Vancouver Magazine
The Best Thing I Ate All Week: Beaucoup Bakery’s Pistachio Raspberry Cake
Live Spot Prawns Are Only Here for a Month—and You Can Try Them at This Festival
Cupcake Thief Breaks Into Vancouver Bakery, Cleans Up Glass, Takes Selfies and Leaves
Succession Is Over: Now It’s Time To Watch the Greatest Show About Wine Ever Made
Our 2023 Sommelier of the Year Franco Michienzi of Elisa Steakhouse Shares His Top Wine Picks
We’ve Scored a Major Discount for VanMag Readers at the Best Wine Festival in Town
Meet OneSpace, the East Vancouver Co-working Space That Offers On-site Childcare
What You Missed at the VMO 2022/23 Season Finale Concert
Protected: Visit the Joint Replacement Center of Scottsdale
Wellness in Whistler-Your Ultimate Early Summer Retreat
Local Summer Getaway: 3 Beautiful Okanagan Farm Tours
Local Summer Getaway: Golfing at Alberta’s Crowsnest Pass
Review: Vancouver-Based Denim Brand Duer Is Making Wide-Legged Jeans You Can Hem Yourself
The Latest in Cutting-Edge Kitchen Appliances
7 Spring-y Shopping Picks, From a Lightweight Jacket to a Fresh Face Cleanser
In a city where housing prices consistently tower over the incomes of even two-person households, how are singletons navigating Vancouver’s challenging real-estate market? Here are some of the ways that single-income earners in the region are making it work when it comes to getting their feet in the property door.
“My sister and I decided to co-purchase a property as an investment. This made it a lot easier to save up for a down payment, and, realistically, we knew that it was the only way we could afford to buy a place in Metro Vancouver. Our strategy was to look heavily into foreclosures and find one in a good area that we could renovate as needed. We lived in our apartment for six months together and then I got a roommate, whom I lived with for three years. Now my sister and I are renting it out, which pays the mortgage with a bit of extra income for us. My goal is to eventually own a property in Vancouver, but the market is crazy right now! Hopefully, in a few years, things will change.”—Tanya, 25, owns a two-bedroom apartment in Burnaby
READ MOREIs Vancouver’s Real Estate Market Squeezing Out Singletons?
“I had the idea that I wanted to move out sometime after I finished university and got my first job . I just didn’t have a plan in mind. I was looking at how much I was making and thought, ‘I could save at least 30 percent per paycheque, and in a few years, maybe I could have enough for a down payment.’ And then I realized that when you live at home, saving 30 percent is actually pretty easy as long as you’re somewhat diligent. That’s when I started tracking what I was spending my money on, and I made adjustments and those adjustments became habits. I also had to make some compromises: because I work in Vancouver, the idea was to move to Vancouver. But I soon realized I could probably only afford a down payment somewhere else. I withdrew money from my RRSP, too, which wasn’t a gigantic portion but still helped.”—Kevin, 28, owns a one-bedroom condo in New Westminster
READ MOREVancouver’s Real Estate Market is Wobbling—So What Do We Do?
“For the majority of my early to mid-20s, I worked two or three jobs at a time, one of them as a barista at Starbucks. Fortunately, as an employee you receive amazing benefits—one of them being access to restricted stock units—and, after working for the company for six years, I was able to use them to contribute to my down payment. That, combined with savings, investments, some assistance from my mom and my participation in the BC Home Partnership Program, aided in my ability to purchase a home. I also bought at the right time , before the market went up. If I had waited, I don’t know if I would’ve been able to purchase my current home.”—Alyx, 27, owns a one-bedroom condo in Coquitlam