A former Vancouver radio host took issue with a Daily Hive article and wants to tell his tale about what it’s like to live in the most expensive city in Canada on just $2,172 a month.
We connected with Eric Chapman, who has worked at some of the city’s most prominent radio stations, like 980 CKNW, where he was an on-air contributor for The Lynda Steele Show, and a fill-in host for The Shift.
Chapman moved on from talk radio and landed a gig for a podcasting company, but soon after, he lost that job, and now he’s struggling to make ends meet.
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The former Vancouver radio host is 41 years old and is now living off government assistance through EI.
“Six months ago, I was debt-free,” Chapman told Daily Hive.
He had just started a new job as the vice president of a podcasting company. That was going well, but as Chapman states, “as business goes,” the company began restructuring, and he lost his job.
That’s how he ended up where he is now: unemployed and living off of EI.
“It was out of nowhere,” Chapman recalls, thinking about the sudden nature of the job loss.
He started getting EI payments in late July and has been on it ever since.
Chapman pays between $1,100 and $1,400 on rent and utilities, depending on the season. That leaves him with around $600 for all other expenses. That money goes to his dog, a phone bill, an internet bill and food.
Recently, he got some medical news, and due to not having extended coverage, he’s incurring unexpected medical costs and is forced to go into debt or use his credit card for purchases.
Finding another job isn’t easy for someone with Chapman’s experience. Due to working in a specialized field like radio, his skills are pretty unique.
“The competition right now seems to be very high. And I used to host a national radio show. I know what I’m doing.”
Happily live on less than $2,000?
A story we published at the beginning of the month rubbed Chapman the wrong way.
That story spoke of Weiwen Leung, who worked in the American technology sector, where he received a “comfortable” salary and saved nearly every dollar, putting his money into exchange-traded funds.
What if you’re someone who hasn’t benefited from years of a comfortable salary to save, like Chapman?
He took issue with “rich people” trying to tell people not as well-off how to live. Chapman has no safety net. If his dog suddenly needs medical attention or another emergency occurs, he’s in the red and might be unable to make rent.
Chapman says he always rides his bike, but eventually, his chain will break.
“That’s just how it goes.”
His mental health is also taking a hit.
“I can ride my bike around 100,000 times, but when it comes to mental health, I’m eventually going to ride up off the Lions Gate because I’m sick of this.”
He doesn’t want the idea that you should be forced to live on less to be romanticized, especially in a city as expensive as Vancouver.
“We can’t make this the normal.”
When facing difficult times like this, Chapman reflected that there have been times that he’s coped with the stress by drinking or consuming marijuana. The solace for his mental health comes from the “cliche crap” like friends and a solid support group to encourage him through the dark financial times.
“It’s definitely difficult, but I’m okay,” he said.
“In a few years, depending on my job, I’ll be debt-free again, moving forward and forgetting about this horrible thing, but that’s not a reality for a lot of people.”
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