A leger poll commissioned by the FP (formally the financial planning standards council) found that parents are not just helping their kids with a downpayment on a home, but are helping them pay their rent as well. Benjamin Tal, Deputy Chief Economist with CIBC wasn’t surprised stating that
“Rent is extremely expensive, and we see parents helping,” he said Monday. “The first way was parents helping with kids buying a house. We see a record high number of young people relying on their parents for a down payment.”
The poll found that 48% of respondents said they would be helping their children with a downpayment for a home, a third of which said they would postpone their retirement in order to help with the downpayment. Tal said we are witnessing “the biggest financial contribution of one generation to another ever”.
Tal worries that the affordability issue signifies an income gap that will be past on to future generations through real estate. Tal believes one of the ways we can address the affordability issue is by building more purpose-built apartments.
Leave a Reply