Of the 155,120 families living in Greater Victoria in 2005, 18.2% were considered to be living in poverty in that their income is low for their family type and size. This is considerably less than the provincial rate of 23.6% and national rate of 21.7%. The region’s poverty rate is 4.9% less than it was in 2000. Source

In 2006, a family of four on welfare in the Capital Region needed $37 more than social assistance provides to cover the average costs of housing and food. Source

In December 2006, 2.9% of the people in the Capital Region were dependent on the social safety net – employment insurance or basic income assistance – compared with 3.9% in the province. The social safety net supported 3.2% of the population in the Capital Region in 2005. Source

Only 56% of those who filed taxes in the Capital Region (144,020 people) reported earning more than the living wage – greater than $25,000 – in 2005. Source

Average wages in Greater Victoria are increasing faster than inflation. Consumers paid 1.9% more in March 2007 for the goods and services in the Consumer Price Index (CPI) basket than they did in March 2006. For the same period, average weekly earnings increased 4.2%, compared to 3.6% in BC overall. Source #1 Source #2