Kelowna vacancy rates improve but rents also go up

KELOWNA – The annual report on vacancy rates in Kelowna shows that the 0.2 per cent rate recorded in 2017 has jumped to 1.9 per cent.

That’s still well within the cut-off of three per cent that the City of Kelowna set for new purpose-built rental housing to qualify for a 10-year tax exemption, a tool that has been used to trigger construction of hundreds of rental housing complexes in the last year.

The report from Canada Mortgage and Housing Corporation (CMHC) says the rental supply grew by 499 units between October 2017 and October 2018 for the Kelowna market area (basically the Central Okanagan).

Despite the increase in the vacancy rate, the average rent for a two-bedroom apartment also went up, to $1,267 per month from $1,151 in 2017.

CMHC cites a growing demand for rental housing and a growing population as factors that influence rental rates.

Kelowna went from the lowest vacancy rate in the country last year to being above the B.C. average of 1.4 per cent this year. The average rent in B.C. is $1,387.

To contact a reporter for this story, email Rob Munro or call 250-808-0143 or email the editor. You can also submit photos, videos or news tips to the newsroom and be entered to win a monthly prize draw.

We welcome your comments and opinions on our stories but play nice. We won't censor or delete comments unless they contain off-topic statements or links, unnecessary vulgarity, false facts, spam or obviously fake profiles. If you have any concerns about what you see in comments, email the editor in the link above.