Census data has revealed that the number of households renting their homes has grown twice as fast as the number of home owners.
Statistics Canada revealed Wednesday that the number of households renting their homes grew by more than 21 percent between 2011 and 2021. In contrast, the number of households that own their homes grew by just 8 percent during the same period.
Although the gap is narrowing, homeowners still outnumber renters by a significant margin. More than 10 million households owned their home last year, roughly double the five million who rent.
All in all, Canadians were less likely to own their own home than in 2011.
The shift away from home ownership is particularly pronounced among the generation typically most likely to want to buy: young adults.
In 2011, around 44% of people in the 25-29 cohort owned their home. By 2021, that percentage had dropped to 36.5 percent.
The drop for those in the next age group was almost as pronounced: from 59.2% for those aged 30 to 34, to 52.3%.
In general, there was a clear demographic gap between homeowners and renters. Baby boomers, which the data agency defines as anyone aged 56 to 75 in 2021, made up 41.3% of all homeowners in Canada.
Meanwhile, millennials, ages 25 to 40 in 2021, made up 32.6 percent of all renters.
While both ownership and renting come at a cost, homeowners have been fortunate enough to offset these costs through a significant increase in the value of their homes. This is not the case of those who rent.
Even worse for renters, the average cost of keeping a roof over their heads has risen more than homeowners have experienced. The average cost of housing among renters grew 17.6% over the past five years, from $910 a month on average in 2016 to $1,070 in 2021.
That’s about double the 9.7 percent increase borne by homeowners, whose average monthly cost rose from $1,130 in 2016 to $1,240 last year.