More than half of Canadian homeowners are struggling with debt, and two in 10 said they have been using credit cards or borrowing to pay off other debt, a recent report suggests.
The report issued by the Canada Mortgage and Housing Corporation (CMHC) is based on a survey of nearly 4,000 participants, as first reported by Blacklock’s Reporter. The goal of the survey was to track the behaviours and attitudes of homebuyers regarding both homeownership and the process of obtaining a mortgage. CMHC found that 51 percent of mortgage holders were struggling to keep up with debt payments, an increase from 42 percent in 2024. Fourteen percent of respondents said they had missed a mortgage payment due to “economic reasons.”
“Credit cards were the type of debt that mortgage consumers had the most difficulty maintaining (26 percent) followed by their mortgage (17 percent),” the report said.
Of those surveyed, 22 percent said they were using credit to pay off credit, compared to 15 percent in 2024.
Homeowners provided several reasons for missing a mortgage payment, the report said. Fifty-seven percent attributed it to a change in their financial circumstances, 44 percent cited budget management issues, 40 percent indicated that unexpected expenses interfered, and 33 percent said it was an accident or error.
More than half of survey participants—53 percent—expressed concern about potentially defaulting on their mortgage, compared to 50 percent in 2024. Forty-six percent said they may default because of a decrease in income resulting from job loss, divorce, illness, or retirement.
Forty-five percent of those polled said the escalating cost of living posed a challenge in maintaining mortgage payments. Others surveyed said they were concerned about their ability to meet their payments due to a significant upcoming expense, such as the birth of a baby.
Twenty-four percent of respondents said they have already defaulted on a different loan and had high household debt that may cause them to default on their mortgage.
The average first time homebuyer is between 25 and 34 years of age, has children, and has rented for more than six years, according to CMHC’s report. Nearly half have bought a single detached home.
When buying a home, one in four first-time homebuyers said they have used gifts or inheritance worth about $74,000 for a down payment.
CMHC interviewed participants for the survey between Jan. 2 and Jan. 24.
