By Emma Marshall on April 1, 2010
Estimated reading time: 1 minute

Homes unaffordable for 20% of Canadians

By Emma Marshall on April 1, 2010
Estimated reading time: 1 minute

Many struggle to meet mortgage payments.

This article is 11 years old. Some details may be outdated.

A shaky housing market has left one-fifth of Canadians grappling to afford their homes, a recent Conference Board of Canada report has revealed. Due to a deficiency in affordable housing nation-wide, 20% of the population is being left with no other choice but to cut costs in order to keep a roof over their heads. Experts worry that the situation will only worsen if mortgage rates continue to increase. This news comes in the wake of both CIBC and National Bank announcing that they will be increasing their rates by more than half a point — with an additional spike still expected this summer. Five of Canada’s largest banks are hiking the rates on their five-year mortgage plans, from 5.25% to 5.85%.