For sure. If they've been living here for some years. The housing crisis wasn't this bad until maybe last 5 years. But it has prevented not only young talents coming to the city, but also small-middle businesses flourishing. As the list is published yearly, shouldn't it reflect up-to-date situations? And Vancouver's renting market is going frenzy at the moment[1], is there a single option left for young people to live here with peace of mind?

[1] http://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/british-columbia/vancouver-ren...

> lots of not-extremely-established people call Vancouver their home.

No they don't. Nobody earning 20$/hour moves to vancouver. Those who do earn low wages have roots in the city. They started renting before the rise (and now live in fear of their landlord selling). Or they bought 20+ years ago and are now sitting on a pile of equity. Or they are living in a friend/parent's basement. Such people are established in the city. The low-pay stranger isn't welcome in Vancouver.

Any major city still has low wage workers, but for Software Engineering many of the positions in Vancouver are not proportional to the cost of living.

I grew up near Vancouver and am currently working in Germany because I was getting better offers among other reasons.