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While young homebuyer hopefuls in Canada are facing more financial obstacles today – including higher home prices, interest rates and cost of living than their parents – many continue to aspire to own real estate one day. Despite chronic housing affordability and supply challenges, Canada’s next generation1 of buyers believes that owning a home of their own remains advantageous as a long-term investment.

According to a recent Royal LePage® survey, conducted by Hill & Knowlton,2 84% of Canadians belonging to the adult generation Z and young millennial cohort – those aged 18 to 38 or born between 1986 and 2006, and referred to in this release as the next generation – believe that home ownership is a worthwhile investment.

Among respondents who do not currently own a primary residence, three quarters (74%) of those in the next generation of homebuyers say that owning a home is a priority for them and a milestone they hope to achieve in their lifetime. Young buyers understand home ownership is expensive. Just over half (54%) of respondents believe that home ownership is an achievable goal; 26% are unsure; and, 20% do not believe it is achievable for them at all.

“It is not surprising that young buyer hopefuls see immense benefits in home ownership,” said Phil Soper, president and CEO of Royal LePage. “What is both surprising and promising in these findings is the practical and purposeful manner in which these people are tackling affordability barriers. They are well educated on the state of the real estate market and the wide variety of government programs put in place to assist young families find homes. They are hyper-focused on saving for a down payment, which is often the biggest hurdle buyers face. And, they are open to creative solutions, such as shared ownership with friends and family, or buying a property with the express intention of renting a portion of the home to a tenant.”

Young Canadians confident in their financial future

Among young Canadians who do not currently own a home, 75% say they are planning to purchase a property as a primary residence in their lifetime.

“The youngest cohort of homebuyers in Canada have no shortage of barriers on their path to ownership. Though the cost of borrowing has begun to come down, chronic supply shortages have kept housing prices from dropping, even as demand softened under the weight of high interest rates,” said Soper. “Despite these hurdles, the next generation of homebuyers remains committed to their pursuit of owning real estate, and are remarkably optimistic that they can make their dream a reality.”

Of those who say they believe home ownership is achievable, when asked why, 45% of respondents say that they are saving diligently and feel confident that they will have enough savings in the near future to make a home purchase. 31% of respondents say they are on a career trajectory that will earn them a high income and therefore provide them with enough savings to buy a home, while 26% say that they and their spouse have a high enough combined household income to afford a future home purchase. Respondents were able to select more than one answer to this question.

Young buyer hopefuls making sacrifices to reach home ownership goals

40% of respondents who are planning to purchase a home say that their timeline to buy a property is within the next five to 10 years, while 25% say they are planning to purchase a home more than 10 years from now. Buoyed by the prospect of lower borrowing costs, nearly one in five respondents (18%) say they plan to purchase a home within the next three years, and another 13% plan to buy in three to five years.

To reach their goal of home ownership, almost half (47%) of those planning to purchase say they are regularly saving a portion of their earnings for a down payment. 42% say they are diligently paying their loans and bills to ensure a good credit rating, and 34% say they are reducing their discretionary spending in an effort to save more. 30% are living with family and saving for a down payment, paying little to no rent. Respondents were able to select more than one answer to this question.

“In pursuit of home ownership, many young people are not only pausing small daily indulgences but also making compromises that impact their long-term financial stability. This includes sacrifices like delaying education and retirement savings, and putting off other major investments,” noted Soper. “If policy makers needed yet another example of the impact of our nation’s chronic housing supply crisis on the financial security and well-being of young people, this is it.”

While parental involvement in first-time home purchases has become increasingly common in Canada, not all young buyers will be withdrawing from the bank of mom and dad. Nearly half (47%) of respondents say they will not receive any financial assistance from family members towards their home purchase. Meanwhile, 32% say they will receive some form of financial support toward the purchase of their first home.

Read the full press release and review the data chart for more information and regional insights:

 
PRESS RELEASE
DATA CHART
 

Royal LePage resources for aspiring homeowners

To help aspiring homeowners, Royal LePage has published a number of online resources available at the following links:

1Generation Z is defined as individuals born between 1997 and 2012, while millennials are defined as those born between 1981 and 1996. For the purposes of this release, individuals referred to as ‘next generation’ refers to Canadians aged 18-38, those born between 1986 and 2006.

2Hill & Knowlton used the Leger Opinion online panel to survey 2,280 Canadians, aged 18+. The survey was completed between July 22nd and July 31st, 2024. Representative sampling was done across all provinces (Atlantic provinces were aggregated and Saskatchewan was aggregated with Manitoba), with oversampling in SK/MB, Atlantic Canada, Toronto CMA, Montreal CMA, Vancouver CMA, and Calgary CMA. Age, gender, and household ownership weighting was applied to ensure representation at a CMA/province/region level, according to 2021 census figures. No margin of error can be associated with a nonprobability sample (i.e., a web panel in this case). For comparative purposes, though, a probability sample of 2,280 respondents would have a margin of error of ±2%, 19 times out of 20.