the state of canadian accommodation is not strong

[amw]

One of the things i find most detestable about both the US and Canada is that in countries with SO FUCKING MUCH empty space, accommodation is SO FUCKING EXPENSIVE. It's disgraceful. I have been desperately looking around for some way to live for cheap now that i am back in BC without a friend to couchsurf at, and it just doesn't exist

Comments

[geminiwench]

This may seem like a non-sequitor.... but

[coercedbynutmeg]

Tomorrow is Canada Day, so if you're hoping the bureaucracy will be working, guess again.

Where are all the rooming houses we read about in classic literature? I suppose they're illegal for one reason or another.

I don't know about Canada, but in the US you also have to provide a physical address in addition to a PO Box for pretty much all banking transactions. I think it's ostensibly for anti-terror/Patriot act/anti-money laundering purposes. But like, there should be a common-sense exception if you're literally standing in a bank branch asking for a new card to be made. Hell, they could send the new card to the bank and you could pick it up in person, assuming they don't have in-house production capability. This is ridiculous.

[amw]

Yeah, the anti money laundering thing is a big deal in Canada too. It's only gotten worse with things like requiring two-factor authentication for everything... which of course is a big pain in the ass when you are traveling and your SIM card doesn't roam in the country you are in, or even when you aren't traveling and you lost your phone

[coercedbynutmeg]

I happened to think of another issue in the US, but not sure if it's a thing in Canada. In the US, a lot of the low-budget hotels, particularly in seasonal areas, enter into contracts with the .gov to house immigrants/asylum seekers or sometimes guest workers, so that greatly reduces the number of $45-a-night spots that are available. This also happens with FEMA in the aftermath of certain natural disasters like tornadoes or hurricanes. It's probably preferable to get $50 a night guaranteed from the .gov than to risk empty rooms, for example, particularly for basic, low-end accommodation.

[amw]

That might have an impact, but if there are still other people beyond those sponsored by the government who need a $45 room, then the problem is still a lack of supply. It doesn't really matter whether it's the government or individuals paying the bill - either way there aren't enough rooms available at that price for the demand. And that goes for long-term accommodation as well as short-term accommodation. Housing is just extremely unaffordable here right now.

Here's the best statistic i found in a quick search to show the problem: https://data.oecd.org/price/housing-prices.htm If you show price-to-income ratio, Canada is amongst the most expensive countries in the OECD (only Portugal, Luxembourg and New Zealand above it).

[anais_pf]

Oh my. What a lot of nonsense you are having to put up with. Expensive nonsense, too. Ugh. You have my utmost sympathy.

[annaserene]

That sounds like a huge headache. I hope the process manages to go a bit more smoothly from now on.