#DontHave1Million vs 5 Kids 1 Condo: re-thinking housing in Vancouver
Adrian Crook says he'd rather rent and raise his 5 kids downtown than own a house in the suburbs
Adrian Crook lives with his five children and his partner in a rented 1,000 square foot condo in Vancouver's Yaletown neighbourhood — and he wouldn't have it any other way.
"I've done the home ownership thing. I've had a million dollar house up in North Vancouver years past and it's just more than I need and more than I want," he told The Early Edition's Rick Cluff.
"You don't use a house for kids and living — you use it for filling with stuff."
Crook is speaking on a panel discussion at SFU this afternoon about housing expectations in Vancouver, but not all of his fellow panelists are ready to let go of the idea of someday owning a home.
"I don't know what [Crook] plans to do when his kids are teenagers," said Eveline Xia, who started the hashtag #DontHave1Million to call attention to the lack of affordability in Vancouver's housing market.
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"A lot of us have more modest expectations than what you might perceive. We want enough space to raise two kids and probably within the realm of the city so we can get to work within a reasonable amount of time," she said.
"That probably entails at least $500,000 for a two-bedroom condo or $900,000 for a townhouse and all under 1,000 square feet."
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Xia sees the link between the lack of affordability and young people leaving Vancouver — and said if things don't change, one day she may be among them.
"I keep joking that I'm going to go to the island and start an organic farm," she said.
As for Crook, he feels renting downtown is the lifestyle for him.
"If it's important to you to drive an hour back and forth to drive to your job every day and to be stuck out in the suburbs every day without having access to the cultural centre of the city and not being able to show your kids that, then by all means, pursue that. I've chosen differently."
To hear the full conversation with Adrian Crook and Eveline Xia, listen to the audio labelled: Need a million to own a home?