“I found Toronto’s rental prices to generally be higher than in Vancouver. Just moved [to Vancouver] a month ago. The place I’m in is in the West End and it’s nearly identical to my previous, only it’s 100 dollars cheaper and it’s right downtown, instead of 8km away in High Park. It’s also has a wicked view of English Bay.” – megapickles, reddit.com, 13 Apr 2011 [hat-tip matt]
Real demand remains modest. The rent/price ratios prove we are in a massive speculative price bubble. -vreaa
Well,
I am in a Hollyburn building and this is the second year in a row that I did not get a rent increase. Usually that’s the one thing you can count on with them year in year out.
Looking around the Westend, Kits and Yaletown I am pretty sure I could find something cheaper (albeit lacking a view) and negotiate things down even.
I’ve looked into whether rentals are cheaper in Vancouver vs Toronto. I don’t have solid numbers, but my impression: In Vancouver there’s a glut of high-end rentals like what this guy is talking about. When a speculator holds a fancy condo downtown, it becomes a high-end rental for someone. Meanwhile there’s a shortage of low-end purpose built rental buildings. Council’s STIR (Short Term Incentives for Rental) program is all about getting more rental stock, and they only acted after the problem had been acute for years. What cheap rentals there are, are hard to get into. People who need inexpensive housing go into poorly maintained illegal suites. These are about the price of rentals in Toronto but are scarier.
As noted yesterday, New West has plenty of affordable rentals. “Cablevision in every unit!”
Actually the handle ‘granite countertop’ comes from my first comment on VCI. I noted that many of the units advertised granite countertops and these units were typically far too expensive for their size & location.
can someone tell me exactly what is the appeal of living in some of these newish gastown condos? a friend lived in one and the stripper next door OD’d the fire department had to tear down the door with an axe – i notice a lot of them are rented out by groups of hipsters – you step out the door and are instantly surrounded by junkies during the day and drunks at night, etc. etc.
if the bubble pops, what happens to ‘the revitalized’ gastown ‘scene’?
Not sure comparing Toronto and Vancouver rent is same. Toronto has larger population and more business than Vancouver ? I am sure that some ppl in Toronto can afford to pay the rent without having to share with 3 others like in downtown vancouver. It’s becoming a joke in dt in vancouver where a person is sleeping in a storage room as he is renting it.