Half of renters might leave GTA
High cost of housing has many thinking about moving from city, survey shows
Toronto renters who hope to one day buy a home are contemplating leaving the city in droves, based on an increasingly unaffordable real estate market, according to a new study.
More than half of renters living in the Greater Toronto Area — some 59 per cent — are “seriously” considering moving from the region because there is no chance of affording the kind of home or condominium that would allow them to live comfortably, or raise a family, an Angus Reid Institute study shows. That sentiment is shared by 38 per cent of owners as well, the study shows.
“They want to put down roots, but it is a serious thought that they might want to leave the region,” said Dave Korzinski, research associate with Angus Reid. That level of potential migration should “be concerning for people who want to set policy,” he said.
Most people living in the GTA, including homeowners, want the provincial government to help improve affordability, with 75 per cent of Toronto residents surveyed voicing support for new and multi-faceted policies to control an overheated housing market, a position shared by 64 per cent of the people sur- veyed, the study shows.
Angus Reid surveyed 831 people across the GTA and of that group, 473 identified as homeowners — living in both condos and detached houses — 253 said they rented, 97 lived with their parents and eight said they did not own or rent.
The high cost of housing was identified by 54 per cent of people surveyed as the top concern for the region, up from 36 per cent in an Angus Reid study conducted in 2015, the results show.
In Toronto, a detached home cost an average of $1.35 million, according to the July 2018 Market Watch report from the Toronto Real Estate Board. In Peel Region, the price was about $911,000, with homes in Mississauga selling for more than $1 million.
In 2018, the average market rent for a one-bedroom apartment was $1,202 a month for purpose-built rentals and not condos, according to the Canada Mortgage and Housing Corporation. That average figure only accounts for rented units and once apartments in Ontario are vacant, landlords can charge whatever they want.
Rising housing costs are forcing Joel Chambers, 28, and his common-law partner out of Toronto. Chambers has lived in the city for 10 years and is preparing to leave. In the past two years, the couple was pushed from two rented condos, through a legal process where owners can claim they want the unit for personal use.
Facing rents of $2,200 a month and no chance of affording a home, but wanting to start a family, they decided to move outside of Ottawa.
“When we first decided to move, I was going to give up on my career completely. I was going to take any job and get a house and make it work,” said Chambers, who works in film post-production and visual effects. They considered living in Ajax or Hamilton, but some simple math on commuting costs quickly blew up that plan.
He was able to find work in a similar field and the couple bought a three-bedroom detached bungalow on about a half acre of land for less than $300,000, he said.