Future of housing rentals in Kelowna looking up, report says

Renting in Kelowna can be a formidable task and really bring meaning to the “sunshine tax” in the Okanagan, but a recent report says that finding a suitable home to rent in Kelowna won’t be so difficult in two years’ time.

Canada is seeing a slow price increase across the board, with 1.8 per cent increase from $1,854 in January to $1,888 in February.

According to the Rentals.ca and Bullpen Research & Consulting March National Rent Report, Kelowna property rentals were rated as the ninth most expensive in Canada, weighing in just below Oshawa, ON, and slightly above Calgary, AB.

In Kelowna, it costs an average of $1,299 to rent a one-bedroom unit and $1,574 for a two-bedroom.

However, finding a suitable rental property in Kelowna is projected to get a little easier in just a couple of years.

Kelowna is seeing an increase in apartment buildings being constructed around the city that should satisfy increasing demand, says Rentals.ca.

Additionally, Kelowna City Council’s decision to add restrictions to short-term rentals, made earlier this month, is expected to open up more units for long-term renters.

An estimated 700-800 units could be transitioned to house long-term renters, Ryan Smith, Kelowna Community Planning Manager, told Rentals.ca, but due to the “seasonality” of tourism in Kelowna, it is difficult to predict.

Taylor Pardy, senior analyst for the Canada Mortgage Housing and Corporation, said that the low vacancy rates for rentals in Kelowna (1.9%) should increase in the next two years due to an increase in “the volume of apartment rental units currently under construction.”

He looked to the completed and ongoing apartment projects in South Kelowna, Gellatly, North Glenmore, Glenmore, downtown and University district as key components in fulfilling demand.

With higher home prices and mortgage rates maintaining a steady flow of renters in the market, combined with the draw of millennials and seniors to the Okanagan, Pardy predicts Kelowna’s rental population will only grow, but expects supply to “outpace demand over the next two years.”