Saanich is a place people know well in pieces—your neighbourhood, your commute, your favourite park—but it’s easy to lose sight of the bigger picture. A few key facts can help tie it all together and give a clearer sense of how the community is growing and changing.
Think of this as a quick snapshot of the essentials: who lives here, how the area is shaped, what drives the local economy, and how things like housing and taxes have been shifting. It’s not a deep dive—just the kind of useful, “good to know” context that helps residents understand the community we’re all part of.
1. Population & growth
Saanich has about 117,700 residents (2021 Census), up roughly 3.1% from 2016.
The District’s 2024 Annual Report still describes our community as having “more than 117,000 residents,” confirming steady but moderate growth.
2. Physical Size
Saanich’s land area is 103.59 km². That’s almost the same size as the city of Paris, which is about 105.4 km².
3. Role in Greater Victoria
Ours is the largest municipality in the Capital Regional District by both land area (~103 km²) and population (117k+).
Saanich is officially described as an urban, rural, and coastal municipality – everything from agricultural land and forested parks to busy commercial corridors on the Victoria border.
4. Household income
Saanich residents have a median after-tax household income (2020): about $83,000 (up from $73,000 in 2015), per Statistics Canada.
A more recent estimate puts median household income around $93,000/year.
Median renter income is about 67.5% of the community median, according to Saanich’s Housing Needs.
5. Housing & home prices
In Saanich there are about 48,000 occupied private dwellings, with single-detached homes making up ~47% of them.
Typical single-family home values (2025) are around $1.16M on average, ranking Saanich among the more expensive communities on Vancouver Island.
As of Dec 2024, benchmark single-family prices were about $1.32M in Saanich East and $1.04M in Saanich West.
From 2005–2022, average single-family sale prices increased by roughly 191%, according to the District’s Housing Needs Report.
6. Age profile – older than the national average
The median age of Saanich Residents is about 44.3 years, a bit older than the Canadian average.
Seniors (65+) make up about 23% of residents, which is a sizable retiree population. Children 0–14 make up about 13%, and working-age (15–64) about 64%.
7. Economy & key industries
Saanich’s new Economic Development Strategy highlights several sectors where our municipality already has strengths or sees future growth:
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- Government & public administration (proximity to the provincial capital)
- Healthcare (Royal Jubilee & Victoria General nearby, plus clinics and health services)
- Post-secondary education (University of Victoria, Camosun College Lansdowne & Interurban)
- Tourism and hospitality, including sport tourism and nature-based tourism
- Logistics and related services (regional transportation corridors, warehousing)
Emerging knowledge sectors:
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- Life sciences
- Clean technology and green buildings
- The broader “creative economy” and tech ecosystem (linked to VIATEC and Vancouver Island Technology Park)
These sectors are central to Saanich’s strategy of diversifying beyond government employment while keeping a “green, innovative, knowledge-focused” economy.
8. Parks, nature, and green space
Saanich has 171 parks covering about 8.2 km², roughly 8% of the entire municipality.
The Canadian City Parks Report notes that about 65% of parkland is natural area, and there are about 7.4 hectares of park and green space per 1,000 residents—well above many cities.
There are 100+ km of trails, from easy walks to steep climbs, which is a major asset to our community.
9. Transportation & commuting
According to Saanich’s Active Transportation Plan, about 20% of commute trips to work or school are made by walking (6%), cycling (5%), or transit (9%), based on the 2021 Census.
Saanich directly borders Victoria; a drive to downtown Victoria can often be 6–16 minutes via Highway 1, depending on traffic—one reason so many people live in Saanich and work in Victoria’s core.
10. City-portion residential property-tax increases (last 5 years)
These are the average municipal (city-portion) tax lifts for an existing Saanich homeowner, not counting what BC Assessment does to our individual property value:
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- 2021
5.76% Average tax rate increase; about $161 more for the “average home.” - 2022
6.67% Average municipal tax rate increase; about $200 more on average. - 2023
7.19% Average tax rate increase under the 2023 Financial Plan. - 2024
7.93% Property-tax hike approved in the 2024 budget. - 2025
8.0% Residential property taxes rising by about 8% in 2025, per the Greater Victoria Chamber report.
- 2021
In rough terms, city-portion taxes have climbed in the 5.7–8% range each of the last five years, largely tied to inflation, labour costs, and big infrastructure renewal.
The consolidated financial plan (which includes operating and capital budgets across all funds) for 2025 balances a total of $567,144,300 in revenues and expenditures. This figure includes the general operating fund, utility funds (water and sewer), and capital spending.
