Whitehorse residents paint picture of what dismal rental market looks like

Whitehorse renters say it's a struggle to find affordable housing in Yukon's largest city.

"It is incredibly difficult to find somewhere to rent anywhere [in] Whitehorse with anything someone could feasibly make off of our minimum wage," said Whitehorse renter Fox Gilberds.

"It's not feasible for anyone who's trying to, for example, move out of their house for the first time." 

The city's population grew by 23 per cent between 2008 and 2018, but from renters' perspectives, available affordable housing hasn't kept pace with rising demand. Residents are frustrated with prices and the dearth of choices in the rental market. 

The minimum wage in Yukon is $12.71. Most landlords expect new tenants to pay a damage deposit equivalent to one month's rent, plus first month's rent. 

The Yukon Anti-Poverty Coalition states that the average Whitehorse family spends 30.4 per cent of its before-tax household income on housing. Housing is considered affordable when it costs less than 30 per cent of a household income, according to the Canadian Mortgage and Housing Corporation (CMHC).

"Businesses are struggling because they can't get people to move to the Yukon to work because there isn't a sufficient place to live," said Whitehorse city councillor Laura Cabott at a council meeting on July 15.

CBC reported earlier this month that the owner of the two McDonald's restaurants in Whitehorse has begun offering to subsidize rents for employees recruited in Canada.

What's out there

According to the Yukon Bureau of Statistics, the median price for renting in Whitehorse is $1,050 a month. Rent for a one-bedroom apartment or condo can range from $950 to $1,600. 

"It takes a bit of looking but [places to rent] are out there. I would say they're not exactly cheap though," said Petrus Lommerse, another renter in Whitehorse.

Lommerse said he and his partner are lucky compared to a lot of people: they knew someone building a house with a suite in it who offered to rent it to them. 

"I think it's extremely competitive," said Melina Sheldon, a renter who moved to Teslin because housing was unaffordable in Whitehorse. 

"I've been finding [places to live] either through word of mouth, friend of a friend, or knowing somebody who's leaving a unit," she said. 

"It's kind of all about who you know." 

Sheldon moved to Whitehorse from Vancouver, where she was living in her own bachelor apartment.

"I don't even think there are a lot of bachelors that even exist here. And then one-bedroom apartments are kind of atrociously priced, so the affordability of having a one-bedroom on your own isn't very realistic."

According to an April 2019 rental survey by the Yukon Bureau of Statistics, there were 75 vacant units in Whitehorse out of a total of 2,332 rental units.

Plans to increase affordable housing stock

The city of Whitehorse is expanding Whistle Bend, its newest subdivision, and earlier this year the Yukon government announced plans to build a mixed-income housing development downtown with 48 units.

Whitehorse's 2018 Downtown Plan says options for all housing types are needed downtown, but some residents have pushed back against increasing population density in the city's core. 

Whitehorse renter Patrick Bradley says he got lucky when he found his rental. He said the main reason he's in his current apartment is that he was first to respond to an offer from the landlord. 

"I think they said they had over 100 people that they were picking from," said Bradley. "So had I not responded in time, it wouldn't have worked out so well for me."