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Why Vancouver Is Canada's Richest City

Tony Wanless

| August 25, 2009

Every wonder why Vancouver is No 1. in Canada in net worth?

Image by: iStock

Vancouver is No 1. in Canada in net worth. Why? Because we're an entrepreneurial bunch.

A couple of months ago I sat with a sales consultant from Toronto who was trying to divine the BC business mind.

What, she wanted to know, do people actually do out here. They don’t make things and don’t seem to have service businesses of any size. There are no dominant industries like oil in Alberta or manufacturing in Toronto.

Good question, I replied. Because we were shut out of the traditional industries that exist in Ontario, we had to find alternatives.

We have resources, of course, but today our main industry is entrepreneurial thinking. Trade and real estate are big, and there are those new knowledge business sectors like technology, film, Internet, and New Media. Many people run some kind of service or retail operation or have some kind of job, and do other things on the side.

Now there’s some proof that this portfolio approach seems to work. A survey by Environics Analytics shows that Vancouver is now the Canadian city with the highest individual net worth, which measures someone’s assets minus debts. Apparently we’ve leaped over perennial leader Calgary.

It’s not so much that we gained, but that everybody else lost in the recession that began last year. Net worth dropped 6.2 per cent for Canadians as a whole in 2008. Calgary residents’ wealth dropped 12.3 percent, while Vancouver residents were able to hang on to much of their wealth.

Why was that? Primarily because, much of Calgary residents’ money was in stocks, bonds and mutual funds, while Vancouver’s was in real estate which held relatively steady in 2008.
And earlier this year, it appears that Vancouverites put their discretionary income into the very things that everybody is now avoiding. While Alberta and Ontario residents worked to pay off debt or stuck their money in safe GICs, we started shifting our money into depressed sectors or investment areas.

That tells me that Vancouverites might just as a rule be more flexible, creative and adventurous.

They live in the richest and most expensive city in Canada and so have become adept at future think. They scan the horizon constantly for opportunities and then jump rapidly into sectors that hold the most upside.

What about you? How do you think we make a living here?

Tags

Vancouver isn't a city, it's

Submitted by Anonymous on Fri, 2009-08-28 10:55.

Vancouver isn't a city, it's a very large resort. Yes, there's still a tiny little fish industry out there and yes logging and mining will one day emerge from their caves, no longer bleeding. The movie biz rides the Loonie and Ontario is kicking the crap out of our tax incentives. The famous real estate market isn't wealth unless equity is high...and it isn't. In fact, the percentage of Vancouver homeowners behind on their mortgage payments is at record-setting levels. They don't have the income to keep up. Anonymous is right (again), income=wealth and very few people make serious income in this city. If even one of the banks starts calling in credit card balances, the whole thing can start to tip over.

To F*** the

Submitted by Tony Wanless on Thu, 2009-08-27 20:48.

To F*** the burgeoise. Thanks for your amazingly incisive contribution to the discussion! By the way, I think you mean F*** the bourgeoisie. Maybe you should just stick to Eat The Rich. It's easier.

Interesting article.

Submitted by Anonymous on Wed, 2009-08-26 17:59.

Interesting article. Vancouver is still a primary resource based economy. Mineral exploration, natural gas, and logging will continue to be the bedrock. We are the playground for the rest of canada (real estate/hospitality/outdoors), and a safe haven where wealthy people from abroad can park some money, send their kids to first class shools, and have a safe exit pad if/when required. With our proximity to Asia, and recent investment in port, highway, and rail infrastructure, we will be key players in future international trade. Malcolm P. MacPherson Vancouver Business Law (www.vancouverbusinesslaw.ca)

Thank you for the very

Submitted by Anonymous on Wed, 2009-08-26 10:00.

Thank you for the very creative interpretation. However, I'd advise against mistaking our gravity-defying real estate market for a prosperous economy. Last I checked, long-term wealth was still produced by income and the Vancouver CMA still lags behind Calgary, Ottawa, Edmonton and Toronto. In fact, the Vancouver CMA places 23rd in Canada for average household income, ranking below such economic powerhouses as Centre Wellington, ON, and Brooks, AB.