Canadian Housing Statistics Program, 2024
Released: 2026-08-26
In 2023, the median family income of first-time homebuyers was lower than that of repeat buyers in all jurisdictions for which data were available, except in British Columbia, where similar median incomes were reported for both groups.
These findings are from new data combining 2024 information on residential properties and their owners with 2023 information on home sales and buyers. The data are from Statistics Canada's Canadian Housing Statistics Program and cover all provinces and territories, except Quebec. For the variables included in this release, data are available only for Nova Scotia, New Brunswick, Manitoba, British Columbia and Yukon.
Considering the recent decline in homeownership across Canada, it is important to understand affordability pressures among homebuyers. In jurisdictions where first-time homebuyers had less income than repeat buyers, the extent of the income gap varied across provinces and territories.
In Yukon, for example, the median family income of first-time homebuyers was $155,000, compared with $180,000 for repeat buyers—the largest gap across all jurisdictions examined. This compared with a median family income of $135,750 in the territory overall.
Age differences between first-time homebuyers and repeat buyers could be a factor driving the gap observed in Yukon. The median age was 32 years for first-time homebuyers and 44 years for repeat buyers. This raises the possibility that repeat buyers have had more time to increase their remuneration and accumulate wealth.
Chart 1
First-time home buyers have higher family incomes than the median family in all jurisdictions covered
The gap between the family income of first-time homebuyers and repeat buyers was smaller in 2023 than in 2021 across all provinces covered. In 2021, New Brunswick had the largest difference between both groups ($22,100), which narrowed to $10,000 in 2023. The gap grew larger in Yukon, from $16,700 in 2021 to $25,000 in 2023.
Note to readers
Data from Statistics Canada's Canadian Housing Statistics Program (CHSP) for the 2022 to 2024 reference years are now available, including information about the reference years of the property stock, by province and territory. The data exclude properties on reserves and non-residential properties.
An improved linkage between owners and individual tax data has enhanced data quality. Further, information on non-resident ownership in the Calgary and Edmonton census metropolitan areas (CMA) is now available for the 2024 reference year.
Improved linkage rates also result in differences between 2023 and 2024 counts and proportions for variables in all provinces and territories. As a result, year-over-year comparisons of the overall counts and proportions for residency status and occupancy status should be made with caution for the 2024 reference year. Specifically, fluctuations from 2023 to 2024 in rates of owner-occupied and non-resident-owned properties may reflect both real-world changes and methodological improvements, but the effects of these factors cannot be distinguished.
The CHSP data tables contain information on incomes and other dollar amounts in current dollars. However, Chart 1 is expressed in 2023 constant dollars to account for inflation.
Geographical boundaries
In CHSP releases, data are based on the geographical boundaries from the Standard Geographical Classification 2021. The CHSP database does not contain information about residential properties in Quebec or on reserves.
Definitions
Residential properties refer to properties containing at least one dwelling and exclude properties that are exclusively vacant land.
First-time homebuyer refers to a person who purchased a residential property during the reference period and did not own a residential property previously. It includes buyers who claimed the Home Buyers' Amount and buyers whose spouse or common-law partner was a buyer in the same sale and claimed the amount.
For the purposes of this release, a repeat buyer refers to a person who purchased a residential property during the reference period and was not a first-time homebuyer.
A census metropolitan area is formed by one or more adjacent municipalities centred on a population centre (known as the core). A CMA must have a total population of at least 100,000, of which 50,000 or more must live in the core. To be included in the CMA, other adjacent municipalities must have a high degree of integration with the core, as measured by commuting flows derived from data on place of work from the previous census.
Contact information
For more information, or to enquire about the concepts, methods or data quality of this release, contact us (toll-free 1-800-263-1136; 514-283-8300; infostats@statcan.gc.ca) or Media Relations (statcan.mediahotline-ligneinfomedias.statcan@statcan.gc.ca).
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