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The study found that the proportion of calls regarding evictions made to TRAC has increased from 19 per cent in 2010 to 26 per cent in 2016.

Residential Tenancy Branch data from 2006 to 2017 showed that Maple Ridge has the region’s highest number of eviction-related disputes per renter households, with an average of 66 disputes per 1,000 renter households. The Metro average is 32.

Surrey was next with 53, followed by Port Coquitlam at 49.

Photo by SFU

“It does speak to the suburbanization of poverty that academics and policy-makers have talked about,” said Blomley, adding that not only are people getting priced out of Vancouver, they’re also struggling in the suburbs.

A recent study by Yan, director of SFU’s City Program, showed how the “million-dollar line” — homes assessed at $1 million or higher — has spread eastward into the suburbs. This new study “is potentially a manifestation of that, but in the rental sector,” said Blomley.

The RTB data breaks down eviction-related disputes into three categories: landlord use, unpaid rent, or cause.

At five per cent, Vancouver has the highest proportion of disputes regarding landlord use, a broad term that covers renovictions, demovictions, or a landlord selling the unit, followed by Richmond at 4.3 per cent and North Vancouver at four per cent.