Why It Takes 24 Years To Afford A House In Canada & The CRA Is Coming For Influencers

Cormac: Hello and congratulations, you've just tuned in to Now On Narcity. I'm Cormac.

Lea: I'm Lea.

Brit: I'm Brit.

Tyeler: And I'm Tyeler, and welcome back to the digital dive bar. This week we've got all things TikTok and we're breaking down the Canadian real estate market. So buckle up and pull up a stool. This is gonna be a fun one.

Lea: It's time for Shot and Chaser, our weekly segment of notable headlines over the past week followed by Now On Narcity's hottest takes.

Tye: Let's go, baby!

Brit: Rapid fire, alright. An Alberta man was accused of trying to sneak into the U.S. on a kayak. He actually tried to run away from border officials when he got there, and the two of them went through an eight-kilometer foot chase before he was arrested. This is a classic case of Albertans trying to return home to the motherland!

Cormac: Every Disney store in Canada is set to shut down before the summer is over. But former workers can still visit the most magical place on Earth: the unemployment office.

Brit: Justin Bieber is facing some criticism after debuting his new dreadlocks on Instagram. Is it too late to say sorry? Yeah, probably.

Lea: Netflix just announced that it's setting up a brand new office in Toronto. Employees are expected to share their desk with six family members, four friends and a random ex.

Cormac: Honestly shout out to that ex that never changed the password.

Tyeler: Yeah, the real hero. Three major Toronto roads are transforming into giant sidewalks this weekend to encourage outdoor exercise in the city, which is actually pretty perfect because none of us can afford cars anyway.

Cormac: Doug Ford got his first COVID vaccine dose recently, going on television to encourage other people to get the AstraZeneca doses. But after he got the shot, he played dead. That's not even the kicker! That's the headline. Class clown energy we didn't know we needed.

Lea: Big class clown energy,

Cormac: Big class clown energy.

Lea: According to a list from babycenter.ca, Canada's most unique names from the past 10 years include entries like Man, Panda, and Ghostbuster.

Tyeler: Who you gonna call? Imagine your name was Ghostbuster, and you could just be like, "Who you gonna call?" and, like, such a dad joke, Tyeler! But still so funny.

Cormac: Yeah, the pickup lines write themselves.

Brit: Let's talk about the Canadian Real Estate Market because there is a lot to unpack here. And real estate stories, particularly ones pertaining to the most affordable and least affordable places in Canada and around the world are absolute tearing through our site. And the pandemic has absolutely shifted the way that people look at real estate, the way that people look at buying. People are flocking to suburban places, people are flocking out of cities. It's all very compelling. And it's all oddly relatable because we're in these positions where we're wanting to look to the future, and try and understand where we want to plant roots. And honestly, these are things I always click on and want to know about.

Cormac: Well, Toronto, I'm on the, I'm on the Toronto real estate beat a little bit here at Narcity. And those suburb prices are being driven up by people who can work from home now or, you know, there's no reason to live in a city if everything's closed. And I think I mean, eventually, travel is going to kick back in, people are going to be moving back into cities, you know, when things start opening up again. But it'll be interesting to see if the trend continues, if we hear, or if it'll stop because these suburbs are getting too expensive for people to move out of the city into. It's going to be kind of wild to keep an eye on.

Tyeler: I actually chatted with a real estate agent named Kylie, who happens to be my beautiful mum. And she has been in the real estate industry for over 15 years now. And we were chatting about this in preparation for this week's podcast. And she gave me a really interesting take, and I didn't really think about this before. And it's not something that I would typically kind of loop in with real estate in general. But she brought up an interesting point that — so, with border restrictions rolling out about a year ago, there was — and kind of continues to be — a massive dip in immigration. And if and when hopefully COVID is under control, we're going to start to see the country open back up coast to coast. And when that happens, there's going to be a massive uptick in immigration. Guys, when you think about the amount of international students that come to Canada for our universities or colleges across the country, that's a big number. And not only that, but people who are just making a move to Canada, and Canadians who are currently living downtown in big cities, or, you know, they're flocking to the suburbs, or people in the suburbs who have now been in these quiet zones for over a year. And once the city opens back up, they're going to want to move to the city. I mean, the market is just going to explode, and in turn, like prices and inventory are just going to be bananas across the country.

Brit: And I mean, there are a number of trends that we're seeing. I mean, the reason you want to be in a city is likely to either get to your office, you've like you're there for work, and you want to work or to be part of the action. But when there's no in-person work and there's no action, what do you do? I think that it's really jarred all of us and really shaken our sense of place and where we want to be. I think it's made some people feel a lot more rooted in where they are. But it's given a lot of people a flight instinct and recreational properties are flying off the shelves for lack of a better term…

Cormac: Flying off the Muskoka shelves...

Brit: Flying off the — because people don't need to be where they used to. And I think that I'm feeling very blessed to be in Canmore, where I'm surrounded by tons of beautiful natural terrain. So I've never felt super boxed in. But I know that if I were in a city right now, I'd be questioning why I'm there. And when all of those nice-to-haves are no longer available, where do I go?

Cormac: Yeah, I wrote an article about this back in November 2020. People are buying more recreational properties, and they're staying there. They're buying permanent houses as opposed to just, like, summer homes there. There's a really great quote from a Muskoka-based real estate agent Bob Clarke, who says, "The most common question used to be, 'Is the property west facing?' Now my client's biggest concern is internet quality." So people are just like, they're thinking, "Well, I'm gonna live on these, this is gorgeous, I'm gonna live here, rather than trying to cram myself into a, you know, 700 square foot Toronto apartment (which is what I'm doing), and try and live my life that way."

Lea: Totally. Especially working from home, I think people are feeling a lot more boxed in now, because all the offices are closed. So being in the same space all the time, especially a small space, usually, maybe you wouldn't be home as much, you would be out and about, you would go to work, you'd go to the gym or wherever you go. And you would probably only go home to chill, sleep or whatever you do at home after work. But I think now that you're constantly at home, people are really starting to feel the fact that their space is small —

Tyeler: Cabin fever, baby, cabin fever…

Cormac: Feeling the squeeze, yeah…

Lea: Totally, seeking out bigger spaces and places that they can spend their money wisely, instead of, you know, spending rent for an entire year just to work at home. Yeah, it's actually super interesting.

Brit: It's really put homes on the forefront. Because in the past, like there's always the apartment itself, the house itself, versus the location, lifestyle. And when location and lifestyle no longer matter or a factor in your decision, you actually really need to love your space and place and where you are. I know that when I was living in New York, I was on the 54th floor of a building. And obviously, there was no balcony. And if I was locked down in there, I would be going absolutely wild. But the thing is, is that I — it was all location, you don't think at all about the little box you're living in. But if I no longer care about being near restaurants and the office and hustle and bustle, what's the option? What's the move? And I think we know what the move is. Now it's clear people are absolutely flocking out of the metropolitan areas. The National Bank of Canada, really some data in February of 2021. And it's called the Housing Affordability Monitor. So this data is really interesting because it breaks down some Canadian cities and how much you need to make as a household to afford a condo and a non-condo. It also tells you how much you need to put away and how many months you need to save for. So the metrics I'm going to give you for each of these is what it takes for a household income to afford a condo and to afford a non-condo. So for a condo in Toronto, you need to make over $124,000 a year. So it's over six figures obviously. And for a non-condo, like a home, you need to make almost $180,000 a year.

Tyeler: Per person or per household?

Brit: Per household.

Cormac: Okay. Oh, yeah. That's way better.

Brit: So here comes the tragic part. If you're putting away 10% a month...

Cormac: Oh, here comes the tragic…

Brit: Oh yeah,it gets worse. If you're putting away 10% of your income a month of your household income, it would take 51 months to save for a condo in Toronto. Sounds bad, but it would take a whopping 289 months to save for a non-condo.

All: Gasps.

Tyeler: Dude. That — That's like, that's the 24 years.

Lea: She was so exact with it! That is exactly 24 years.

Tyeler: Around, around 24. Right. 24?

Brit: Yes. Yeah.

Cormac: It's not divisible by 12, it's "around."

Brit: So we'll be grandma and grandpappy by their first home. It's a tragic saga. And here comes Vancouver. You need to earn over $127,000 to purchase a condo, which you would need to save up 10% for 50 months. Meanwhile, to buy a home, you would need to make over $230,000 — $230,000 a year...

All: Wow.

Brit: And to purchase a home, it would take you a big fat 409 months.

All: Laughing.

Brit: Of saving. Tyler you got any quick math for us on how many years that is?

Tyeler: I think I would be passed away.

Cormac: I think that's never. If you divide that if you divide 409 by 12 you get, "It's not happening."

Brit: Yeah, no, that savings is absolutely my grandchildren's inheritance, not my house fund.

Cormac: It's approximately 34 years. 34 years of agony.

Brit: It doesn't make me feel very good.

Lea: It's been … 34 years… you know that meme?

Brit: Yes!

Tyeler: Okay, so today is Friday, April 30. And — friendly reminder to those of you like me who have not finished your taxes yet — they are due today. And funnily enough, Narcity actually published an article a few days ago in which the CRA actually reminded influencers that they have to pay taxes. Did you guys see this?

Brit: Yes!

Cormac: I did. I thought it was good. I appreciated it. I think —

Lea: They're in touch!

Cormac: The CRA is tuned in. They get it.

Lea: Yeah, their finger on the pulse.

Cormac: Can I just say really quick too. I love that the quote from the CRA is, "When posting is a source of income, the CRA considers it a business activity."

Lea: I love it. I actually love it.

Cormac: You post you pay, folks, you post you pay.

Tyeler: So when we're talking about influencers, we're not just talking about you know, huge YouTubers or folks on Instagram that have like a million followers. We're talking about people on TikTok, too. So, even though content creators and influencers in Canada on TikTok don't have access to the creator fund, they're still getting brand partnership deals. And that's a source of income, so they're gonna have to pay taxes on those.

Cormac: So when you say the creative fund from TikTok, what are you talking about?

Brit: So the creator fund is something that you can tap into once you get large enough on TikTok, but it's never existed in Canada, Canada is like the forgotten land for TikTok creators. And so the way that it works is in the States, for example, if you're a big creator, you can get a little bit, minuscule amount of money for the amount of views you're getting. And so if you're a person who's posting several times a day, and you have the potential high potential to go viral, you can actually make a pretty good chunk of change.

Tyeler: This app — TikTok — has revolutionized online shopping and e-commerce. And I mean, it totally amplifies just how powerful influencer marketing really is and just social media in general in this generation...

Brit: it's groundbreaking. Influencer marketing is groundbreaking too, because it's — it's brands that have absolutely cracked the code of "heard it from a friend marketing." When you're following an influencer, you feel like you know them intimately, particularly on TikTok, because it's not as polished as Instagram. And so if someone who feels like your friend is recommending a product, I personally feel a lot more likely to give in and buy it.

Lea: Especially when you see them using it, you see, like, you wouldn't have thought of the way that they're using it. And it's like, actually so cool, because you say, "Oh, that's actually a really good idea. I'm going to try it." And it actually drives you to buy more. So it's doing wonders for brand sales. Absolutely.

Tyeler: So this is exactly what I want to talk about when it comes to TikTok specifically, because the way that this whole kind of movement on TikTok happened — with this "TikTok made me buy it" trend — t wasn't influencer marketing. It was normal, average Joe people who were posting their experiences with products onto their channels, and then those videos going viral, for like millions of people to see. And then all of a sudden, stores are sold out of the product everywhere. No one can buy it. It's sold out online. It was just wild.

Cormac: Yeah, one of the most famous examples of that is the feta shortage that existed because of a viral TikTok recipe. I mean, literally affecting millions of people over the world suddenly couldn't get their feta because so many people were trying it out. And then also these TikTok leggings that like all of a sudden everybody on TikTok was wearing and it was the newest thing and those sold out a bunch of times as well, I think.

Tyeler: I need these leggings! I need these leggings for so many reasons.

Lea: I love them. I unfortunately cannot find them in my size. So I have looked far and wide, — searched far and wide on this great internet — to find these Amazon TikTok leggings and they don't exist and plus sizes, as far as I know. If anyone knows a link to plus-size TikTok booty leggings, please send me the link. I want a pair so badly, especially if they're like neon yellow. That's like my summer vibe.

Tyeler: That's your aura. That's your aura colour, for sure.

Lea: That is my aura. And I can't find them anywhere. We love these trends, they look amazing on TikTok, they look amazing on the bodies that we see on TikTok. And I think TikTok itself — the users on TikTok are very inclusive, there's a lot of plus-size people — regular not models — plus-size people on TikTok showing their actual bodies, and it's kind of normalizing different body sizes. But it's also important to remember, like, you don't necessarily think of it when you're consuming the content, but a lot of these trends that we're seeing, especially with clothing, they don't exist for all bodies. So that's something that's kind of unfortunate. And I just really want the leggings. So someone drop a link.

Tyeler: I also am big into the chlorophyll, the liquid chlorophyll trend right now, which is exploding...

Brit: Okay, can you break this down for me?

Tyeler: Yes. So, liquid chlorophyll, it actually trended like back at the beginning of the pandemic. It was like one of the first kind of, like, health category or nutrition category products that exploded on TikTok. And basically it's this like dark green, almost neon, liquid dropper that you put into your water and you mix it up. And it's basically like you chug this every day. And it's like got all these amazing benefits like, well, so they say. So it's like a natural deodorant, it clears your skin. It's just, like, everything you want out of out of a product or a supplement, liquid chlorophyll claims to help you achieve. So naturally, I — it was sold out everywhere when I tried to buy it. But I ended up finding it at a supplement store in Toronto. And I started using it and — I don't know. Is it a placebo effect? I don't know. People claim that it is — it totally works wonders. I mean, I think my skin was probably a bit plumper. I don't know. But I totally bought into that trend.

Lea: I got sucked into the liquid chlorophyll.

Brit: Yeah?

Lea: I didn't find it did anything.

Brit: Ooh, look at us. Just a bunch of health nuts.

Tyeler: Influenced!

Lea: You know, like, TikTok. It kind of prides itself from being kind of raw and real. And people are on there, not looking their best all the time. People are on there, like, in their sweats or no makeup and like hair, like, messy and whatever. And that's kind of completely a contrast from what we see on Instagram. And I think it prides itself on that. But we saw Instagram at first being real like that and people were sharing their lives, and then it became this kind of mass. It became this kind of mass-produced —

Tyeler: Popularity contest.

Lea: Popularity contest, exactly. And I'm hoping TikTok doesn't veer in that direction, because I think TikTok is like a gem among social media platforms. It's completely different from everything. So...

Brit: Agreed.

Cormac: Well, I don't know about you guys. I've only ever posted one video to TikTok and it got a sweet, sweet 300,000 views. So I mean, once this Creator Fund comes to Canada, I think I'm up in line. I don't think I'm very far away. But in any case, I hope Helene Boudreau is paying her taxes today. And I wish all the best to all those chlorophyll, cheddar-making TikTok influences.

All: Laughing.

Cormac: I don't know what I just said!

Tyeler: Well, that's all the news for this week. But I don't want to say "that's all the news for this week" cuz that's not true. Maybe I'll say —

Lea: You can say "Those are our trending headlines this week."

Tyeler: Fact check me on that!

Cormac: I don't think anybody's gonna go, "No it's not!"

Lea: "That's it?!"

Tyeler: You know what? Go ahead, Cormac.

Cormac: Well, that is literally every single headline that's been written or researched this week…

All: Laughing.

Lea: Our company of 100 employees published three articles this week...

Cormac: Tye, what — what stories are you looking out for in the next little while?

Tyeler: With the recent news that Netflix is opening their first Canadian office in Toronto, I am seriously crossing fingers and toes that an announcement is on its way that we're getting a Toronto edition of Selling Sunset.

Cormac: Oh, please, please give us our Canadian Christine, give us our Canadian Crishell. I would love that so much.

Brit: We need it.

Tyeler: Brit, what are you looking forward to?

Brit: Something that I have got my eye on — it's hyperlocal, so apologies if you're outside of Alberta — but Calgary and Edmonton have entered into what we're calling a Battle of Alberta, which we're familiar with, because that's what we call Flames Oilers games. But this one is a competition to see which city has the most vaccine uptake. And this started by a Twitter challenge from Edmonton Mayor to Calgary's, who accepted the challenge. Currently Edmonton is in the lead, but I have got my eye on — this is basically NHL playoffs for us here in Alberta. Lea, what's on your radar?

Lea: So the Parti Québécois, which is another provincial political party in Quebec, kind of almost unanimously voted to apply Bill 101 to the province's colleges. So if you don't know what the CEGEP system is, in Quebec, it's pre-university that you do right after high school, kind of in between high school and university, kind of vocational training or pre-University program. So 94% of the party's members approved — at a national council meeting earlier this week — that they wanted to apply Bill 101 to CEGEPS, which is not a thing currently in Quebec.

Brit: So that would mean that kids have to go to CEGEP in French as well, if their parents didn't go to English schools?

Lea: Exactly. So previously, it only applied to elementary and high schools. And it did not apply to private schools, private high schools or private elementary schools. Most English CEGEPs are public schools. So people who were able to go to English public school in the CEGEP system would not be able to under this new rule. So they would have to go to CEGEP in French, and only by University, they could choose to be educated either in English or French.

Cormac: So yeah, pretty, pretty intense ramifications if that goes through.

Lea: Well, they're not the current government. So we don't really know what's gonna happen with that. But I know that the CAQ, which is the political party that's currently active in Quebec is kind of for Bill 101. So, yeah, we'll see what happens. What about you, Cormac? What are you looking forward to?

Cormac: Well, you wouldn't know it by looking at me, talking to me or just generally thinking about me, but I'm a big sports fan.

Tyeler: Get out of town!

Cormac: I know, I know. And the Toronto Blue Jays, who have had a pretty decent start to the season, they're kind of hovering around .500 right now. They are getting a big player back from injury: George Springer, who signed in the off-season, played his Blue Jays debut earlier this week. And I'm really excited to see how the Blue Jays do with a full, fully healthy lineup going forward. I'm really, really excited for the season.

Tyeler: Me too!

Lea: Springer!

Brit: Sports language! He did really, really well.

Cormac: I'm a bro.

Lea: You're a dude bro.

Cormac: The first thing everyone should know about me is that I'm a bro. Whether you are waiting for spring from your beautiful Muskoka cottage, or simply still crammed into your 400 square foot apartment. Thank you for tuning in to Now On Narcity We're gonna be back next Friday with our third episode. I'm Cormac.

Brit: I'm Brit.

Lea: I'm Lea.

Tyeler: And I'm Tyeler, and we'll see you at the digital dive bar next week.