At least 500 people moved to Hope between 2016 and 2021, according to the most recent census data.
That’s a population increase of 8.2 per cent. The data is broken down into five-year age groups, and the largest group in 2021 was 60 to 64 with 670 residents in that bracket.
There were 640 in the 65 to 69 age bracket, and 550 for 70 to 74.
However, when broken into the basic groups of children (0-14), adults (15 to 64), and seniors (65+), the adults are 56.9 per cent of the population, seniors are 31.2 per cent and children are 12 per cent.
The average age of Hope is 49.5.
Overall there are slightly more females than males in Hope, at 3,385 and 3,300 respectively.
In addition to data on who lives in Hope, the census also looks at where they live.
There are 2,940 occupied private dwellings in Hope. That breaks down to 2,175 single detached homes, 75 semi detached homes, 190 row houses, 20 “flat” apartments, and 205 apartment units. There are also 15 single-attached houses under “other,” and 255 movable dwellings.
The majority of homes have just one person (980) or two people living in them (1,200). Far fewer have families in them. There are 345 households of three, 240 households of four, and 175 households of five or more.
The data for Hope does not include the Fraser Valley Regional District electoral areas.
Electoral Area A (Boston Bar/North Bend/Canyon Alpine) has grown from 405 people in 2016 to 495 people in 2021, marking a 22.2 per cent change in growth.
Electoral Area B (Yale/Choate/Dogwood Valley/Emory Creek/Laidlaw/Othello/Ruby Creek/Spuzzum/Sunshine Valley) has decreased in population over the five years between census data, from 892 residents to 869, a drop of 2.6 per cent.
The census data was taken prior to the extreme weather events in 2021 that have caused people to migrate around the Fraser Canyon and beyond, including fire, rising rivers and landslides.
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