It seems that not all those construction cranes that dot the Vancouver skyline are 2010-related.
More people own condos in Vancouver than anywhere else in Canada, a trend that’s fuelling a surge of high-rise construction in the city.
According to 2006 census data released yesterday by Statistics Canada, about one in three people who own a home here live in a condo, compared to about 10 per cent nationwide.
Robyn Adamache, Vancouver-based senior marketing analyst with Canadian Housing And Mortgage Corporation, said it comes down to affordability.
“Generally it costs about half as much to buy a condominium as a single detached home,” she said.
“Of course the other reason is lifestyle factors, (such) as the amenities and central locations condos are generally located in.”
“What we’re seeing in new home building in Greater Vancouver is the vast majority, (about) 80 per cent of homes, are of the multiple unit variety.”
The trend also holds true nationally, where around 913,000 Canadian households own a condo, up 36.5 per cent from five years earlier.
That increase has driven homeownership to the highest it’s ever been.
Around 68.6 per cent of Canadian households own their home, slightly lower than the British Columbia average of 69.7 per cent.
–kristen.thompson@metronews.ca
