I’m seeing a lot of “help wanted” signs posted in businesses around Squamish.
The sushi restaurant beside The Chief office closed down for the day because the owners couldn’t find help, and a nearby coffee shop sometimes opens late due to lack of employees.
To make the situation worse, this labour shortage is occurring in the middle of the summer tourist season and must be incredibly frustrating for business owners.
As soon as I see another sign going up, I immediately think – where would any new employee live?
The rental market is extremely competitive in Squamish. It’s difficult to find a place and prices are at an all-time high.
The market is worse than in North Vancouver, the community I lived in previously and where I once thought was hard to find an apartment.
When I first moved here, I scoured a handful of Facebook pages dedicated to finding a place to live, such as “Squamish Housing for Rent/Buy/Sell” and “Squamish Rental Housing for Locals” where landlords post their suites and tenants post in-search-of inquiries.
I quickly contacted around 15 landlords as soon as a listing in my budget was posted, but was only offered one suite. It’s on the bottom floor of a house and, the day after I got the keys, a for sale sign was put up in the front yard.
Based on the numerous Facebook comments I see and the past articles The Chief has written on this very topic, I know I’m not the only person who has faced this ruthless market.
This begs the question, where are all these employees Squamish desperately needs supposed to live?
Many of these jobs offer entry-level pay, making it even more difficult to find a place because the cheaper rentals are grabbed up much faster.
There is the district-led Housing Task Force which has an aim to provide affordable housing but, so far, the problem still persists.
More and more people are moving to Squamish, often in an attempt to escape skyrocketing housing prices in the Lower Mainland – and this is contributing to the competitive rental market.
Airbnb, a website where homeowners can rent out a suite in their house to tourists for short time periods, has been blamed for taking up the rental stock.
The finger has also been pointed at foreign buyers for increasing housing costs in Squamish and, more so, in Metro Vancouver which, in turn, is said to increase the cost of rent. Homeowners need to pay off their mortgages, after all.
Whatever the reason, I hope we can find a solution – if there is one – or else more businesses in Squamish will be left without enough employees.
