Calgarians still love city despite ballooning cost of living: report
The Calgary Foundation just released its quality of life report and there are some pretty shocking statistics that highlight the high cost of living in the city but Calgarians don’t seem to have given up on the city quite yet.
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The annual report has been released since 2007 and is a way of “taking the pulse of our city and measuring the resiliency and community spirit of Calgary.”
It highlights many different areas of life for Calgarians including health, money, housing, work, safety, and general perceptions of the city.
The high cost of living impacted almost every one of these areas including health. The report found 21% of Calgarians are concerned about their health but 29% can’t afford healthy food which is up by 8% from last year.
It also showed Calgarians are eating less to make up for the high cost of food. Twenty-seven per cent of respondents say they are eating less food, with 45% buying less fruits and vegetables.
Calgarians are also cutting back on treating themselves with a whopping 72% of people saying they are skipping on restaurant meals.
Parents are also taking a hit, with 36% saying they skip meals so they can feed their kids.
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Age also seems to be a factor with people aged 18 to 24 being hit the hardest.
Mental health is waning in this age group and many (42%) are struggling to access the proper support.
Calgarians are also struggling to afford their homes, with 40% saying they can’t afford to buy one. Eight-five per cent of renters say they cannot afford a down payment on a home and 28% say they have missed rent payments in the past year.
All of these financial burdens add up and contribute to mental health and well-being. Three-quarters (74%) of households earning more than $200,000 are always or often happy but that number dips to 54% who make below $200,000.
Despite these setbacks, however, Calgarians still seem to love the city! A whopping 93% of respondents say they like the neighbourhood they live in, 87% think Calgary is a good place for young people to live, and 89% think it’s a good place for families to live.
Seventy-nine per cent of Calgarians say they have no plans of moving away from the city any time soon and that number has increased over the years. It was at 74% in 2022 and 70% in 2021!
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