By Cody Wolfe, PAN Contributor
According to censuses made between 2019 and 2022, the homeless population in Nanaimo grew from 893 to 1206 respectively: a 35% increase, whereas the total population increased by about 10% in roughly that same span of time, growing from an estimated 90,504 to 99,863. However you slice it, the increase in homelessness appears to outpace the city’s growth. This points to deepening social and economic challenges. While Nanaimo’s homelessness is growing, it’s part of a larger trend seen across Canada, where housing affordability is a major contributing factor.
The cost of living has increased substantially in the past decade. Canada’s housing market is among the most unaffordable in the OECD (Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development, an intergovernmental organization which includes most of the western world). We have the second highest house-price-to-income ratio among OECD member states, higher than the USA, UK, and Australia. Housing prices soared over 355% between 2000 and 2021, while median nominal income increased by 113%. In the fall of 2022, nearly half of surveyed Canadians were concerned about their household’s ability to afford housing or rent, with younger age groups particularly affected. Unsurprisingly, a leading cause of homelessness is financial issues, with 41.8% of those surveyed citing that as their primary reason for having been/being homeless. Relationship issues are the second leading factor cited by those who’ve experienced homelessness, with women being disproportionately affected. Mental health issues also rank among the leading causes.
In Greater Vancouver, the homeless population grew from 11,413 in 2019 to 12,155 in 2022.
In 2010, the population was counted at 1,715. Homelessness grew at a rate of 5% a year between 2005 and 2008, and then at a reduced rate of 4% a year between 2008 and 2010. This is still, however, roughly twice the rate of growth of the overall population.
According to the Canadian Observatory on Homelessness, an estimated 235,000 people experience some type of homelessness per year in Canada, though, bear in mind that this estimate was calculated in 2014, and some, including Cheryl Forchuk of the Lawson Health Research Institute, believe the true number is higher due to inaccuracies and redundancies in the gathering of data.
The rising rates of homelessness in Nanaimo and Greater Vancouver highlight a need for meaningful government intervention to address the growing crisis. Without this, more and more individuals and communities at large will become vulnerable.
Sources:
Annual Estimates of the Homeless Population in BC
https://open.canada.ca/data/en/dataset/fbb1584f-7f93-47e7-8001-16e3087bddea
Population Data
https://www45.statcan.gc.ca/2007/cgco_2007_001-eng.htm#t01
Canada’s Population Estimates, 2014
https://www150.statcan.gc.ca/n1/daily-quotidien/140926/dq140926b-eng.htm
A Review of Canadian Homelessness Data, 2023
https://www150.statcan.gc.ca/n1/pub/75f0002m/75f0002m2023004-eng.htm
Reference to Cheryl Forchuk
https://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/london/canada-homeless-population-research-1.6676292
Vancouver Homeless Count 2010
https://vancouver.ca/files/cov/HSG-Homeless-Count-2010-Report.pdf
OECD.org
https://www.oecd.org/en/data/indicators/housing-prices.html?oecdcontrol-82d381eddd-var3=2024-Q1&oecdcontrol-82d381eddd-var5=Q&oecdcontrol-a81da07b0e-var6=HPI_YDH
Homelessness: How Does it Happen?
https://www.statcan.gc.ca/o1/en/plus/5170-homelessness-how-does-it-happen
House-Price-to-Income Ratios Reference
https://www.statista.com/statistics/237529/price-to-income-ratio-of-housing-worldwide/
Family and Intimate Partner Violence
https://www150.statcan.gc.ca/n1/daily-quotidien/221019/dq221019c-eng.htm
Canadians Concerned About Unable to Afford Rent/Housing Reference
https://www150.statcan.gc.ca/n1/daily-quotidien/230213/dq230213b-eng.htm
Poverty Advocacy Nanaimo 