For generations of Canadians, reaching adulthood meant achieving a familiar set of milestones: finishing school, starting a career, getting married, and buying a first home by the time the calendar turned to their mid-twenties or early thirties. Today, however, that traditional trajectory has been thoroughly upended by economic reality. For a growing number of Canadians, buying a first home is no longer a milestone for their twenties, but rather an ambition deferred until their forties.
This stark shift in the nation’s housing landscape is highlighted in a new poll released by RBC, which reveals that non-homeowning Canadians now expect to be 41 years old, on average, before they are finally able to enter the real estate market. That figure represents a dramatic 12-year delay compared to the average age of 29 at which current homeowners report having purchased their very first property.
Worse still, for a significant portion of the population, even that delayed timeline is shrouded in complete uncertainty. According to the survey, half of all non-homeowners questioned stated that they have absolutely no idea when—or if—they will ever be in a financial position to buy a home of their own.
The towering barrier to entry on the housing ladder has laid bare a profound generational divide across the country. Nearly three-quarters of respondents, or 74 per cent, firmly believe that purchasing a home in the current economic climate is vastly more complicated than it was for previous generations. At the same time, 65 per cent expressed frustration that older generations simply do not understand the unique and compounding challenges facing today’s prospective buyers, from soaring property values and stubborn interest rates to stringent mortgage qualification rules. Furthermore, 52 per cent of respondents noted that the traditional homebuying advice passed down by parents and grandparents is no longer relevant in today’s market.
The Starter Home is Changing
As affordability challenges continue to reshape the housing market, the traditional real estate playbook—buying a modest starter home, building equity, and eventually moving up to a larger property—is rapidly losing its appeal among a generation of buyers who cannot afford multiple transaction costs.
Among first-time buyers who are actively planning to purchase a property within the next two years, an overwhelming 74 per cent indicated that they would rather bypass the traditional starter home entirely. Instead, they prefer to buy a larger or more suitable home right from the start, a property where they can comfortably stay for the long term rather than one they might quickly outgrow and have to sell a few years down the road.
Current homeowners appear to intimately understand this pragmatic, long-term thinking. More than half of surveyed homeowners, or 52 per cent, admitted that moving up from their initial first home has proven to be much harder than they originally expected. Additionally, 46 per cent of current homeowners candidly confessed that while they would ideally like to move to a larger or completely different property to better suit their lifestyle, they cannot realistically afford to do so in the current market environment.
Brad Evjen, a senior mortgage specialist at RBC, explained the complex financial balancing act that today’s buyers must perform when considering bypassing smaller properties.
"Buying a home you can stay in longer usually means stretching your budget further, so the math has to work in both directions," Evjen said. "For some, the bigger first home is the better decision. For others it isn’t, and it’s worth knowing which of those two scenarios fits your situation before you start looking."
More Buyers Considering Living with Family
Faced with relentless affordability pressures and a seemingly insurmountable real estate market, prospective buyers are increasingly looking outside the box and considering alternative living arrangements to secure a foothold in property ownership. Chief among these alternatives is sharing a roof with family members.
The RBC poll revealed that 53 per cent of prospective buyers who plan to purchase a home within the next two years would seriously consider buying and living in a multigenerational home. This openness is also shared by older generations; among current homeowners, 35 per cent indicated that they would consider selling their current property to pool resources and buy a home alongside their child to help them successfully enter the housing market.
When asked about the driving forces behind this trend, 34 per cent of prospective buyers believe that multigenerational living is becoming significantly more common primarily because of overall housing affordability constraints. Meanwhile, 32 per cent view it simply as a practical, common-sense way to manage steep monthly housing costs by sharing expenses among multiple working adults in a single household.
Janet Boyle, senior vice-president of home equity finance at RBC, noted that Canadians are displaying remarkable resilience and adaptability in the face of macroeconomic adversity.
"Canadians are finding new ways to make one of life’s biggest purchases possible," Boyle said.
Uncertainty About Timing
Beyond the logistical challenges of saving for a down payment and finding an affordable property, prospective buyers are deeply divided over the fundamental question of timing. Entering the market is fraught with psychological and financial anxiety, leaving many potential purchasers paralyzed by conflicting fears.
Half of prospective buyers worry that waiting too long on the sidelines could mean being completely priced out of the market if home prices resume an upward trajectory. However, an identical proportion—50 per cent—harbor the opposite fear: purchasing a home now, only to see property values fall further, leaving them with a diminished asset or a property worth less than their mortgage.
These financial pressures and anxieties are by no means limited to those trying to break into the market for the very first time. Current homeowners are also feeling the squeeze as economic conditions shift around them.
Among homeowners who face the daunting task of renewing their mortgages within the next two years, 51 per cent reported that the renewal process feels nearly as stressful as the original experience of buying their first home. Furthermore, 60 per cent of these homeowners expect that their upcoming mortgage renewal will place substantial and unwelcome pressure on their household finances, forcing many to tighten their budgets even further to accommodate higher monthly payments.
The findings detailed in the poll are based on a comprehensive online survey of 1,810 Canadians ranging in age from 18 to 64. The research was conducted by polling firm Leger between August 5 and August 24, capturing a snapshot of consumer sentiment during a period of ongoing economic recalibration across the country.