Four in 10 Ontario college and university graduates do not believe they will ever be able to buy a home, according to new polling from the Ontario Real Estate Association (OREA).
The findings, drawn from a survey of graduates across the province, point to a widening gap between young Ontarians' ambitions and the realities of the housing market — particularly in the Greater Toronto Area, where prices remain among the highest in Canada.
Despite the pessimism, the desire to own a home hasn't disappeared. The polling found 75 per cent of graduates still want to own residential property, while 80 per cent support government intervention to address affordability.
The results are contained in an OREA report titled The Impact of Student Loan Debt on Homeownership, which identifies student debt as a major barrier to buying a first home for young Ontario residents. According to the report, 42 per cent of graduates are considering leaving Ontario for provinces with a lower cost of living and more affordable housing.
"Whether you grew up in North Bay, Sudbury or Thunder Bay, you always believed that if you played by the rules, you got your degree, you saved a few dollars, you could buy a home in the neighbourhood at least where you grew up in," said OREA CEO Tim Hudak, who led the Ontario Progressive Conservative Party from 2009 to 2014.
"But, sadly, with student debt loads and the cost of housing, that Canadian dream is fading away."
Realtors quoted by CTV News said the challenge begins even before the purchase. Young adults are struggling to find rentals, and those who do look at buying often encounter properties that aren't liveable.
"If they're buying something under $200,000, that means that it's going to require a lot of work," Michelle Hagerty of the Timmins, Cochrane, Timiskaming Districts Association of Realtors told CTV News.
"And they definitely don't have the money to put into all those renovations."
Hagerty said she advises clients to meet with a mortgage agent to learn what they can realistically afford, and to keep making savings contributions — even if that stretches out the period over which they repay their student loans.
Adam Haight of the Sudbury Real Estate Association suggested would-be buyers look at homes with income potential, such as multi-family units. "Something where you can, maybe, rent out the basement or something like that, might pay off some of the debt," he said.
The affordability debate has also reached the federal level, with Parliament back in session and party leaders trading criticism over the country's housing record.
In an earlier statement, Hudak praised federal Conservative Leader Pierre Poilievre's housing plan, calling it "exactly what we need if we want to solve the housing affordability crisis" and saying it links transit and infrastructure funding to housing completions.
Hudak has also called for cooperation among all levels of government and political parties toward a goal of building 1.5 million more homes by 2031.
