NANAIMO – The City of Nanaimo has made the top 20 list of growth cities in Canada, according to a Growth Index released by U-Haul.
Nanaimo placed 17th on the list, with the number of one-way U-Haul customers arriving in Nanaimo rose 3 per cent from 2022, with departures up 1%.
Also making the list were Kelowna at 4, Courtenay at 5, Penticton at 6, Campbell River at 8 and Victoria at 18. Calgary was number one.
Do-it-yourself movers arriving in Nanaimo accounted for 51.3% of all one-way U-Haul traffic in and out of the market (48.7% departures) in 2023 to make it a leading destination. Nanaimo was the 18th-ranked growth city back in 2020.
U-Haul calculates growth cities by each city’s net gain (or loss) of one-way equipment from customer transactions in a calendar year. The U-Haul Growth Index is compiled from well over 2.5 million one-way U-Haul truck, trailer and U-Box® moving container transactions that occur annually across Canada and the U.S.
Alberta is the leading growth province for 2023 while its largest market, Calgary, is Canada’s top growth city based on one-way U-Haul transactions of do-it-yourself movers. Calgary and Edmonton each saw significantly fewer people leaving their cities.
The U-Haul Growth Index found that Calgary, Edmonton, Salmon Arm and Camrose were all among Canada’s top 25 growth cities last year.
British Columbia jumped from ninth place in 2022 to second in 2023 among growth provinces, mirroring Alberta’s success. Ontario posted the biggest net loss of one-way U-Haul customers in 2023, falling from third to last among provinces on the U-Haul Growth Index.
“We first noticed a strong trend of U-Haul customers moving into Alberta in 2020 because of the affordable housing, and since then the province has continued attracting residents and bringing in new jobs,” stated Naga Chennamsetty, U-Haul Area District Vice President of Western Canada. “Cities like Calgary and Edmonton saw a good influx of new residents again in 2023.”
U-Haul calculates growth cities and provinces by each city’s and province’s net gain (or loss) of one-way equipment from customer transactions in a calendar year. The U-Haul Growth Index is compiled from well over 2.5 million one-way U-Haul truck, trailer and U-Box® moving container transactions that occur annually across Canada and the U.S.
Business Examiner Staff