About 45% of Canadians believe they will be renting indefinitely, or are unsure when they will be able to buy a home, according to a survey conducted by Canada Life. .“Canadians are at an investments crossroads,” said Canada Life executive Vice President Paul Orlander in a Thursday press release. .The survey said 73% of Canadians think it is a terrible time to buy a house. The top three cited reasons renters gave for not entering the market were high real estate prices, lack of money for a down payment, and not enough income to qualify for a mortgage. .According to the survey, 64% of respondents said they think new homeowners will be unable to enter the market unless they have financial support from family. For the people who have provided financial support towards a down payment, 48% said their ability to invest decreased and 43% saw their savings drop. .The survey said Canadians aged 25–29 were twice as likely never to buy a home or continue renting compared to those aged 30–49. It said 24% considered themselves house poor. .“While buying a home can help you build equity that could be valuable to one's long-term financial plans, renting may provide more peace of mind around affordability, flexibility, and lower housing costs which could leave more for savings and investments each month,” said Orlander. .About 57% of Ontarians think they will never afford a home in their current city or town, according to a Right at Home Realty survey. .“The impact of rising mortgage rates has reduced the buying power of potential homebuyers,” said Right at Home Realty president John Lusink. .“Another impact of the rising rates is the financial disincentive created for those thinking of selling, but are now faced with much higher financing costs when considering buying their next home.”.The findings are the result of a survey conducted by Canada Life from May 5 to 11 with an online sample of 1,572 Canadian adults who are members of the Angus Reid Forum. The margin of error is ± 2.5%, 19 times out of 20.
