Canadians are willing to make compromises to afford a home that better meets their needs, a new survey from Re/Max finds.
The survey, released Wednesday, said 65 per cent of respondents would compromise in at least one way to afford a larger or more suitable place to live. Such compromises might include living further away from city centres or choosing an older home that may need renovations.
“Rather than giving up on home ownership, Canadians are making different choices about how to get there. For some, that means looking outside their current community or reconsidering the type of home they buy,” Don Kottick, president of Re/Max Canada, said in a news release.
“For others, it means making different financial choices. Buyers are identifying what matters most and where they have room to be flexible.”
The survey found that 63 per cent indicated they would relocate for a home that better fits their needs, including 47 per cent who said they would move up to an hour from the community they currently live in.
Re/Max said the report comes amid a slowdown for the housing market. Data from its own brokers and agents shows home sales saw annual declines in 81 per cent of markets that were analyzed over the first half of the year. During the period, average home prices increased across 56 per cent of markets.
Slower sales and more choice in certain markets could provide more time to compare properties, Re/Max said, allowing buyers to keep focused on their top priorities.
“The market has not become easy for buyers, but in many regions, it is allowing for a more deliberate purchasing process,” said Kottick in the release.
“That matters for people who are already rethinking location, property type or condition to make the numbers work. More time and choice can help buyers compare their options and understand where their budget goes further without feeling like they have to compromise.”
Conditions favourable to buyers are also more common than anticipated heading into the year, Re/Max said, with 32 per cent of markets analyzed currently in buyers’ favour, compared with 15.2 per cent a year earlier.
Canadians were also willing to make trade-offs beyond the property itself in order to afford a home, Re/Max found. Forty-one per cent of respondents said they would reduce discretionary spending, like travel and dining out, while 24 per cent said they would extend their amortization period.
Seventeen per cent would take on a second job or another source of income to afford a home. Another 17 per cent said they would delay retirement or other longer-term savings.
The online survey was conducted by Leger between July 17 and July 19, and responses were taken from 1,532 Canadian adults.
The Canadian Research Insights Council, an industry organization that promotes polling standards, says online surveys cannot be assigned a margin of error because they do not randomly sample the population.