Shared goals for property important for Millennials
August 02, 2019
According to a report by Beyond the Bricks, the majority of Canadian Millennials (61 per cent) feel anxious about buying a property – so much so that shared financial (39 per cent) or property (33 per cent) goals were more important than looks when considering a potential future partner for daters.
As well, this cohort is more likely to say they had stayed in a bad relationship due to property (16 per cent) than Canadians on average (six per cent). The report is based on an HSBC-sponsored annual global survey of close to 12,000 adults in 10 countries, including 1,077 adults in Canada, exploring attitudes to homeownership.
More than half of all Canadian Millennials feel overwhelmed about buying a property compared to one in five Baby Boomers.
The applications, land surveys, fees and contracts associated with the mortgage process were the biggest source of tension for all age groups in Canada (25 per cent), although this was most pronounced for Millennials (33 per cent).
However, once they got past the stressors and found the right partner, 68 per cent of Canadian Millennials said financial considerations drove their last house move.
The top two reasons were getting more house for their money (25.5 per cent), or a lower cost of living (23.4 per cent). Interestingly, 14 per cent said the biggest source of tension was accepting money from their parents to purchase a home.
“The anxiety Millennials (and others) feel is justified. Close to 70 per cent of Canadians own their home but less than 30 per cent do so without a mortgage. It’s good to be a little nervous about the biggest purchase you’ll likely ever make. But you shouldn’t be overwhelmed,” says Barry Gollom, senior vice-president of retail banking and wealth management products and propositions at HSBC Bank Canada.
Other findings include:
- To afford their new home, 30 per cent of Canadians were more likely than their global peers to cut back on day-to-day spending; 20 per cent on major expenditures like car purchases and luxury items; 29 per cent cut or curtailed their social life.
- Globally, respondents similarly cut back on major expenditures and socializing but 35 per cent (versus six per cent) were far more likely to delay having a child and 11 per cent were far less likely to cut back on day-to-day spending than Canadians.