Misleading statistics.

An Aug. 30, 2023, Times Colonist article, "UVic students talk housing shortage with federal NDP leader," misquoted CHMC's "Rental Market Report, January 2023 Edition."

The Times Colonist article quotes the CMHC report as declaring that "the average monthly rental for an apartment [is] almost $1,700" in Victoria. What the CMHC report actually said, on page 19, is "Average Two-Bedroom Rent $1,699 UP by 6.7%" in Victoria.

Looking more closely to ascertain how CMHC arrived at this ridiculously low figure, the report states on page 20:

The average rent for purpose-built rental apartments [in Victoria] increased by 7.7% in 2022, the fastest growth since 1991. This was driven by strong rent increases in units that were turned over to new tenants. As an example, a turnover 2-bedroom apartment was rented at a 33% higher rent, on average, than an occupied unit in the same building.

For Canada as a whole, the CMHC report states, under "Highlights" on page 6, that for "units that turned over to a new tenant" rent increased 18.2% and "average rent growth for units without turnover" was 2.8%.

Combining these percentages in some manner, the report arrived on page 5 at its headline conclusion for Canada as a whole: "Average Two-Bedroom Rent $1,258 UP by 5.6%"

Aside from the Times Colonist stating that the CMHC report concluded that in Victoria the average monthly rental for "an apartment" – not a two-bedroom apartment as the report declared – was "almost $1,700," it should be obvious to the most casual of observers that this CMHC report is entirely irrelevant to the plight of UVIC students looking for an apartment.

What do they care how much rent long-term tenants are paying for their apartments? A person looking for housing cares about accommodations that are vacant and how much rent the holders of those properties are demanding.

For useful statistics that actually address the ruthless predation that characterizes housing provision in Victoria and across BC – absent misrepresentation like CMHC so obviously worked into their abominable Jan. 23 report – I invite you to peruse this website (https://radiobill.ca) and welcome any conversation you wish to initiate with me about content I have posted here.