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Sept 7 - Pricey to live in paradise
Drowning at Thetis Lake, and another BC Ferries passenger goes overboard
Capital Daily Team
September 07, 2025
Good morning !
Some statistics are in, confirming what most of us already knew: It’s expensive to live in Victoria. That’s our first story.
Behind the paywall for our Insiders is a story about how the city’s parking landscape is likely to change in the coming years.
— Mark
Today’s approx. read time: 6 minutes
🌡️ Weather Forecast
NEWS
Victoria was the third-most unaffordable city for renters in Canada last year
Victoria renters would need to make $29 an hour to afford a one-bedroom. Photo: James MacDonald / Capital Daily
Victoria may be a smaller city than metropolises like Toronto and Vancouver, but unfortunately for renters, living here is nearly as expensive.
A report from the Canadian Centre for Policy Alternatives (CCPA) assesses how affordable cities across the country are based on “rental wage” (the minimum hourly amount a person would need to make to afford the average rent in their city). Affordable rent is considered to be less than 30% of a person’s gross income.
The report found that Victoria was the third-least affordable city in Canada last year. Vancouver topped the list, followed by Toronto.
To afford a one-bedroom in Victoria, a person would need to make $29.38 an hour. For a two-bedroom, an hourly wage of $38.33 was needed. BC’s minimum hourly wage in 2024 was $17.40.
A single person would have to work one full-time job and a part-time one, too (1.7 full-time jobs), to afford a one-bedroom in Victoria
“For those earning minimum wage, it is virtually impossible to afford housing on their own,” the CCPA report reads.
The most expensive Greater Victoria neighbourhood to rent a home was Sidney, with a rental wage of $48.66 an hour needed for a two-bedroom, followed by Langford and downtown Victoria, requiring an hourly wage of $45.95 and $45.54, respectively. Esquimalt was the most affordable, requiring $31.60 an hour for a two-bedroom.
While the cost of renting a home in Vancouver or Toronto was higher than in Victoria, to follow that 30% guideline, a person would need to work more than two full-time minimum wage jobs (2.2 full-time jobs) to rent a one-bedroom in those cities. All other cities in Canada required a lower hourly wage than the capital city last year.
The most affordable place on the list was Shawinigan, Que., which required an hourly wage of $10.85, almost $5 less than Quebec’s minimum wage.
The CCPA said its “principal finding” was that affordability gaps were a problem in nearly all Canadian cities, and that minimum wage increases “are a key dimension of affordability.”
However, the study notes, it would be challenging for provinces to raise minimum wages to $30-40 an hour, making rent control and non-market housing essential as well.
“Federal and provincial governments need to keep housing affordability on the front burner, even as trade and security take up more policy space,” the CCPA wrote.
“Too many households have to spend more than a reasonable share of their income on rent, compromising their ability to pay for food, transportation, and other necessities.”
⚠️ Capital Bulletin
Air quality warning: Smoke from wildfires on the mainland and in Washington state is expected to affect Victoria’s air quality today. [Smoke map]
Prior Lake dock at Thetis will be closed next weekend for construction. Sept. 12-15. [CRD]
Saanich road closure for drain upgrade: Sparton at Wray tomorrow 7am to 5pm.
Saanich single lanes for water main installation: Tyndall between Hillcrest and Serenity Pl. until Oct. 3.
Driving today? Check the current traffic situation via Google.
