Positive Prognosis for Population & Housing!
I had the pleasure of taking part in Royal LePage’s 2023 Kick Off Webinar this January as presented by our outstanding national leader and CEO Phil Soper. The future success and strength of our company, country, and real estate market is very exciting. I’d like to share some key takeaway’s with you from this year’s presentation. Specifically, how our growing population is geared to drive our national housing market forward in the years to come.
Last year Canada experienced the biggest population growth that we’ve had in 50 years with 2.25% more Canadians being counted by the 4th quarter of 2022. As of January 2023 our population is estimated at 39,292,555 people, according to Statistics Canada. 93.5% of this growth can be attributed to International Migration. And it’s no surprise that this is the case when we realize that “We The North” tops the charts in several key global categories.
According to U.S. News and World Report, Global Surveys, and Forbe’s…Canada is the #1 country in the world where people would most like to live (New Zealand was 2nd). We are also considered the best country to start a career in (USA was number 6). Another chart topper is that Canada is the #1 choice for international students wanting to study abroad (#3 for the destination that these students actually end up studying in). Finally, we also have 3 of the top ten best cities to live in, in the world: Calgary was ranked #3, Vancouver #5, and Toronto #8. Wait until people discover Lethbridge!
Our country is planning to gain 1.9 million new permanent residents by the year 2025! The majority of these new comers (more than 60%) are coming to Canada for economic reasons, about 24% because of “family” , and only 15% due to refugee or humanitarian reasons. In comparison our neighbours below the 49th parallel only have 13.5% of new arrivals due to economic reasons, and almost 69% due to “family”. When we say economic reasons we mean that the primary purpose of moving is to fill jobs, pursue careers, and create business opportunity for themselves, their families, and our communities. These people are coming to Canada with savings $, skills, knowledge, and enthusiasm. With respect to the international student segment it’s significant to see that in 2022 we had 621,565 students from other countries studying in Canada who contributed an estimated 22 billion dollars to our economy as a whole!
So how does all of this movement to Canada impact our real estate market? It’s simple…people need homes! Owning a home is arguably still the best way Canadians can grow and increase their equity and wealth over time, not to mention achieve a higher level of lifestyle independence as opposed to renting. New comers to Canada recognize this as well. Furthermore, it is estimated that 4 million millennials plan to buy a home in the next 5 years, and 40% of baby boomers have at least half of their overall currently wealth in real estate.
This housing climate also captures the attention of rental property investors as the supply of tenants will increase as well. Tenants need a place to live while they are saving and positioning themselves to become home buyers. So for a multitude of reasons (not all of which are discussed in this post) the attraction of owning property is not expected to diminish in the near future across Canada.
All of the information I’ve shared with you so far in this blog comes together profoundly when we consider this final piece of the puzzle…Canada falls behind in 1 key global statistic: We come in LAST PLACE for G7 countries in Housing Units per Capita. In fact it is estimated that statistically our country has a housing shortage of 1.8 million homes! Once again the age old adage comes to mind. Don’t wait to buy real estate, buy real estate and wait.
Keith Pushor has been a licensed Realtor since 1994 servicing the Lethbridge and area market. He publishes a semi-regular BLOG about adventures in his real estate, cycling, and outdoor life in general. The information presented in this BLOG, while being reliable, is ultimately only the perspectives and opinions of Keith Pushor and do not necessarily reflect those of Royal LePage South Country.
