This is what the City considers an ‘affordable’ 1-bedroom in Vancouver
The issue of affordable housing is a hot-button topic in Vancouver.
Now, new figures in a report released by the city lay out just what “affordable” means when it comes to renting within city limits.
Created to provide further information on the rental incentives, The Rental Incentive Guidelines report is meant to “inform the way in which the rental incentives are applied to specific projects.”
Projects creating new rental space – where 100% of the residential development is to be used as such – are eligible for a waiver on the rental portion of the development, the report said. Under the Vancouver and Area Specific Development Cost Levy By-laws (the “DCL By-laws”), DCLs for rental housing can be waived for “for-profit affordable rental housing” where the tenure is secured through a Housing Agreement.
According to the report “affordable housing” now sits at $1,730 for a one-bedroom apartment, $2,505, for a two-bedroom, and $3,365 for a three-bedroom.
The city calculated the maximum DCL rental cost using the average rents for all residential units built since the year 2005.