A study revealed how long it takes young Canadians to save for a house in the biggest cities
Want to know how old you'll be by the time you save for a downpayment?
A street lined with homes. Right: Person on a sidewalk with houses on a street.
Young Canadians looking to save up for a downpayment on a starting home could be waiting for decades, and a study revealed just how long it takes in each major city.
Ontarians are facing some of the longest wait times in terms of saving up, but other big cities like Vancouver are also up there.
Point2 Homes collected data, to find out how many years young Canadians would need to save up to afford a 20% down payment on a starter home — which were "homes priced at half the local benchmark price" — in the largest cities in the country.
All in all, Gen Z Canadian renters are looking at 8 to 40 years of saving up for this, which the study says is partially "given their low incomes."
Different generations are facing different timelines, but Gen Z needs 40.2 years to save for a 20% downpayment in Markham, Ontario. The study pointed to the fact that the city has "a high number of young people still in school and a low median income for this age group," making it especially difficult to save.
Vaughan, Ontario is right behind at 36.5 years, and then Vancouver is next at 32.7 years. Toronto is right after Vancouver, at 28.8 years.
In Mississauga it takes 28.3 years, and 25.9 in Brampton. Surrey, B.C. then breaks the Ontario trend with 24 years.
At the bottom of the list, which looks at the largest cities in the country, is Quebec City, where it would take young Canadians 7.8 years.
Gen Z'ers in Toronto and Vancouver are probably shedding a tear reading this, and we don't blame them.