Re/Max housing affordability surveyed conducted by Leger
Many willing to relocate to find an affordable – home but not too far: Re/Max study
Joseph Ruttle
The Vancouver Sun
Housing prices keep soaring in B.C. and other Canadian hot spots, but “the market is starting to cool and balance itself out,” says Re/Max
Not surprisingly, cities like Toronto and Vancouver didn’t fare well in a new Re/Max housing affordability surveyed conducted by Leger. Photo by Getty Images
How far are you willing to move to find an affordable home to buy? A new Re/Max report conducted with Leger shows most people are OK with relocating to find a housing fit, but less than four in 10 would accept a different city, province or region.
About two-thirds (64 per cent) of Canadians say relocating is an acceptable sacrifice to find a home they can afford. Half say a distance of about 100 kilometres from where they currently live is the limit.
For those of us living along the pricey B.C. south coast, finding affordable housing might take a much longer journey than that.
Across the country, the city with the best 2022 housing affordability, based on residential selling price, is Brandon, Man., which replaces last year’s leader, Winnipeg. Next up in order are Regina; St. John’s, Nfld.; Moncton, N.B.; and Red Deer, Alta.
Red Deer also topped the list in a related category. It was Canada’s most affordable market based on the share of income spent on mortgage payments at about 26 per cent of average monthly income for an average-priced home. Best mortgage cities after that are Regina (27 per cent); Brandon (27.5 per cent); Thunder Bay, Ont. (30 per cent); St. John’s (31.5 per cent) and Moncton (33.5 per cent).
Other top sacrifices people are willing to make for affordability are changing their type of home (say, a condo instead of single-family), at 56 per cent; co-owning a home with family or friends (29 per cent); and renting part of a home for income (27 per cent).
A healthy housing market is characterized by price appreciation in the mid- to high single digits, and many markets across Canada are re-entering that comfort zone
Re/Max
While the main barriers to entering the house market remain high prices, the cost of living and salary shortfalls, rising interest rates are suddenly a major factor. Nearly a quarter of Leger survey respondents (24 per cent) cited high rates, up from just six per cent last year.
Higher interest rates have already had an effect in the short term, says Re/Max Canada president Christopher Alexander, who noted “the market is starting to cool and balance itself out, bringing some much-needed relief from the sky-high prices that we experienced during much of the pandemic.”
“The shifts we are seeing in the housing market, with prices starting to ease across the country in tandem with softening demand and sales, are an overdue adjustment,” said Re/Max executive vice-president Elton Ash. “A healthy housing market is characterized by price appreciation in the mid- to high single digits, and many markets across Canada are re-entering that comfort zone.”
The report relied on brokers and agents in 24 key Canadian markets analyzing market activity and housing affordability trends in the first half of 2022.
It found that the most affordable neighbourhoods in larger B.C. centres are Victoria’s Sooke, Saanich West and View Royal; and Rutland, Glenrosa and Kelowna North in Kelowna/Central Okanagan.
Brokers in high-priced Victoria and Vancouver reported an increasing trend of friends and family pooling their house-buying resources.
The report also showed many others aren’t even thinking about buying a home right now. Sixty-eight per cent of respondents said they can’t afford to buy one in their neighbourhood or region of choice in the next six months; 64 per cent said eroding house affordability has them less confident about buying; and 63 per cent said rising interest rates have put their buying plans on hold for the foreseeable future.
Thus it’s not a surprise that 70 per cent agree Canada needs a national housing strategy to solve the crisis, up 10 per cent from last year.
The survey conducted by Leger for this housing affordability report was completed of 1,529 Canadians who are part of a Leger online panel between June 24 and 26, 2022. A probability sample of the same size would yield a margin of error of plus/minus 2.5 per cent, 19 times out of 20.
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