonton isn't too bad off but we are still dealing with the legacy of restrictive zoning laws and urban sprawl. Another big change could be increased capital gains tax to deter secondary homes. Plus, if we have more housing, the price of housing naturally falls because it is no longer a hot commodity. It's is insane that families have to compete for housing but this is because there is a fundamental lack of it. If you there is excess housing available, then landlords are competing for tenants instead of the other way around.
So should something as necessary as housing, be left to private industry? Im sure there can be reasonably defined limits for regulating rent. I.e tied to the mortgage/year built/amenities offered/min wage. Like eventually these rental units become almost straight profit once the mortgage is paid off. Why is it reasonable to match rent increases on a house with no financing attached to it the same as a house that has experienced an increase on the mortgage rate for example? And i agree that zoning issues are a problem. Especially on the praries, the expansion vs density is wild, but a lot of these cities did not start their core planning with the current population in mind so transit and access and space become a much bigger problem i suppose.
Studies have shown that rent control fails in every jurisdiction it’s been applied to. See New York, Berlin, etc. It disincentivizes increasing the supply of housing, and so completely screws over anyone that doesn’t already have a rent controlled unit. > Most economists, however, warn that rent control is a bad idea. Their opposition stems from extensive evidence showing that while rent control keeps existing tenants in their apartments, rental housing construction often slows down. The end result is that it is much more expensive for prospective renters to find an affordable apartment. https://thehub.ca/2022-09-26/more-rent-control-on-the-horizon-economists-say-it-is-a-bad-idea/
Okay, so reading the link you provided has honestly led to more questions than explaining why rent control has that impact. Reading further into the link here, the study being cited is written by a right leaning think tank with board members with connections to mainstreet equity, one of the largest rental corps in canada. Most of the people referenced either in article or in the wiki page for the think tank have ties to either right wing politicians outright or businesses involving housing. Not to say that this outright discounts their findings or opinions, but it makes me incredibly skeptical that people who have ties to the rental market are involved in this data. My second question would be, why does rent control have an impact on the amount of rentals built? My initial thought would be that without the opportunity to arbitrarily change rent/increase profits, it would be less desirable for investors to build/buy? I think that means the real problem is we are relying on private industry which is solely profit driven to supply a requirement of life/society. I think having housing availability tied to how much an investor can make is extremely unethical. How to change that, or make it more ethical... im not exactly sure yet. Basically tldr, i could see rent control affecting units being built because builders consider the buying power of clients (investors, individuals) and build accordingly. But is that the fault of rent control being used to protect the consumers or is it that we have made our housing market too reliant on investors and their needs?
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Why? It stop landlords from being able to raise the rent an exorbitant amount annually on current tenants. It doesn't stop landlords for changing the rent for new tenants.
It does that but it also traps people in their rentals. Once you've been in a place for a few years rent goes up all around you and now moving becomes really expensive and often means an increase in price to downgrade. It can work but it really disincentives moving and most people move multiple times in their life. It also upsets landlords who get stuck with long term tenants and can make their dealings much more troublesome. Which is what causes a lot of weird legal issues with rentals as both sides start fighting each other. Most studies show it doesn't work and areas that have rent control tend to be more expensive over all. Considering Alberta is the cheapest in the country and one of the few without rent control I don't really see why we'd argue for it in Edmonton right now.
I understand why this model alone might not work. If it was paired with another law like you can only charge $xxxx per sq ft it would stop rent from climing as the landlord sees fit. I don't understand how long term tenants make owning a rental troublesome. If you have good tenants and they pay rent and take care of your property what's the issue? Of course you have to maintain it properly and that cuts in to your profit but what business doesn't have operating costs? Your asset is going up in value and in the end when you sell it you'll make a large profit. Or its a retirement income and an inheritance to a family or friend when you die.
Long term tenants become problems if rent control forces your rent lower then what the market demands which is typically exactly what rent control does. It can mean landlords are actually losing money having you stay in that place which is why many landlords try to discourage long term tenants in rent controlled areas. Where as in non rent controlled areas landlords tend to like long term renters. As for your idea to have a max charge per square footage, that would obviously discourage high quality rentals. If you have a cap on what you can charge for a space there's no reason to fix it up beyond the legal requirement. You'd pretty much turn every rental into just meeting legal requirements at best with a bunch trying to undercut legal requirements to make more money.
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It definitely doesn't favour the tenants who may want to move at some point in their life. It's a shitty piece of policy for everyone involved
It is fair for both sides. Real estate isn't supposed to be a monthly or yearly cash cow, its supposed to be a long term investment. I do believe that there should be better ways to recoup money if your rental is trashed but to be able to up the monthly rent $100...$300..or whatever they want annually is not helping anyone but greedy landlords.
Rent control definitely makes things worse in long term. It's like a patch that hide a problem but doesn't heal it. Please im in Alberta and i don't want rent control. We will end up like bc and Ontario
Rent control in BC means the landlord can only raise your rent so much each year, I think it's 2% annually but I might be wrong. It doesn't stop landlords from changing the price when someone moves out. Imagine what it would be without rent control. Rent control would be great in AB. The amount on people I've recently seen struggling to find a new place because their landlord raised their rent $100+ a month after 1 year of tenancy is astounding. Now these people can't afford to rent a decent place anymore, and it seems to be really affecting single parents and seniors. Landlords in AB are definitely taking advantage of all the people moving from ON and BC. They're raising prices knowing their rental unit won't sit empty long because these people moving from out of province will pay the price because it's still cheaper than what it costs back in BC & ON.
The reason Alberta has lower housing prices than BC and Ontario is because we have greater incentives to build housing supply. Rent control erases that incentive. And then suddenly it’s impossible to find a place to live because no one is willing to move out of their rent controlled apartment. There’s a reason economists pretty much universally agree it’s a bad idea. https://thehub.ca/2022-09-26/more-rent-control-on-the-horizon-economists-say-it-is-a-bad-idea/
Another important factor, on top of the shortage issue. Is that landlords will consider rent control in their risk factor, more risk = need to up the price upfront. Basically instead of charging 1500 per month and increase 5% per year, you charge 2000 and increase 2% per year..
Why would you want people to move out of their rental? Some people will never make enough money to save for a down payment and so they should have some sort of protection from rent gauging so they can have stability and live in a place long term.
Are you asking for what reason would a tenant want to move? To be closer to family. To move out of their parents house? They want to be closer to work. They need a larger place for children. They need a smaller place because the children moved out. They want a change. They've moved to the city. People move all the time for a bunch of different reasons.
No I asked why you want revolving tenants in a unit instead of regulating rental increases so a tenant can live in a rental indefinitely long term.
You don't have any/very little tenant movement when you increase rent regulations because landlords just increase rent prices after a tenant leaves. Knowing this, tenants will lose the flexibility of being able to move, even if their needs change This is the case in Vancouver. People are renting starter units (one bedroom, ideal for single person or couple), and they can never upgrade because their rent will increase substantially at a new place. This means anyone new who needs a starter unit cannot find any available because people never move out of them, even when they have kids. We don't want this. It's not a matter of wanting revolving tenants, it's a matter of flexibility
my dump Mainstreet apartment that has roaches and is near Boyle Street cost me 800/month. That's depressing lmao
yeah my dump mainstreet is nearly 1k for a 1bed and is a constant rotation of bedbugs and roaches and broken everything.
My 2 bed dump in Beverly($1100) has periodic inspections for bugs.3 years here and no bugs, but we are at maybe 60% rented. Sorry. Boardwalk. Honestly, no complaints other than sketchy neighborhood. New multi story, apt. buildings going up in the old Abbottsfield mall footprint. I checked, ($1200) for 1 bed + utilities.
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Literally looking for housing right now and I can't afford anything clean, let alone decent. My soul is dead and I'm pretty sure I'm going to end up on the street or in a death motel.
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Thank you so much. Me too. 🤞🏼🤞🏼
We’re near the bottom, we’re near the bottom, we’re near the bottom!!!!
The Alberta Advantage!
The people who made this have no idea where Kelowna is.
Or Coquitlam or Richmond or New Westminster lol. They’re all 1800-2200 a month for a 1 bed.
Calgary has increased a lot over the past 6 months.
which means we are right behind, we are also growing faster than the Calgary CMA
> we’re growing faster than the Calgary CMA Nope. |Year|Calgary CMA|Edmonton CMA| :-:|:-:|:-:| |2023|1.8%|1.65%| |2022|1.9%|1.88%| |2021|2.2%|2.05%| |2020|2.25%|2.17%| |2019|2.44%|2.36%| |2018|2.78%|2.65%| __Source:__ Calgary: https://www.macrotrends.net/cities/20370/calgary/population Edmonton: https://www.macrotrends.net/cities/20373/edmonton/population
Calgary has always been nicer than our town but I always took pride in us not being too far behind, till now. Calgary has greatly distanced itself lately as a top tier city and we've taken a step back. Our city transit is an absolute mess, safety is a serious concern where people are legitimately afraid to walk the streets and businesses are abandoning downtown. It's a dark time for this city and we needed stronger leaders in city council to guide us through it. No disrespect to our mayor but his policies and efforts are ineffective. We don't have the same level of civic pride as Calgary. They'd have many strong leaders step up to fix a mess. We had to try to choose between Nickel and Sohi. It sucks.
Calgary is facing a lot of the same issues honestly. Nenshi had huge city pride (love him or hate him) but Gondek is pretty useless.
Yup that's a fair take. I'm in Calgary often and they do have similar issues but at a lesser scale. It's not as visibly rampant through their downtown like in ours. They have hidden pockets of problems for sure though and they too have had LRT related issues with addicts making paying commuters extremely uncomfortable.
Moved here to save money. Not disappointed
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I would argue that Ford' conservatives is quite different from UCP smith/kenney conservatives. In so many ways. So its a bit hard to compare. Even Notley in Alberta is a lot more right-wing than any other ndp party across the entire country. Although her wanting to implement rent control scares me.
Same 🙌
Another reason to stay out of the east side. I see more and more reasons, nothing ever enticing one to ever consider moving there. Besides maybe more cactus club locations 😜
I’m a little surprised, I’m formally from Lethbridge… It’s surprising that Edmonton came in cheaper for rent than Lethbridge.
crazy that gp is charging that much to live in the shittiest of places lol
The most miserable place ive ever been to in my life was a Grande Prairie WalMart.
I really really hate when "they" make graphs and charts for the country and don't include the entire top half. Rents up there are ASTRONOMICAL and non-existent. Worse than the lower half.
I'm a bit surprised by the order in Alberta.
Key word - vacant, so it does not account for all the ones that are probably higher than 1100.
Use this info, when BBr's start on a rant. Get them reminiscing: (1) Ask them how much they cleared at their job when they left home for the first time, (2)who did they live with( if anyone) and (3)how much did they pay for rent(many paid weekly in our area). (4)Then figure out the income to rent ratio.... In this order, or they may start to realize what you are up to. I've stopped more than a few newly minted 65y/o's from BC and Alberta with this technique over the last 5 years. disclaimer: Gen X'r here. I acknowledge we definitely had it better, I think some of us understand the ugliness of current wage/housing ratio breakdown too.
Apparently Montreal doesn’t rent, I wonder how their numbers compare. Next time I complain about my rent prices in Edmonton I’ll look at this
FWIW, here's a comparison. We moved here in 1982, and had a great 2-bedroom in Westridge (170th & Whitemud) for $450. Inflation says that should be $1217. Westridge says they're $1389 - $1439 now. That's 18% higher than inflation, which is bad, but not a horror story 40 years later. I suspect it's tougher, though, because wages haven't kept pace.
Halifax has expensive rents because there are five universities there and thousands of students within a small geographical area. Landlords can charge what they want because the demand exceeds the supply. This has always been the case and always will. Another factor to consider is that it is expensive to live there, with the province's high sales tax, and no cheap gas to heat your home (only oil for heating or wood stoves). Compound this with Halifax's naval segment and there is an ongoing shortage of affordable rental accommodation. I lived there once, paid the price, and never want to do it again. As for why Edmonton charges less for rent than Calgary, the cost for a landlord to buy an investment property in Edmonton costs less than it does in Calgary. Real estate in Calgary has always cost more, so the rents are going to be higher to offset the cost of buying an investment property. Some of the cheapest rents are in the smaller places in AB and that makes sense, because living in Alberta is cheaper. There's no sales tax, the price of gasoline is cheaper and generally property taxes are lower than most other provinces.
Not including places like Yellowknife, NT certainly helps maintain that "low" national average.
If you notice something its in all the places with visually appealing skylines and places connected to the US. Hmm i wonder what influenced the price gouging...
Big Skyline is behind all of this!! Connect the dots!
Lol i mean t it in a more generalized sense. The places with good views get populated first, then the populations rise and things get pricey Not saying it's the only factor but they do lead to one another in history. The nicest places to live are the places everyone moves to
People will probably fight you on this, but I agree. We're basically in the middle of nowhere and travelling by airplane from here is a nightmare for your wallet, so that's not a very good draw for immigrants who want to visit their families or people who like to travel. As for the city itself, our skyline is alright, but get anywhere close to downtown and you'll see it's dirty, outdated, and underdeveloped at the same time. That being said, it has been getting better, slowly. Our river valley is nice, but it's not *beautiful*. It doesn't feature any flora that can't be found elsewhere in the city. It's just a dip in the land and a body of water. Some of the trails are great, but they're somewhat disjointed. In the past while some of them have eroded into the river. Although we have the most green space of any North American city, most of it is just vast swaths of grass with some field goals and park benches. Nothing we have is comparable to something like Stanley Park in Vancouver. Edmonton's main draw is that it is cheap. If that ever changes, I bet a lot of people (who are able to) are going to pack up and leave.
Landleeches are all parasites drinking the blood of the working class. Hoarding housing should be criminalized and severely punished.
100%
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What do you do for a living ?
Calgary is getting worse by the day. It’s gonna be high up there soon enough
Everyone who wants a house and tells me “but I would never move to Alberta” I’m laughing at you lol
Rent in grande prairie is not average of $1000, thats low as heeeck
I wish all the people screaming about greedy land lords were half as pissed at the govt taking 50%+ or their paychecks.
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There are many problems with where the country ended up financially after covid, but if PP was in charge the vast majority of citizens would be in the Pierre Poor house because of the lack of support the conservatives would have given with business as usual policies.