Yahoo Finance 'The deck is clearly stacked': Canadians 18 to 29 say parents had it easier
Nearly 90 per cent of Canadians aged 18 to 29 feel their parents had an easier time buying a home or starting a family, according to a new poll examining economic pessimism among young people.
The Macdonald-Laurier Institute says it gathered opinions from 1,509 young Canadians last month who were born or went to school in this country. According to the Ottawa-based think tank, less than 40 per cent expect to top their parents' standard of living. Only 25 per cent believe the economy will improve in the next five years, and 34 per cent expect to see their earnings increase.
The findings come amid rising fears of a recession in some of the world's largest economies, including Canada's, as central banks raise borrowing costs in a bid to tamp down inflation. While housing prices have cooled in some of the country's hottest real estate markets, affordability remains a challenge for many potential buyers.
The Macdonald-Laurier Institute found 86 per cent of respondents believe their parents faced fewer obstacles when buying homes and starting families. According to the poll, only half see home ownership as an achievable goal.
"The deck is clearly stacked against young Canadians on many metrics," Macdonald-Laurier Institute policy consultant Blair Gibbs, and domestic policy program director Aaron Wudrick, wrote in commentary accompanying the poll.
Earlier this month, Royal LePage Real Estate Services polled Canadian millennials, aged 26 to 41. The results show 62 per cent of respondents under the age of 35 believe they will own a home one day, compared to 56 per cent of those aged 35 and up.
In June, a poll by Chartered Professional Accountants Canada found that just 21 per cent of non-homeowner respondents believe it is very likely they will own a home one day, and 29 per cent said it is somewhat likely.
Jeff Lagerquist is a senior reporter at Yahoo Finance Canada. Follow him on Twitter @jefflagerquist.
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