The Okanagan is the 4th least affordable housing market in the country according to a new study.
Online real estate company, ZooCasa says the average Okanagan home price is $509,545 which is 18 times the median income of $28,900. Tanis Read, President of the Okanagan Mainline Real Estate Board, admits there are challenges to buying a home here, but questions whether the median income being used is correct. “The average income is based on people who earn wages in this area but we have a significant number of residents who work outside of this area so it definitely skews it, and we have a significant amount of retired people.”
It’s also worth noting that the median does not represent the average earnings. The median is calculated by finding the true middle salary with half the population on each side, versus the average which divides the total earnings by the total population.
Ex: If Jim earns 10 bucks, Tim earns 20 bucks and Slim earns 60 bucks
The Median is $20
The Average is $30
Read says these types of studies or statistics that paint a dire picture of the Okanagan housing market do little to deter buyers. “People that want to live here are still choosing to live here. They adjust the home they’re going to buy or how they’re going to live here. That’s what they choose to do, or they move a little further away from Kelowna just like you move a little further away from Vancouver.”
One positive she finds is that when these stories are publicized they gain attention for the affordable housing need in BC. “It brings it to the front and center of people’s minds…the people who put housing into place, as to, how can we put in more affordable housing and make it attractive to a lot more broader range of people?”
