I don't understand why everybody keeps talking about the "average home price" and comparing it to salaries. Homes in good neighborhoods in Vancouver are nowhere near that price unless you want to live in a little mansion. And I'm fairly certain that the median salary is largely comprised of the service industry.
The other thing I keep seeing is "in Quebec it's much more affordable..."
Yes, and your salary would be much lower and your taxes higher. Apple and oranges?
Are you on MLS? Base house price west of Cambie is $2M (and it goes soooo much higher). Base house price in the rest of Vancouver is $1.5M. Base house price in Burnaby is now $1M. In Poco/Coquitlam/Port Moody you can find a few 'gems' for about $800k. I think the person you were responding to was pretty much spot-on.
I make about 100k. I've had job offers for Quebec that are 100k. Seriously - there's absolutely no payscale advantage or allowance for living in Vancouver. And provincial taxes in Quebec aren't much different at that tax bracket either.
Given that 91% of homes are now valued at > 1 million, I think you're quite wrong on this point.
Mansions do throw off the average, no doubt, but there's no denying that the typical house price for a typical Vancouverite is now north of a million dollars:
The other thing I keep seeing is "in Quebec it's much more affordable..."
Yes, and your salary would be much lower and your taxes higher. Apple and oranges?