Even though it's certainly gotten more expensive than it used to be, Vancouver still has the benefit of being able to avoid both sales and income tax. If you go outside Vancouver there are cheaper rooms that pop up from developments, and that obviously makes it harder to save on sales tax for more everyday purchases, but you still have that option for larger purchases, and somewhere like Battle Ground has easy access to I-5, feels less crowded, and while it's hardly a hippie commune it's also not a right-wing hellhole