The homeownership rate in Canada is declining, with young adults in particular less likely to own a home in 2021 than in 2011, Statistics Canada reports. According to the latest census, two-thirds of Canadians owned a home in 2021, up from a peak of 69 per cent a decade earlier. The decline in homeownership rates between 2011 and 2021 was greatest for younger Canadians, with the rate falling to 36.5 from 44.1 for those aged 25 to 29. Canadians between the ages of 30 and 34 saw a similar but slightly smaller decline in home ownership, falling to 52.3 per cent from 59.2 per cent. Mike Moffatt, an assistant professor at Western University’s Ivey School of Business, said this shows why the overall homeownership rate isn’t as useful for understanding recent trends. “As people get older, they’re more likely to own a home,” he said. “That’s why I think it will be important to analyze the data by age cohort.” Meanwhile, the percentage of renters increased. Statistics Canada reports that the number of renter households grew at more than twice the rate of owner households between 2011 and 2021. Brittany MacKenzie, a real estate agent in Fredericton, NB, said she has noticed a change in the attitude of young hopeful homebuyers as prices have risen. “I’ve found that a lot of our younger buyers are now hesitant and have moved out and decided to rent for a while,” he said. The federal agency says newly built homes are increasingly likely to be occupied by renters, with 40.4 percent of new homes built between 2016 and 2021 now rented. Statistics Canada also compared the monthly housing costs of renters and homeowners and found that those costs rose faster for renters than homeowners in the last census. Average monthly housing costs for renters rose 17.6% between 2016 and 2021, outpacing inflation as the consumer price index rose 9.5% over the same period. For homeowners, the average monthly cost of housing increased by 9.7%. Housing affordability actually improved in 2021, but one in five renters still spend more than 30 percent of their income on housing costs. Statistics Canada reports that the improvement in affordability was most pronounced for low-income renters and can be largely attributed to temporary COVID-19 income supports. Moffatt said the data does not provide an accurate picture of housing affordability due to these support measures. “It’s going to be pretty misleading just because people were getting that kind of lump sum income,” Moffatt said. The report also touches on the upward trend in condominium construction, especially in urban centers. Between 2016 and 2021, more than half of the homes built in Toronto, Vancouver and Montreal were apartments. Millennials made up the largest share of the estimated 4.3 million Canadians living in apartments in 2021, with nearly three in 10 residential residents in this age group. This report by The Canadian Press was first published on September 21, 2022.
