Millennials in Atlantic Canada most optimistic about owning homes

Do millennials think they can afford to buy a home? If they live in Atlantic Canada, the answer is a lot more likely to be yes.

That’s according to a new online survey of 1,000 Canadians aged 25 to 30, conducted by Leger Marketing from real estate firm Royal LePage.

The survey found that about 35 per cent of those aged 25 to 30 already own homes, and that figure was fairly consistent across the country.

But among those who don’t already own homes, optimism about affording one was far higher in P.E.I., Nova Scotia, New Brunswick and Newfoundland and Labrador than in the rest of the country

In Atlantic Canada, 69 per cent of those surveyed agreed with the statement “I believe I will be able to purchase a home in the next five years,” compared to 57 per cent nationwide.

The proportions who agreed they would be able to buy within five years were 59 per cent in Quebec and Ontario, 56 per cent in British Columbia, 50 per cent in Alberta and 51 per cent in Manitoba and Saskatchewan.

The optimism in the east may not be all that surprising, considering that Royal LePage’s benchmark price for a typical home of any type in Moncton is just $181,361, compared to $472,798 in Calgary, $843,590 in Toronto and $1,385,431 in Vancouver.

What will surprise some observers is that, despite a reputation for wanting their cake and eating it too, about six in 10 (61 per cent) of the millennials surveyed agreed that they would be willing to move to another city or suburb where property is more affordable.

Some real estate agents say that’s already happening. Glenn Larkin, Royal LePage agent in St. John’s, Nfld., says that telecommuters from elsewhere in Canada are opting to save money by moving to St. John’s, where the benchmark price is $320,164.

“They’re mobile,” he said of millennials. “They can work from anywhere in a lot of cases.”

With files from NTV

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