Since moving to Vancouver, Cunningham has lived in two basements, one without windows or a closet, and another without a kitchen or laundry. Another apartment had spiders.
“I’ve definitely felt discriminated against. There’s this stereotype that young people, especially students, love to party and can create a mess,” she/they said.
Now looking for another new place, Cunningham is waitering at two jobs six days a week and is still finding it hard to save money, especially with student debt looming.
“I’m trying to look very carefully, plan my next move and hope that it won’t ruin me financially,” she/they said. “I’m hoping that I’ll get to stay in the city that I love and that I don’t get priced out.”
2:01 Sticker Shock: Coping with the rising cost of inflation in Canada
Sticker Shock: Coping with the rising cost of inflation in Canada – May 12, 2022
Young people in Canada aged 15 to 29 have been the hardest hit by the pandemic and are most likely to work in the service industry, run up an average deficit of $750 a month living in cities, as found in a report, presented by RBC Future Launch. This is how much on average young residents are losing living in Canadian cities each month.
And, their salaries aren’t keeping up with the cost of living. Even when young people aren’t employed full-time, two-thirds of Canadian cities are still unaffordable, the index found.
“Affordability shouldn’t only be about the basic necessities for survival,” says Claire Patterson with Youthful Cities. “Affordability should also include the ability to pay for those things that contribute to the vibrancy of a person’s life when they are able to move forward and meet those key milestones we view as signs of success. In today’s Canadian cities opportunities to thrive simply aren’t equally accessible to all young people.”
Realtors like Kelly Caldwell in Guelph, ON, have seen how hard it is for young people to live in Canadian cities.
“There’s a few ways in which it’s hard,” she told Global News. “I think the first is just the inventory. It always seems like we have a shortage of good rental properties.”
“I don’t know a lot of cities off hand where there’s an abundance of rentals. It’s quite the opposite,” Caldwell added.
“The actual cost of rent has skyrocketed,” said Caldwell. “Especially for young people, if they’re even thinking about home ownership or trying to save for a down payment, it seems pretty out of reach.”
Nancy Worth, associate geography professor at the University of Waterloo, has seen the same challenges in Canadian cities.
“I’m hearing it from lots of different young people, mostly how much it is but also the lack of stock,” Worth told Global News.
In cities like Halifax, Nova Scotia, young people rack up an average deficit of just over $1,290 a month. In Toronto, the average deficit sits at $1,121 a month.
Meanwhile in Quebec City, the average deficit is way lower at $314.50 a month.
Experts like Caldwell warn young people is to properly pitch yourself as a tenant when applying to live somewhere.
“You’ve got to sell yourself to stand above the crowd because plenty of people won’t,” she said. “Plenty of people will just throw in an application.”
LAVAL, Que. – Alimentation Couche-Tard Inc.’s incoming CEO says the company is “confident” it can close on a blockbuster bid to take over 7-Eleven-owner Seven & i Holdings Co. Ltd.
Alex Miller, who is currently the Laval, Que.-based convenience store chain’s president, says he believes the company has what it takes to not just finance the offer but also complete an acquisition.
Couche-Tard revealed in mid-August that it had made a friendly, non-binding bid to acquire all outstanding shares in Seven & i.
On top of global convenience store chain 7-Eleven, Japan-based Seven & i owns supermarkets, food producers, household goods retailers and financial services companies.
Analysts have cast doubt on whether the two companies can reach a deal because they believe satisfying Japanese regulators will be onerous and could force Couche-Tard to let go of some of its assets.
Miller’s remarks came on a call with analysts that was meant to delve into the company’s second-quarter net earnings attributable to shareholders, which reached US$790.80. That total was down from US$834.1 million in the same quarter last year.
This report by The Canadian Press was first published Sept. 5, 2024.
TORONTO – Birch Hill Equity Partners says it has signed a deal with McKesson Corp. to buy Rexall Pharmacy Group and online retailer Well.ca.
Financial terms of the agreement were not immediately available.
Rexall operates 385 pharmacies across Canada and employs about 8,000 people.
Well.ca offers more than 40,000 health and wellness products online.
Birch Hill says it’s committed to maintaining and investing in reliable, accessible health care services to expand Rexall’s network of pharmacies across Canada.
The private equity firm says McKesson will remain Rexall and Well.ca‘s wholesale distribution supplier, ensuring a smooth transition for the business.
This report by The Canadian Press was first published Sept. 5, 2024.
