A quarter of first-time buyers getting help to pay their mortgage, survey finds
Global News
Roughly a third of Canadian first-time homebuyers have needed help from a family member to finance their entry into the housing market, new polling suggests.
A quarter of first-time buyers are relying on outside financial help for their mortgage payments, and many are compromising on the kinds of homes they buy in order to break into the housing market, according to a new report.
The report published Thursday from Royal LePage paints a picture of young Canadians struggling to afford their first home amid a massive run-up in home prices and higher interest rates without help from their family.
The survey, done in conjunction with private mortgage insurer Sagen, polled more than 2,200 Canadians aged 25-45 from Feb. 22 to March 27, before the Bank of Canada’s latest rate hike on June 7. Respondents had either purchased a home since 2021 or intend to in the next two years.
Among those who bought their first home in the past two years, 35 per cent said they got a lump-sum payment from their parents or other relatives to help finance the purchase. Some 41 per cent of buyers surveyed in Vancouver and 36 per cent of buyers in Toronto said they got such a contribution to help with their purchase, according to the survey.
One in four respondents meanwhile said they’ve received financial help with their monthly mortgage payments; roughly a third (34 per cent) of Calgary’s first-time buyers said this was the case for them.
Almost half (46 per cent) said their financial boost was a gift, while 37 per cent said it was a loan that will be repaid.
Royal LePage CEO Phil Soper said in a statement accompanying the report that demand for housing is outpacing supply, driving up home prices and raising the barriers for first-time buyers trying to break into the market alone.
Higher interest rates from the Bank of Canada, which have raised the cost of borrowing in an effort to cool demand in a housing market that ran hot during the pandemic, are also a barrier for first-time buyers.
The changes were announced by Ottawa last year and kicked in on Thursday, also prohibit banks from charging more than one NSF fee in two business days for the same deposit account.
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