More Canadians are opting out of city living for rural areas for the first time in history, according to a new Statistics Canada study..Record-breaking rates show the average migration of those leaving cities tripled, at a 59% increase, from mid-2020 to mid-2021..Quebec is seeing the largest migration in the country, Montreal lost nearly 40,000 people to other parts of the province with 3,600 leaving the province..Real estate prices, an increase in working from home and COVID-19 restrictions have families fleeing the large expensive cities for more room in small communities, the stats show..The largest net-migration from cities were in Winnipeg (-7,466), Toronto (-7,372), and Edmonton (-4,272). .Those numbers compare the difference in newcomers to how many left the city, showing more left than came..When looking at within-province migration, census metropolitan areas lost 60,091 people in 2021..The outcomes are normally the opposite of what advanced economies strive for, as usually goals are set to have people urbanize rather than de-urbanize..But factors in the last few years have made moves to rural areas more appealing to Canadians..Canada’s housing cost went up 34%, almost $200,000 higher than in March 2020, now at a national average of $780,400..Smaller communities have cheaper real estate and bigger lots, making cottage towns and costal regions look very attractive..The increase of remote work options due to COVID-19 have also increased the ability for Canadians to make these changes in living..Ewa Sudyk is a reporter with the Western Standard..,.esudyk@westernstandardonline.com
