9 in 10 Canadians Say They’re Worried About Housing in Canada: Poll

A new housing development is constructed in Toronto on May 15, 2023. The Canadian Press/Chris Young

Nearly 90 percent of Canadians across generational, geographic, and political lines are concerned about the state of housing in the country, a new survey suggests.

Eighty-seven percent of the 3,900 adults polled last month say they are worried about affordability and availability of housing in Canada.

The survey conducted by Abacus Data in collaboration with the Canadian Real Estate Association (CREA) between Sept. 5 and 16, paints a picture of widespread concern across political affiliations with 87 percent of Conservative supporters, 86 percent of Liberal supporters, and 93 percent of NDP supporters expressing apprehension about the state of the market.

This concern is also prevalent among various age groups, with 93 percent of individuals in both the 18 to 29 and 30 to 44 demographics expressing it, while 87 percent of those aged 45 to 59 share the same sentiment. The group aged 60 or older exhibited the least amount of worry, with 79 percent indicating concern.

Urban dwellers were slightly more likely to worry about housing than suburban and rural residents at 90 percent, 87 percent, and 81 percent respectively.

Only 40 percent of Canadians surveyed said the dream of homeownership remains alive in Canada today. This sentiment is even weaker among those aged 30 to 59, with only a third believing the dream is achievable.

Housing Tops Concerns

The rising cost of living remains the top concern among Canadians surveyed but housing was second on the list ahead of health care, the economy, and crime and public safety.

“Few issues cut as deeply across the country or affect as many aspects of daily life as housing,” report authors Abucus Data CEO David Coletto and vice-president of Insights Eddie Sheppard wrote.

“Alongside broader cost-of-living and affordability pressures, housing has become the lens through which Canadians are judging progress, and the measure by which they’ll gauge whether relief is truly within reach.”

Thirty-eight percent of those surveyed listed housing as the top issue in their community, right behind the cost of living at 59 percent. Health care trailed at 30 percent, followed by the economy at 28 percent. Both homelessness and crime and public safety came in at 20 percent each.

Housing emerged as the primary concern for 41 percent of those aged 18 to 29 and 39 percent of those aged 30 to 44. Regionally, housing worries were highest in Quebec, with 45 percent calling it the top concern, followed by Atlantic Canada at 44 percent, and British Columbia at 42 percent.

Housing Crisis

The authors described the housing crisis as a “defining test of performance” for the Mark Carney government as it prepares its first federal budget, set to be delivered next month, noting that the matter is a key issue for many Canadians.

The authors pointed to a number of core causes of the crisis as identified by those surveyed.

Thirty-five percent of those polled said not enough affordable housing is being built, while 32 percent point to the high costs of building new homes. Twenty-nine percent emphasized that both the rapid population growth exceeding supply and the arrival of new Canadians are significant contributing factors.

Carney announced $13 billion in funding to create Build Canada Homes last month. The new federal agency will build affordable housing “at scale” on government-owned land with a focus on community housing for low-income households, according to the prime minister’s office.

Carney said during a Sept. 5 press conference that the government’s goal is to double the rate of housing starts in Canada over the next decade.

The prime minister said his government is focused on providing the “fundamentals” for Canadians such as “being safe in your community, owning your own home, being able to pay your rent, living a good life.”

Conservative Leader Pierre Poilievre told reporters during a Sept. 9 press conference that Canada’s housing market is facing three main problems: construction lags in some major cities, an increasing number of Canadians being priced out of home ownership, and prices being too low to encourage owners to sell.

“This crisis has changed into something new and even worse than there was before they first inflated the housing bubble, and now Liberals are bursting the housing bubble,” Poilievre said. “It is a triple crisis, with prices too high for buyers to buy, too low for sellers to sell, and inadequate for builders to build.”