VANCOUVER, British Columbia, July 11, 2024 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) — According to BC Check: DirectAccording to the Chartered Professional Accountants of British Columbia (CPABC) annual report on demographic and affordability trends across the province, BC added more than 162,000 new residents between July 1, 2022 and July 1, 2023, marking a new record high.
“Population growth continues to accelerate in 2023, thanks to record levels of immigration,” said Lori Mathison, FCPA, FCGA, LLB, president and CEO of CPABC. “That growth is heavily concentrated in the province’s largest cities, even more so than last year.”
BC welcomed 175,024 (net) residents arriving from other countries in 2023, a 64.8 per cent increase over the number arriving in 2022. International migration accounted for all of the province-wide population growth, while other components of population change reduced the total. Natural growth (births minus deaths) was negative for the second year, and people leaving BC for other provinces outnumbered those arriving for the first time in a decade; net interprovincial migration reduced the population by 8,228 residents in 2023.
“One of the most concerning trends over the past year has been the exodus of British Columbians moving to other parts of Canada,” Mathison continued. “Historically, we have been able to attract more people than we have lost. High housing costs are a major reason for that reversal. Especially young people looking elsewhere to build their future.”
When the Bank of Canada began raising interest rates in March 2022, home prices initially fell. However, home prices have since stabilized. In May 2024, the benchmark price for a median home in British Columbia was $965,100, up 1.2 per cent compared to May 2023. That was an 8.2 per cent decrease from the peak in March 2022, but a surprising 43.3 per cent increase compared to May 2019. The median rent for a 3+ bedroom apartment in British Columbia was $2,146 per month and $1,558 for a 1-bedroom apartment, up 3.8 per cent and 8.8 per cent respectively from 2022.
Compounding the problem, the supply of new housing is not keeping up with the demand for new housing, particularly in the province’s major urban centres. Across B.C.’s seven Census Metropolitan Areas, there were 30,621 housing units completed in 2023, a minuscule 1.0 per cent increase from 2022. That’s just 0.21 new housing units completed per new resident.
“Immigration is not the cause of the housing crisis, as we have had a long-standing housing shortage in this province,” Mathison said. “The stress on households is clear, as is the impact of the housing crisis on businesses and their talent pool.”
According to BC Check: LIVE In a member survey conducted in April 2024, the Public Accountant identified poor housing affordability as the biggest barrier to business success in the province, with 86 per cent of respondents citing it as a major challenge. Respondents also shared a pessimistic view when asked if they expected any improvement in the coming year. Nearly two-thirds (61 per cent) expected housing affordability to worsen in their region by 2024.
“Our members consistently identify poor housing affordability as a major barrier to business success,” Mathison concluded. “To improve affordability, we need to support policies that significantly increase housing supply, encourage investment, and raise the real incomes of BC residents.”
Learn more about BC Check: Live Report.
About CPA British Columbia
That Licensed Professional Accountants in British Columbia (CPABC) is the training, governance, and regulatory body for more than 40,000 CPA members and 6,000 CPA candidates and students. CPABC’s primary mission is to protect the public by upholding the highest professional and ethical standards and contributing to the advancement of public policy.
CONTACT: CPABC Media Contact: Jack Blackwell, Economist 604.259.1143 news@bccpa.ca
