Surprises in homebuyer survey

March 26, 2018

According to the Prospective Home Buyers Survey just released by Canada Mortgage and Housing Corp., making an investment is among the top motivators driving Canadian home homebuyers this year.
First-time buyers still ranked “stop renting” as a key reason to purchase, but “improved accessibility” was ranked high for the majority – 74 per cent – who wished to buy a detached house.
These desires  - investment and accessibility - ranked higher than fears of mortgage rate increases as buyer drivers, which is something of a surprise.
Another surprise is the rather naïve expectation of prices. While the majority wanted to buy a detached house, more than half of potential buyers said they planned to spend less than $300,000 and 25 per cent planned to spend less than $500,000. In Canada, the current combined benchmark home price is $501,000, according to the Canadian Real Estate Association.
The study found that 19 per cent of first-time buyers and 21 per cent of repeat buyers were looking to buy a new home, rather than a resale unit.
Among those who plan to purchase a home that requires renovations, roughly four out of every 10 first-time buyers and previous owners plan to spend $10,000 to $20,000 on renovations. Of current home owners looking to buy, 44 per cent said they would spend up to $50,000 on renovations for their next home.