YOUR PERSPECTIVE: Supply essential to solving housing crisis
-
Share on Facebook
-
Share on Bluesky
-
Share on X
- Copy Link
Housing prices have exploded in the Fraser Valley over the last five years. It’s true that prices have increased everywhere, but our region has seen especially sharp climbs in a short amount of time, and it is having a profound impact on our communities.
In June of 2017, the average cost of a single detached home in the Fraser Valley hovered at $1 million. As of June this year, the average cost had jumped to $1.5 million. An increase of $500,000, and certainly not an amount that anyone would consider affordable for the average person. Meanwhile, those who don’t own their own home are stretched further as rents continue to increase, with the average rent in Abbotsford-Mission now $1183 a month, up $321 per month since the NDP government came into power.
As costs increase, more and more people are watching their dream of owning a home get pushed farther out of reach. Many young people worry they will not be able to live or raise a family in the place they grew up and are forced to look elsewhere to find more affordable housing options.
It’s an incredibly difficult situation — one that is bad for individuals and families, and bad for communities. We want people of all ages to be able to live here in the Fraser Valley, and for young families to be able to thrive and put down roots, but that is becoming increasingly difficult to do.
