Immigration Accommodation in Vancouver Canada
As a new immigrant arriving in Vancouver one of the first tasks is to find short term and long-term accommodation in Vancouver for you and your family.
Your first accommodation on arriving in Vancouver may be temporary. This is ok, and is the route that most new migration arrivals in Vancouver take. Some individuals opt of a good hostel or Serviced Accommodation in Vancouver, while some are lucky enough to be able to stay with family or friends in the area. Most new arrivals take a short-term rental while they look for something long term. As with any city, it’s always easier to find someplace new to live once you are already there and Vancouver is no different.
Accommodation for newcomers in Vancouver Canada guide
You’ve been through the stress and emotional roller coaster involved with securing a visa for Canada and you’ve chosen Vancouver as your destination. It’s a charming place with plenty or heritage. Vancouver is well known to be extremely welcoming to new migrants.
Here is some background on Vancouver for new immigration arrivals.
Vancouver ( van-KOO-vər) is a major city in western Canada, located in the Lower Mainland region of British Columbia. As the most populous city in the province, the 2016 census recorded 631,486 people in the city, up from 603,502 in 2011. The Greater Vancouver area had a population of 2,463,431 in 2016, making it the third-largest metropolitan area in Canada. Vancouver has the highest population density in Canada, with over 5,400 people per square kilometre. Vancouver is one of the most ethnically and linguistically diverse cities in Canada: 52 percent of its residents are not native English speakers, 48.9 percent are native speakers of neither English nor French, and 50.6 percent of residents belong to visible minority groups.
Vancouver is consistently named as one of the top five worldwide cities for livability and quality of life, and the Economist Intelligence Unit acknowledged it as the first city ranked among the top ten of the world’s most well-living cities for ten consecutive years. However, Vancouver also ranks as the most expensive city to live in Canada and as the fourth-most expensive housing market globally. In 2011, the city planned to become the greenest city in the world by 2020. Vancouverism is the city’s urban planning design philosophy.
Indigenous settlement of Vancouver began an estimated 8,000 to 10,000 years ago, and the city is on the traditional and unceded territories of the Squamish, Musqueam, and Tsleil-Waututh (Burrard) peoples. The beginnings of the modern city, which was originally named Gastown, grew around the site of a makeshift tavern on the western edges of Hastings Mill that was built on July 1, 1867, and owned by proprietor Gassy Jack. The original site is marked by the Gastown steam clock. Gastown then formally registered as a townsite dubbed Granville, Burrard Inlet. The city was renamed “Vancouver” in 1886, through a deal with the Canadian Pacific Railway (CPR). The Canadian Pacific transcontinental railway was extended to the city by 1887. The city’s large natural seaport on the Pacific Ocean became a vital link in the trade between Asia-Pacific, East Asia, Europe, and Eastern Canada.
Vancouver has hosted many international conferences and events, including the 1954 Commonwealth Games, UN Habitat I, Expo 86, APEC Canada 1997, the World Police and Fire Games in 1989 and 2009; several matches of 2015 FIFA Women’s World Cup including the finals at BC Place in Downtown Vancouver, and the 2010 Winter Olympics and Paralympics which were held in Vancouver and Whistler, a resort community 125 km (78 mi) north of the city. In 1969, Greenpeace was founded in Vancouver. The city became the permanent home to TED conferences in 2014.
As of 2016, Port Metro Vancouver is the fourth-largest port by tonnage in the Americas, the busiest and largest in Canada, and the most diversified port in North America. While forestry remains its largest industry, Vancouver is well known as an urban centre surrounded by nature, making tourism its second-largest industry. Major film production studios in Vancouver and nearby Burnaby have turned Greater Vancouver and nearby areas into one of the largest film production centres in North America, earning it the nickname “Hollywood North”.
Finding Immigration Accommodation for Newcomers in Vancouver Canada
Most searches begin with a search engine. Local papers in Vancouver may well be online and of course, listing sites such as Craigslist and Rentfaster Vancouver can be of great help.
What is the cost of short term accommodation in Vancouver
The cost of short-term newcomer accommodation in Vancouver varies greatly depending on requirements and neighborhoods. Lots of new arrivals to Vancouver use Airbnb to give them an indication of short term rental process in Vancouver and also the option to book with confidence and security.
Another website that offers the same accommodation as Airbnb.
Rental accommodation in Vancouver for newcomers
One you decide to rent an apartment or house there are certain things specific to Canada to keep in mind. For example, make sure to agree who pays for utilities, and who is responsible for removing snow!
Property owners and landlords will usually require payslips or proof of income, bank statements and occasionally they may require references from previous landlords although lots of new immigrants to Vancouver were homeowners in their previous country. Sometimes it does help to already have secured employment in the greater Vancouver area.
All renters in Vancouver have rights, so you need to familiarize yourself with those rights before you sign any agreement. Thankfully there are a number of Organizations set up in Vancouver to help. These are called Newcomer services and a list of these can be found here: newcomer service
Newcomer subletting in Vancouver Canada
Sometimes when a renter leaves for a few months they will sublet their accommodation. Quite often they leave some furnishings behind and for some newcomers to Vancouver this can be an ideal option, especially if you’ve yet to buy furniture or if your shipment is delayed.