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Vancouver and B.C. have been gripped by a housing affordability crisis that has deprived an entire generation of the ability to rent or own housing that fits their needs. Working people are seeing their discretionary income plummet due to rising real estate prices, which dwarf rising wages or savings on lower taxes and cheaper consumer goods.

While politicians of all stripes recognize the crisis cannot be ignored, they also understand that attempts to lower the value of real estate risk collapsing a key economic driver of the province and erasing the home equity that many owners now depend on to retire or sustain their existing debt.

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The crisis extends to business owners who struggle to cope with massive rental increases that threaten their margins and create a wider and more dramatic gap between the wages of their workforce and the patrons they serve.

Everyday, we talk to union members — with secure employment and regular negotiated wage increases — who are finding it increasingly difficult to afford life in Metro Vancouver. Workers are struggling to find housing for their families, leading many to move further away from work and others to leave the province altogether. B.C. is losing productivity and experienced workers.