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Every time a new rental housing development goes up in Vancouver or New Westminster, another comes down in Burnaby, making it increasingly harder for people to find an affordable place to live, says the head of the B.C. Non-Profit Housing Association.

Kishone Roy says allowing the market to dictate development has led to a disparity of housing across the region, with a high-end studio or one-bedroom condominiums springing up after the demolition of once-affordable rental apartments.

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And while some cities, like Vancouver, demand a one-for-one replacement of rental units, this isn’t the case across Metro Vancouver, particularly in Burnaby, where older rental apartment buildings are being demolished in areas like Metrotown, and along the new Evergreen Line in the Tri-Cities.

Some 500 rental units, he said, have been lost in the past five years.

“It’s a mess. My heart goes out to renters in that area who don’t feel they can have the security of tenure. This is going to hurt families,” Roy said of the situation in Burnaby. “Everything that goes up can’t be a studio or one bedroom for high-end market rentals. We’re going to have to ask the government to intervene so we can build more diverse developments.”