2027 max rent increase amount to decrease slightly: B.C. government

Before 2019, the province says renters faced an additional 2 per cent rent increase beyond inflation, costing the average B.C. family hundreds of dollars in additional rent. If the change had not taken place, allowable rent increases would have reached 5.4 per cent in 2023 and 5.6 per cent in 2024.

The province says it’s announcing the increase now so that landlords have plenty of time to give the required minimum of three months notice of the change so renters can plan ahead. Landlords can only increase rent once every 12 months and any increase must be within the yearly allowable rent increase limit, the province says.

The announcement follows a recent report by Rentals.ca that shows average asking rents decreasing by 4.5 per cent overall and 4.1 per cent for purpose-built rentals and apartments in the province.

The government says British Columbia had five cities in the top 15 cities with the largest year-over-year decreases in rents within purpose-built rentals: Abbotsford (-12.4%), Langley (-7.6%), Coquitlam (-7.3%), New Westminster (-6.6%) and Richmond (-6.1%).

Since 2017, the B.C. government says it has been strengthening supports for renters, while ensuring landlords can address tenancy issues. Changes include creating more transparency for landlords and renters by publishing the outcomes of monetary orders. The annual renter’s tax credit provides $400 a year to renters with low and moderate incomes.

The province also points out that B.C. was also the first province or territory in Canada to provide province-wide rent-bank services with interest-free loans for tenants facing urgent financial hardships. The Rental Protection Fund has helped preserve more than 2,000 existing affordable rental units in communities throughout the province.

by Mike Vanden Bosch

2027 max rent increase amount to decrease slightly: B.C. government

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