Toronto ranked as the top city Canadians want to move to

Jul 16 2019, 9:24 pm

With the real estate prices continuing to skyrocket in many Canadian cities, buying a home can feel out of reach for many.

Yet, homeownership is still a major goal for most, which is why a new survey from Finder, a personal finance comparison website, found that 54% of Canadians are willing to move cities in order to afford a home.

And it turns out Toronto is the number one spot Canadians want to relocate to, despite being one of the most expensive cities in the country to buy a home.

According to the survey, 10% of respondents, the equivalent of about three million Canadian adults, said they’d move to Toronto in order to be able to buy a place.

Over a quarter of Generation Z would happily move to Toronto while just 3.5% of those from the prairie provinces said the same.

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Halifax and Catharines/Niagara round out the top three most desirable cities for Canadians to relocate to, while the least number of respondents would consider moving to Regina, Whistler, and Windsor out of the 22 cities included in the study.

The study also found that demographics influence whether someone is open to relocating and where they’re willing to move to.

For example, Toronto is the top pick for Gen Z, Millennials, and those aged 35 to 44, but it ranked fourth for 45-54-year-olds, eighth for 55-64-year-olds and 18th for those 65+.

While Gen Z adults are the most willing to move, just 2.13% said they’d move to Halifax which ranks in the top five cities for every other demographic.

“With more than half of the adult population open to moving cities to own their own home, the study suggests that the dream of homeownership is very much alive and well,” said Finder’s Global Editor in Chief Angus Kidman.

“Just because a city is popular doesn’t necessarily mean it’s a great place to live. To avoid moving somewhere you’ll regret, consider renting beforehand to see if the areas you like are affordable and if it’s a good lifestyle fit for you.”

Where Canadians are willing to move to buy a home:

  1. Toronto
  2. Halifax
  3. St Catharines/Niagara
  4. Ottawa
  5. Kelowna
  6. London
  7. Kitchener
  8. Montreal
  9. Calgary
  10. Vancouver
  11. Victoria
  12. St Johns
  13. Hamilton
  14. Canmore
  15. Winnipeg
  16. Quebec
  17. Edmonton
  18. Oshawa
  19. Saskatoon
  20. Windsor
  21. Whistler
  22. Regina

You can find the full study here.

Ainsley SmithAinsley Smith

+ Toronto Homes
+ Urbanized
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