Less than half of Millennials and Gen Z think homeownership possible in Ontario: survey

The next generation of Ontarians overwhelmingly believe owning a home would be a sound long-term investment, but more than half say that goal is out of reach.

A recent survey for Royal LePage asked Generation Z and young Millennials across Canada about their home homeownership dreams.

And while many feel owning a home of their own is perpetually out of reach, some still aspire to ditch their landlords and move from paying rent to paying a mortgage.

Some 84 per cent of Canadians aged 18 to 38 or born between 1986 and 2006 believe that home ownership is a worthwhile investment, and 74 per cent said owning a home is a lifetime priority.

But with high home prices, interest rates and the rising cost of living, homeownership feels out of reach for many in Ontario.

When looking at the provincial numbers, just 47 per cent of Ontario respondents said home ownership is an achievable goal. Another 27 per cent said homeownership is unachievable while 26 per cent said they were unsure.

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The Canada-wide numbers show just over half (54 per cent) believe that home ownership is an achievable goal, with 26 per cent saying they are unsure and 20 per cent responding they do not believe it is achievable at all.

But the survey also found that the next generation of potential buyers are willing to make financial sacrifices to make the dream of homeownership a reality.

Nearly half (47 per cent) of those planning to purchase a home say they are regularly saving a portion of their earnings for a down payment, and 42 per cent say they are “diligently paying their loans and bills to ensure a good credit rating,” Royal LePage says.

Some 34 per cent say they are reducing discretionary spending in an effort to save more, and 30 per cent are paying little to no rent by living with family to save for a down payment.

As Canada deals with a lack of supply in the housing market, Royal LePage CEO and President Phil Soper says 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.”

While high home prices remain a barrier for first-time buyers, a cooler real estate market through the summer led to more homes selling for under the asking price across the Greater Toronto Area.

In Mississauga, prices dropped 5.5 per cent from June 2024 to July 2024, while Brampton had one of the most significant declines with an average sale price of just over $1,010,000 in July. Halton Region saw sales decrease by 17.6 per cent month-over-month in July with 543 homes sold.

For those looking for an affordable way to enter the housing market, some communities in the GTA had a median price less than $550,000 from January to June of this year.

The cheapest median sold price was in Toronto’s East York neighbourhood, standing at $485,000, with 63 total sales during the first half of the year.

The survey for Royal LePage was conducted by Hill & Knowlton and surved 2,280 Canadians between July 22nd and July 31.