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Anyone paying rent in Kelowna is probably aware, the rates are high.
But the speed it's been rising may come as a bit of a shock.
In its most recent Zumper Canadian Rent Report finds rent for a one-bedroom apartment in Kelowna has risen 7.3% year to year to $1,610 (median).
Two-bedroom apartments are up an astonishing 24.6% to $2,180.
It brings rent in Kelowna to just slightly higher than Victoria and makes it the third priciest city in the country in which to rent a two-bedroom unit behind only Vancouver and Toronto.
When we asked students at Okanagan College about rental rates we were given words like 'absurd' to describe the cost of housing.
Many find a way to make it affordable by sharing accommodation with multiple roommates.
"The best I could find was $900 a month," said one student, at the KLO Road campus, "and that's living with four other roommates."
Those who can, are choosing to stay with their parents.
"I'd want to move out if I could, but I can't. It's too expensive", said one student. "It's expensive enough as it is," said another, "so just staying at home is nice."
Kelowna is a desirable place to live, so the price of rent is driven by the demand, and to some extent, it's tied to the price of real estate, and those numbers are also shooting skyward.
In August, the benchmark selling prices of a typical condominium in Kelowna was a record-high $478,300, a 23% hike over last year.
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