Rent-weary millennials not rushing into homeownership

BMO study says generation is still willing to wait

Canadian housing prices continue to rise, but prospective millennial first-time homebuyers are in no rush to enter the market.

According to a report released by the Bank of Montreal, while 60 per cent of millennials surveyed are tired of paying rent, 70 per cent would rather delay homeownership until they can get what they really want in a home.

This comes at a time when millennials are expecting to pay more for their first homes than previous years, exceeding $350,000 on average nationally. That figure rises to more than $465,000 and $525,000 for Toronto and Vancouver respectively.

The report, conducted by Pollara, revealed that almost all millennials (89 per cent) there is value in homeownership, but are willing to defer the decision to own until it is personally right for them. Three-quarters of those surveyed shared that they don't feel pressured to buy sooner (73 per cent).

More millennials view buying a home in terms of making an investment decision rather than achieving an important milestone (66 per cent compared to 55 per cent). Perhaps it's no wonder then, that many worry about making that investment only to find something wrong with the home they've purchased (78 per cent), or to experience a drop in the value of their property (66 per cent).