Refugee sponsors struggle to find available housing in Victoria

A group that is preparing to welcome a Syrian refugee family to Victoria is struggling to find somewhere for them to live thanks to a tight rental market.

The rental vacancy rate in Victoria is amongthe lowest inthe country at 0.6 per cent.

"We had an instinct that [housing]was going to be an issue. We didn't realize just how much," saidDoug MacDonald, a member of a Victoria groupsponsoring acouple with three children aged 5, 11 and13.

• Victoria apartment vacancy rate lowest in Canada:CMHC

MacDonald's grouphas raised nearly $30,000to assist the family with living expense for their first year in Canada. Last week, they were informed that the family would arrive in Victoria by the end of the month.

That's when the scramble started to find an availableand affordable, home.

"We have to be careful over the price limit because at the end of the year we don't want to leave them in a situation where they have large rent and high utilities to pay," MacDonald said.

The tight rental market is a challenge for all newcomers to the city, said Sabine Lehr, the immigrant services manager for theInter-Cultural Association of Greater Victoria.

But with only privately sponsored families scheduled to come to the city at this point, rather than large numbers of government sponsored refugees, Lehr said she is confident housing will be found for everyone.

"Every month there will be a family or two coming, so this is obviously much easier to absorb and much easier to find suitable accommodation than it might be if there was a large number coming all at once," she said.

MacDonald's grouphas scoured the rental ads and contactedproperty management companies. Hehopes landlords who do have available units will reach out to people who are sponsoring refugees.

"This situation is only going to get more tough as time goes on because certainly there will be more families arriving here in Victoria and they are going to need a place to live."