This video is all about what it costs to live in Vancouver in 2020. I cover everything from renting, buying a home, gas, groceries, and a ton of other things. So, let’s get into it.
If you’re wondering how much it costs to live in Vancouver, BC. in 2020, this video is going to cover everything you need to know about the cost of living right here in Vancouver so, stay tuned.
Hey, everyone, I’m Craig Veroni with RE/MAX Masters Realty. I’m your local real estate agent here in Vancouver, BC. I shoot a ton of videos about what it’s like to live, love, and own here in Vancouver so, if you haven’t yet, please hit that subscribe button and don’t forget to click on the bell so you can be notified immediately when I have a new video out.
This video is all about what it costs to live in Vancouver in 2020. I’m going to cover everything from renting, buying a home, gas, groceries, and a ton of other things. So, let’s get into it.
I’m going to get this out of the way right now. It’s expensive to live in this city! And, housing prices and rent are what make it so much more expensive to live here compared to other cities in Canada. Vancouver was the most expensive city in Canada to live in last year with Toronto a close second but in 2020 the cost of rent in Vancouver is 3.05% lower than Toronto. Our overall cost of living in Vancouver is also 1.26% lower than Toronto at the moment.
The average detached home price in Canada as of August 2020 is $586,149 an 18.5% increase from August 2019. The average price of a home in Greater Vancouver, as of August 2020 is approximately $1,038,700. A 5.3% increase from August of 2019. In downtown Vancouver, the average cost of a condo is $814,800 as of August 2020. In august of 2019, it was $730,000.
I just shot a terrific video about where to live in Vancouver and I cover the 7 major cities that make up Metro Vancouver. In that video, I go over the average cost of attached and detached homes for all those areas so I won’t go into that in this video. You can come back and check out that video here.
As expensive as Vancouver is to live in, we actually rank 146th out of 541 cities in the world, according to Numbeo. In 2019 we ranked 131st overall.
We know how expensive buying a home in Vancouver is but what about renting? Well, the news isn’t much better. Vancouver is a beautiful city and people want to live here so, the rental market is very tight which naturally pushes up rental costs. Even during the pandemic when some thought rental prices may go down, they haven’t.
Right now, according to Numbeo, the average cost for a 1 bedroom apartment in the City Centre is 2 thousand and 60 dollars a month. ($2,060.07) That’s up about $40 from last year. Outside of the City centre, it drops a little bit to $1588.81. That’s only up $2 over last year.
If you’re a family requiring a home with 3 bedrooms or more and you want to live in the city center it will cost you $3,665.70 per month in rent. Outside of the City centre, the average cost of rent will be $2,794.74 a month. That’s up almost $95 over last year.
If you are moving to Vancouver make sure you plan carefully. Crunch those numbers to see whether you can afford to buy or have to rent a home here. I have a great mortgage payment calculator on my website to help you. The link is in the description below. I also work with some of the best mortgage brokers in the city, if you need a recommendation.
In case you were wondering how Vancouver compares with Seattle or Toronto, here’s a comparison.
Now that we’ve got you into a home, whether you’re buying or renting it, let’s talk about the average monthly costs for all your utilities. Right now, if you’re renting a 2 -bedroom home, it will cost you between $120-$150. That’s for your heating electricity, and gas. Some places will include these utilities in your monthly rent costs which definitely helps. If you’re a homeowner you will have additional costs such as water and garbage pick-up which can add another $70 to your monthly bill. Of course, if you’re a homeowner of a strata property you will have the monthly strata fees as well which can be anywhere from $350 to $650 a month or more.
Those utility costs don’t cover things like internet, phone, or cable. So how much do those things cost? You can certainly get low-cost internet and mobile phone plans but the average cost for internet here in Vancouver is about $70 to $100 a month for an unlimited data plan. For a mobile phone, you’re looking at anywhere from $30 to $70 a month depending on the type of plan you need. I don’t get jealous of many of the things our American neighbours have, especially these days, but I would certainly take their lower mobile phone plan prices. For cable, you’re looking at about $30 a month for a basic cable package, which doesn’t get you very much, and it only goes up from there.
The two big providers here in Vancouver are Telus and Shaw and both companies will offer discounts when bundling services. For example, having your home, mobile, tv, and internet with Telus, for example, will cost you less than having those services individually. So, shop around as both companies are always offering deals to new customers.
Okay, so you’re living in your house, you’re paying your utilities, now how do you get to work? If you like biking, Vancouver has over 450 km of bike lanes in the city. That’s 279 miles for those who don’t think in kilometers. So it’s no wonder it’s the city’s fastest-growing travel method. Downtown at Denman & Georgia is a plethora of bike rental shops. We also have the Mobi bike-sharing stations throughout the city.
Now, you may not be into biking and that’s ok. We have a fantastic transit system in Vancouver. We have the iconic Sea Bus and Skytrain lines as well as regular buses. Our transit system is divided into 3 zones. Monthly passes to access all the transit systems are $98 for a 1-zone pass, $131 for a 2-zone pass, and, $171 for a 3-zone pass.
Additional options for getting around the City are taxis as well as Uber and Lyft. Of course, if you’re traveling from Vancouver to Vancouver Island you can take the ferry which costs $17.50 as a foot passenger or $57.50 for a standard vehicle plus the passenger fare for each person in the vehicle. That’s approximately $130 one-way for a family of 4. If you want to get to Victoria or Nanaimo in a hurry, you also have the option of the sea-plane and Helijet. Helijet costs approximately $260 one-way. Harbour Air operates the sea-planes and they have 4 different pricing options based on your travel needs. Their tires are called goFast, goFlex, goLite, and goGold. Each has different luggage allowances so check their website for pricing options.
Now maybe you have to live further from the city and commute in so, for you, biking is out and you hate public transit. What is it going to cost in gas for your vehicle? According to GlobalPetrolPrices.com in Vancouver for the period between 08-Jun-2020 to 14-Sep-2020. The average value for Vancouver during that period was $1.45 with a minimum of $1.40 on 08-Jun-2020 and a maximum of $1.47 on 06-Jul-2020. For comparison, the average price of gasoline in the world for this period is $1.64 Canadian Dollars. At the time of making this video, the average gas prices around the city are about $1.20.
Now, what if you’re a family in need of childcare? Childcare costs are expensive and the waitlists for daycare facilities can be long so, if you know you’re going to need a spot, get on the list in the area you’re living as soon as possible. The average monthly cost for full-day, private childcare is approximately $1000 a month for children age 3-5 and $1,176 a month for children under 3 years of age. These prices are after the BC Childcare Fee Reduction Initiative.
Okay, so you’re living and working here in Vancouver and why do we work? So we can go out and enjoy the incredible food and restaurant scene here in Vancouver! Vancouver is known for its food. We are most well known for our salmon and local seafood but we also have incredibly diverse and world-class restaurants. Don’t know what you’re in the mood to eat? simply pick a culinary ethnicity and Vancouver will be able to satisfy you. The beer and spirits scene in Vancouver is equally as amazing. We have tons of microbreweries and distilleries in the city cranking out award-winning spirits. So the average price for two people at a mid-range restaurant here in the city is around $75-$80 and for a high-end place, you’re probably looking at $150 to $200.
Of course, most of us can’t afford to ear out all the time so you're going to be getting groceries from places like The Real Canadian Superstore, No Frills, Safeway, Thrifty’s, Loblaws and if you’re a true Vancouverite, Whole Foods or Urban Fare. Those are definitely on the pricier side for sure. Your weekly grocery bill is probably going to be around $200 - $300 depending on the size of your family.
The most important thing to consider about living here in Vancouver is what kind of lifestyle your budget will allow. If having a smaller amount of square footage and a higher price tag for a home is the trade-off for you being right in the heart of the city so you can walk everywhere, hang out at English Bay, enjoy Stanley Park, and cruise Yaletown, that’s for you to decide. But there are many areas just outside of the city which can provide what you’re looking for as well. You have North & West Vancouver, Burnaby, Richmond, Coquitlam, Port Moody, New Westminster, White Rock, and Tsawwassen. There are also terrific areas further east such as Langley, Pitt Meadows, Maple Ridge, Mission, and Chilliwack.
I know there are going to be people who watch this video and do nothing but complain about this city in the comments. There are always going to be pros and cons to living in any city and only you can decide what’s going to be right for you and make you happy. Life is too short to be miserable and complaining all the time so, if living on a farm or acreage in one of the Prairie provinces does it for you, then right on. If it’s a larger city like Toronto, Montreal, or, perhaps a home in the Maritimes then go for it. Find what’s right for you.
I’m a local real estate agent here so if you have questions or you’re thinking of moving to Vancouver, BC or your job has you relocating here, give me a call. Reach out to me any way you like, with a text, phone call, or email. I’m here to help you figure out your ideal place to live. I know Vancouver and it’s surrounding areas incredibly well. I’ve lived here for over 40 years and would love to help you find a home here as well.
Hey, everyone, I’m Craig Veroni with RE/MAX Masters Realty. I’m your local real estate agent here in Vancouver, BC. I shoot a ton of videos about what it’s like to live, love, and own here in Vancouver so, if you haven’t yet, please hit that subscribe button and don’t forget to click on the bell so you can be notified immediately when I have a new video out.
This video is all about what it costs to live in Vancouver in 2020. I’m going to cover everything from renting, buying a home, gas, groceries, and a ton of other things. So, let’s get into it.
I’m going to get this out of the way right now. It’s expensive to live in this city! And, housing prices and rent are what make it so much more expensive to live here compared to other cities in Canada. Vancouver was the most expensive city in Canada to live in last year with Toronto a close second but in 2020 the cost of rent in Vancouver is 3.05% lower than Toronto. Our overall cost of living in Vancouver is also 1.26% lower than Toronto at the moment.
The average detached home price in Canada as of August 2020 is $586,149 an 18.5% increase from August 2019. The average price of a home in Greater Vancouver, as of August 2020 is approximately $1,038,700. A 5.3% increase from August of 2019. In downtown Vancouver, the average cost of a condo is $814,800 as of August 2020. In august of 2019, it was $730,000.
I just shot a terrific video about where to live in Vancouver and I cover the 7 major cities that make up Metro Vancouver. In that video, I go over the average cost of attached and detached homes for all those areas so I won’t go into that in this video. You can come back and check out that video here.
As expensive as Vancouver is to live in, we actually rank 146th out of 541 cities in the world, according to Numbeo. In 2019 we ranked 131st overall.
We know how expensive buying a home in Vancouver is but what about renting? Well, the news isn’t much better. Vancouver is a beautiful city and people want to live here so, the rental market is very tight which naturally pushes up rental costs. Even during the pandemic when some thought rental prices may go down, they haven’t.
Right now, according to Numbeo, the average cost for a 1 bedroom apartment in the City Centre is 2 thousand and 60 dollars a month. ($2,060.07) That’s up about $40 from last year. Outside of the City centre, it drops a little bit to $1588.81. That’s only up $2 over last year.
If you’re a family requiring a home with 3 bedrooms or more and you want to live in the city center it will cost you $3,665.70 per month in rent. Outside of the City centre, the average cost of rent will be $2,794.74 a month. That’s up almost $95 over last year.
If you are moving to Vancouver make sure you plan carefully. Crunch those numbers to see whether you can afford to buy or have to rent a home here. I have a great mortgage payment calculator on my website to help you. The link is in the description below. I also work with some of the best mortgage brokers in the city, if you need a recommendation.
In case you were wondering how Vancouver compares with Seattle or Toronto, here’s a comparison.
Now that we’ve got you into a home, whether you’re buying or renting it, let’s talk about the average monthly costs for all your utilities. Right now, if you’re renting a 2 -bedroom home, it will cost you between $120-$150. That’s for your heating electricity, and gas. Some places will include these utilities in your monthly rent costs which definitely helps. If you’re a homeowner you will have additional costs such as water and garbage pick-up which can add another $70 to your monthly bill. Of course, if you’re a homeowner of a strata property you will have the monthly strata fees as well which can be anywhere from $350 to $650 a month or more.
Those utility costs don’t cover things like internet, phone, or cable. So how much do those things cost? You can certainly get low-cost internet and mobile phone plans but the average cost for internet here in Vancouver is about $70 to $100 a month for an unlimited data plan. For a mobile phone, you’re looking at anywhere from $30 to $70 a month depending on the type of plan you need. I don’t get jealous of many of the things our American neighbours have, especially these days, but I would certainly take their lower mobile phone plan prices. For cable, you’re looking at about $30 a month for a basic cable package, which doesn’t get you very much, and it only goes up from there.
The two big providers here in Vancouver are Telus and Shaw and both companies will offer discounts when bundling services. For example, having your home, mobile, tv, and internet with Telus, for example, will cost you less than having those services individually. So, shop around as both companies are always offering deals to new customers.
Okay, so you’re living in your house, you’re paying your utilities, now how do you get to work? If you like biking, Vancouver has over 450 km of bike lanes in the city. That’s 279 miles for those who don’t think in kilometers. So it’s no wonder it’s the city’s fastest-growing travel method. Downtown at Denman & Georgia is a plethora of bike rental shops. We also have the Mobi bike-sharing stations throughout the city.
Now, you may not be into biking and that’s ok. We have a fantastic transit system in Vancouver. We have the iconic Sea Bus and Skytrain lines as well as regular buses. Our transit system is divided into 3 zones. Monthly passes to access all the transit systems are $98 for a 1-zone pass, $131 for a 2-zone pass, and, $171 for a 3-zone pass.
Additional options for getting around the City are taxis as well as Uber and Lyft. Of course, if you’re traveling from Vancouver to Vancouver Island you can take the ferry which costs $17.50 as a foot passenger or $57.50 for a standard vehicle plus the passenger fare for each person in the vehicle. That’s approximately $130 one-way for a family of 4. If you want to get to Victoria or Nanaimo in a hurry, you also have the option of the sea-plane and Helijet. Helijet costs approximately $260 one-way. Harbour Air operates the sea-planes and they have 4 different pricing options based on your travel needs. Their tires are called goFast, goFlex, goLite, and goGold. Each has different luggage allowances so check their website for pricing options.
Now maybe you have to live further from the city and commute in so, for you, biking is out and you hate public transit. What is it going to cost in gas for your vehicle? According to GlobalPetrolPrices.com in Vancouver for the period between 08-Jun-2020 to 14-Sep-2020. The average value for Vancouver during that period was $1.45 with a minimum of $1.40 on 08-Jun-2020 and a maximum of $1.47 on 06-Jul-2020. For comparison, the average price of gasoline in the world for this period is $1.64 Canadian Dollars. At the time of making this video, the average gas prices around the city are about $1.20.
Now, what if you’re a family in need of childcare? Childcare costs are expensive and the waitlists for daycare facilities can be long so, if you know you’re going to need a spot, get on the list in the area you’re living as soon as possible. The average monthly cost for full-day, private childcare is approximately $1000 a month for children age 3-5 and $1,176 a month for children under 3 years of age. These prices are after the BC Childcare Fee Reduction Initiative.
Okay, so you’re living and working here in Vancouver and why do we work? So we can go out and enjoy the incredible food and restaurant scene here in Vancouver! Vancouver is known for its food. We are most well known for our salmon and local seafood but we also have incredibly diverse and world-class restaurants. Don’t know what you’re in the mood to eat? simply pick a culinary ethnicity and Vancouver will be able to satisfy you. The beer and spirits scene in Vancouver is equally as amazing. We have tons of microbreweries and distilleries in the city cranking out award-winning spirits. So the average price for two people at a mid-range restaurant here in the city is around $75-$80 and for a high-end place, you’re probably looking at $150 to $200.
Of course, most of us can’t afford to ear out all the time so you're going to be getting groceries from places like The Real Canadian Superstore, No Frills, Safeway, Thrifty’s, Loblaws and if you’re a true Vancouverite, Whole Foods or Urban Fare. Those are definitely on the pricier side for sure. Your weekly grocery bill is probably going to be around $200 - $300 depending on the size of your family.
The most important thing to consider about living here in Vancouver is what kind of lifestyle your budget will allow. If having a smaller amount of square footage and a higher price tag for a home is the trade-off for you being right in the heart of the city so you can walk everywhere, hang out at English Bay, enjoy Stanley Park, and cruise Yaletown, that’s for you to decide. But there are many areas just outside of the city which can provide what you’re looking for as well. You have North & West Vancouver, Burnaby, Richmond, Coquitlam, Port Moody, New Westminster, White Rock, and Tsawwassen. There are also terrific areas further east such as Langley, Pitt Meadows, Maple Ridge, Mission, and Chilliwack.
I know there are going to be people who watch this video and do nothing but complain about this city in the comments. There are always going to be pros and cons to living in any city and only you can decide what’s going to be right for you and make you happy. Life is too short to be miserable and complaining all the time so, if living on a farm or acreage in one of the Prairie provinces does it for you, then right on. If it’s a larger city like Toronto, Montreal, or, perhaps a home in the Maritimes then go for it. Find what’s right for you.
I’m a local real estate agent here so if you have questions or you’re thinking of moving to Vancouver, BC or your job has you relocating here, give me a call. Reach out to me any way you like, with a text, phone call, or email. I’m here to help you figure out your ideal place to live. I know Vancouver and it’s surrounding areas incredibly well. I’ve lived here for over 40 years and would love to help you find a home here as well.