Kelowna is growing prohibitively
Photo: pixabay
Home ownership in Kelowna is growing rapidly for many people, according to a new national report.
In the Point2Homes report, Kelowna was ranked the fifth largest cost-burdened or poor-house city in the country as income growth failed to keep pace with skyrocketing property prices.
Mortgage payments in 2020 now account for 40.8 percent of household income in Kelowna, up from 27 percent in 2010.
Spending more than 30 percent of household income directly on a mortgage is considered prohibitive.
Household income in Kelowna would have to rise 41 percent from just over $ 100,000 to $ 141,000 for the real estate market to be rated “affordable” again.
The reference price for a home in Kelowna more than doubled from $ 475,000 in 2010 to $ 957,000 in 2020. However, incomes rose by only 34 percent over the same period.
The problem isn’t limited to Kelowna as mortgage affordability is deteriorating in 38 of Canada’s 50 largest real estate markets.
The cheapest real estate markets are all in Eastern Canada with Halifax, NS, Windsor, Ont. and London, Ont. around 11 percent of income is spent on mortgages.
