Over 103,000 Rental Suites in Metro Vancouver Houses


Thursday, January 31st, 2013

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Many Metro Vancouver home buyers aren’t buying a home simply as a principal residence: they are investing in the property as a partial or full-time rental property.

According to the most recent CMHC survey, taken in the fall of last year, there are now 103,780 secondary rental units in single-family houses, townhouses and row houses. As well, there are 48,528 condominiums in the Lower Mainland that are now being rented out, representing nearly 26 per cent of all condominiums. In central areas of Vancouver, rental condos now account for about 44 per cent of all condos, according to the survey.

“Rental market conditions in British Columbia are influenced by a number of factors – growth in jobs, migration patterns, the relative cost of homeownership compared to renting, and changes in supply, including additions to the secondary rental market” noted Carol Frketich, CMHC’s BC Regional Economist.

Renting out a secondary suite or condo can be profitable. A survey by Altus Group show that the average two-bedroom condo in Metro Vancouver rents for $1,662 per month, and that the average rent for a two-bedroom suite in a detached house is $1,321. The typical three-bedroom suite in a detached house rents for $1,624 per month. CMHC confirms that the vacancy rate for secondary suites is about the same as for the general rental market, but the vacancy rate for rental condos in Metro Vancouver is lower, at 1 per cent. At today’s interest rates, $1,600 per month would cover the monthly mortgage costs on a $300,000 mortgage.

Western Investor



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