According to a demographic survey from Royal LePage, nearly half of Canadians aged 25 to 35 polled say they are homeowners.
It also finds that a quarter of these homeowners have bought a property since the onset of the COVID-19 pandemic.
You can link to the study here.
Powell River-Sunshine Coast Real Estate Board president Neil Frost isn’t surprised by the findings.
“Over the last few years or so there have been studies saying that, believe it or not, home ownership is a goal of millennials,” Frost said. “That home ownership is something that millennials believe in.”
Frost says anecdotally, he’s seeing more young people looking to buy in places like Powell River and other parts of the Sunshine Coast because of the region’s affordability and lifestyle.
However, he says rising prices caused by a sellers market are impacting the kind of homes they’re looking to buy.
“The prices are pushing upwards a little, so we are seeing some of these younger people being a little bit forced out of our market or having to settle for a true starter home, in some cases a mobile home or a condo, or a townhouse or something that’s more in their price point,” Frost said.
The Royal LePage study found that among non-homeowners, 84 percent say they plan on getting into the market with 68 percent planning to make the move in the next five years.
Royal LePage president and CEO, Phil Soper said the pandemic provided an unexpected prize for young Canadians — a path to home ownership.
“Mortgage rates fell to historically low levels and the competition for entry-level housing lessened,” Soper said.
Soper noted that much higher than typical demand from this cohort, combined with older homeowners who have been generally more reluctant to put their property on the market during the pandemic, has contributed to a near-crisis shortage of listings in parts of the country.
Despite the economic challenges related to the pandemic, many of those surveyed say they have a healthy financial outlook.
Ninety-two per cent agree that owning a home is a good financial investment.
When given the choice, 45 per cent of those aged 25 to 35 said they’d prefer to live in a city, while 47 per cent said they would choose a small town or country living.
In B.C., 49 per cent of those surveyed aged 25 to 35 say they own their home.
Of those, 27 per cent bought a home since mid-March of last year.
Among those who do not currently own a home, 65 percent say they intend to buy within the next five years.
Many young British Columbians (41 percent) say they’ve seen their savings grow since the onset of the pandemic, which factors into the homebuying aspect, especially with historically low interest rates.
The online survey of 2,000 Canadians aged 25-35 was completed between Dec. 29th, 2020 to Jan. 8th, 2021, using Leger’s online panel.
