YOUR PERSPECTIVE: Housing affordability continues to worsen throughout Fraser Valley

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The same CMHC report makes it clear that rising rents are not just a problem in the heart of Vancouver. The largest cities in the Fraser Valley experienced increases of around $100 per month in just the past year, with rents rising from an average of $1,235 to $1,336 per month in Abbotsford and from $1,129 to $1,248 a month in Chilliwack. This means that since the NDP came to power in 2017, the price of rent has gone up a whopping $504 a month in Abbotsford and $422 a month in Chilliwack.

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With continuing increases like these, it’s hard to believe that the NDP government has been promising to address housing affordability for the entirety of their seven years in power. Yet here we are, the better part of a decade later, and housing costs have not just failed to improve, they’ve dramatically worsened by every measure.

Still, the NDP make more promises, they introduce more poorly thought-out legislation, red tape and fees, and make more announcements and reannouncements — all while everyday people struggle to keep up steadily rising prices.

What should be especially troubling for David Eby and his NDP government is that affordability has worsened the most for low-income households, as vacancy rates for the most affordable units are lower than average, and these households already spend a greater share of their income on rent.

Clearly, the NDP housing plan is not working. What they can’t seem to understand is the simple truth that if you want to make housing more affordable, you have to make it less expensive to build.

Our BC United Caucus believes in tangible change. We want to address the factors that add costs onto housing — things like permitting delays, increased taxes and development fees, the rising costs of building materials — while also increasing supply.

The NDP have had seven years to prove they can make a difference on housing, but the results show their plan is a resounding failure. Only BC United knows how to deliver the affordable homes people in B.C. need and deserve.

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Editor’s Note: This opinion piece reflects the views of its author, and does not necessarily represent the views of Fraser Valley Today or Pattison Media.