Winnipeggers wanting to one day buy a home are 'trying to climb a hill that's just too steep'
Owning a home may be out of reach for many Canadians according to new data from CIBC, and for one Winnipegger, the prospect of owning their own home is starting to feel like an impossible goal.
"It's kind of like trying to climb a hill that's just too steep," said 31-year-old Aaron Laferriere.
He's been renting for more than a decade. He does want to own a home one day, but feels like that's not in the cards.
"To own like a normal home that you see in the movies or shows that these people are living in, it like that doesn't even seem possible."
According to a new CIBC survey, 76 per cent of Canadians who don't own a home yet feel the same way.
The survey of more than 2,200 Canadians found overpriced markets and the inability to save for a down payment are the main barriers. Fifty-five per cent said they'll only be able to afford a home with inheritance or financial help from their family.
"Me and most of my friends in my generation, if you're not already born into a rich family or have dual income, it seems unfeasible," Laferriere said. "It seems not even possible to own a home."
The CIBC survey found 48 per cent of Canadians are thinking about moving outside major cities to get more bang for their buck, while about a quarter of those surveyed say they would consider buying a home with friends.
This comes as Royal LePage's quarterly update released Friday found the median price of a single-family detached home in Winnipeg increased 5.9 per cent year over year to $431,000.
The federal government has announced a slew of housing initiatives in the lead-up to the federal budget. Those initiatives include raising the amortization period to 30 years for first-time buyers purchasing newly built homes, and increasing the amount first-time homebuyers can withdraw from their RRSPs – upping it to $60,000.
While in Manitoba, Premier Wab Kinew said his $1,500 Homeowners Affordability Tax Credit will save money for Manitobans who buy their first home.
"When you start to run the calculations, you look at the property listing of the house you got your eye on, you run the monthly expenses, $1,500 difference towards the good – that's going to put the dream of homeownership within reach for more Manitobans," Kinew said at a news conference on Friday.
He said the province is also looking to boost housing supply.
"We're not going to be able to change everything overnight as a provincial government, but we're going to be there to help you buy your first home."
Laferriere is hopeful these measures will help, because right now he said browsing Winnipeg's house listings is just depressing.
"It doesn't seem within the cards," he said.
The CIBC survey was conducted between Feb. 23 and 29, 2024, surveying several different random samplings of Canadian homeowners and non-homeowners. The results carry a margin of error between +/- 2.5 per cent to 8.6 per cent.
CTVNews.ca Top Stories
Indian envoy warns of 'big red line,' days after charges laid in Nijjar case
India's envoy to Canada insists relations between the two countries are positive overall, despite what he describes as 'a lot of noise.'
Stormy Daniels describes meeting Trump during occasionally graphic testimony in hush money trial
With Donald Trump sitting just feet away, Stormy Daniels testified Tuesday at the former president's hush money trial about a sexual encounter the porn actor says they had in 2006 that resulted in her being paid to keep silent during the presidential race 10 years later.
U.S. paused bomb shipment to Israel to signal concerns over Rafah invasion, official says
The U.S. paused a shipment of bombs to Israel last week over concerns that Israel was approaching a decision on launching a full-scale assault on the southern Gaza city of Rafah against the wishes of the U.S.
Former homicide detective explains how police will investigate shooting outside Drake's Bridle Path mansion
Footage from dozens of security cameras in the area of Drake’s Bridle Path mansion could be the key to identifying the suspect responsible for shooting and seriously injuring a security guard outside the rapper’s sprawling home early Tuesday morning, a former Toronto homicide detective says.
Northern Ont. woman makes 'eggstraordinary' find
A chicken farmer near Mattawa made an 'eggstraordinary' find Friday morning when she discovered one of her hens laid an egg close to three times the size of an average large chicken egg.
Susan Buckner, who played spirited cheerleader Patty Simcox in 'Grease,' dead at 72
Susan Buckner, best known for playing peppy Rydell High School cheerleader Patty Simcox in the 1978 classic movie musical 'Grease,' has died. She was 72.
Jeremy Skibicki has 'uphill battle' to prove he's not criminally responsible in Winnipeg killings: legal analysts
Accused killer Jeremy Skibicki could have a challenging time convincing a judge that he is not criminally responsible for the deaths of four Indigenous women, a legal analyst says.
Bye-bye bag fee: Calgary repeals single-use bylaw
A Calgary bylaw requiring businesses to charge a minimum bag fee and only provide single-use items when requested has officially been tossed.
Alcohol believed to be a factor in boating incident after 2 men die: N.S. RCMP
Two Nova Scotia men are dead after a boat they were travelling in sank in the Annapolis River in Granville Centre, N.S., on Monday.