According to a recent Royal LePage survey of Canadians living in the greater regions of Toronto, Montreal and Vancouver, 51 per cent of respondents say they would consider buying a primary residence in a more affordable city, if they were able to find a local job or work remotely.
“Home prices in Canada’s largest cities have moderated over the past couple of years, but for many buyers, the math still doesn’t work,” said Phil Soper, president and CEO, Royal LePage. “As barriers to entry remain high in the country’s most expensive urban centres, relocating to a more affordable city is becoming less of a last resort and more of a deliberate strategy.
“Aspiring homeowners who cannot secure a foothold in these markets are seriously weighing their options, and renters – unburdened by existing roots – are more likely to make that move than established homeowners.”
The survey found Sherbrooke is the most popular relocation destination among residents of the Greater Montreal Area; 29 per cent of respondents say they would consider purchasing a primary residence in Sherbrooke. Meanwhile, Edmonton is once again the top-ranking choice among respondents in the Greater Toronto Area (16 per cent) and Greater Vancouver (18 per cent). Fifty-five per cent of respondents in the GTA say they would also consider purchasing a home in Thunder Bay (15 per cent), Charlottetown (14 per cent) and Windsor-Essex (14 per cent).
Recent data from Royal Lepage analyzed 62 cities across Canada. Lethbridge tops the list of most affordable cities, where 18.9 per cent of a household’s monthly income would be required to service a mortgage payment. The Alberta city, followed by Saint John, takes over the top spot from Thunder Bay (currently ranked third), which was as the country’s most affordable market in 2024. Red Deer and Regina round out the top five, where no more than 25.0 per cent of a household’s monthly income is needed to service a mortgage payment.
“Younger Canadians – often less anchored to one community in particular – are well-positioned to make the move to another city or province, with the flexibility to put down roots where housing is more attainable,” noted Soper. “What has shifted, however, is the ease of doing so. The remote work era gave buyers the freedom to live anywhere while earning a competitive wage. As more workers return to the office, that freedom is becoming harder to come by.”
More than half of respondents who rent their home say they would consider buying a primary residence in one of Canada’s 15 most affordable cities. When broken out by generation, younger people are more likely to relocate in order to access more affordable housing: 77 per cent of Gen Z respondents and 56 per cent of Millennials say they would consider buying a primary residence, compared to 51 per cent of Gen X and 34 per cent of Baby Boomer respondents.
Fifty-five per cent of all respondents who say that they would consider relocating stated a lower cost of living as the main incentive to buy a property; 42 per cent say they desire a more relaxed pace of life; and, 41 per cent say they want to be closer to nature and live in a less populated area. Respondents were able to select more than one answer.
“An important but often overlooked trend in Canadian real estate has been the compression of home prices between regions,” said Soper. “During the pandemic boom, the gap between Canada’s most expensive markets and mid-sized cities widened dramatically. Since then, the reverse has occurred. Home values in Toronto and Vancouver have softened while cities such as Ottawa, Montreal and Regina have held their ground or continued to appreciate.
“The result is a narrower pricing spread. For many Canadians, the question is no longer simply whether they can afford a home, but where they can achieve the best balance of affordability, career opportunity and quality of life. If this trend continues, the financial incentive to relocate will diminish, and we can expect fewer households to seriously consider moving solely in pursuit of lower housing costs.”
