here's a half duplex for 400k in merritt.
https://www.realtor.ca/real-estate/2...erritt-merritt
has a rental, you can use that as income on your mortgage application and probably get this place with a pretty low income requirement. your mortgage would only be 1760 and with a suite you can rent for maybe 1000, your tenant will pay for half your mortgage.
if you're making 60k after taxes you don't go out and rent a luxury 1br for 2k, you rent a basement for a while and grind it out to save for your down payment. you go on the rice and beans diet, get the cheapest reasonable accommodation, work overtime for a few years, etc..
even when my parents came here in the 70s they didnt expect to just let everything fall in their laps, they had to grind for what they wanted.