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Some households provide money, goods and services directly to help other households: these interhousehold transfers add up to a sizeable flow of economic resources between households. While measured by Statistics Canada surveys, voluntary interhousehold transfers are not included in the recipient household's total income. This article examines the conceptual and measurement issues related to voluntary interhousehold transfers, and provides a profile of voluntary interhousehold transfers in Canada. It uses recent data on interhousehold transfers from income, expenditure and wealth surveys.

Households provide money, goods and services directly to help other households: these inter-household transfers add up to a sizable flow of economic resources between households. While measured by Statistics Canada surveys, inter-household transfers are not included in the recipient household's total income-except court-ordered alimony and child support payments. Because inter-household transfers affect a household's ability to consume goods (Smeeding and Weinburg, 2001), they are important in measuring a household's economic well-being. This paper examines the conceptual and measurement issues related to voluntary inter-household transfers, and provides a portrait of voluntary inter-household transfer in Canada. This paper uses the recent data on inter-household transfers from Statistics Canada's income, expenditure, and wealth surveys.

Mortgages consistently account for two-thirds of Canadians' household debt. This study uses the Survey of Household Spending to examine the characteristics of mortgagees and the size of their payments. It focuses on mortgage payments expressed as a percentage of disposable income-the mortgage-liability ratio. This analysis highlights differences in personal characteristics, and spending and saving patterns among households with higher and lower mortgage-liability ratios.

Previous studies of older Canadians well-being have focused on changes in income as individuals age and leave the workforce. However, little has been published on the extent to which consumption levels change in this transitional period. This study uses data from the Survey of Family Expenditures and the Survey of Household Spending to develop a synthetic cohort approach to determine how the consumption patterns of households headed by those born in the late 1930s changed from middle age (in the early 1980s) to retirement (in the late 2000s).

Studies of pre- and post-retirement annual income have focused on the extent to which income falls at this crucial stage in life. Although these studies vary in scope and intent, the overall consensus is that the Canadian retirement income system provides income replacement rates that are in the excess of 60% to 70% for a plurality of Canadians, especially for those who had low incomes during their prime working years. However, little has been published on the extent to which retirees maintain their same levels of consumption. Using data from the Survey of Family Expenditures (FAMEX) and from the Survey of Household Spending (SHS), this study develops a synthetic cohort approach to determine how the consumption patterns of households headed by individuals in their late 40s (in the early 1980s) differ from those of a group of households headed by individuals in their early 70s (in the late 2000s). It finds that, even though the nature of consumption changes over time, the overall levels of consumption "per adult" do not decline by substantial amounts among Canadians as they age.

This report describes the quality indicators produced for the 2009 Survey of Household Spending. These quality indicators, such as coefficients of variation, nonresponse rates, slippage rates and imputation rates, help users interpret the survey data.

This publication presents statistical highlights and key tables from the Survey of Household Spending (SHS). This annual survey collects information about expenditures by households and families in Canada on a wide variety of goods and services, as well as their dwelling characteristics and possession of household equipment such as appliances, audio and video equipment, and vehicles. The publication also includes analytical text, summary-level tables, a detailed table, notes and definitions, and information about survey methodology and data quality.

This report describes the quality indicators produced for the 2007 Survey of Household Spending. These quality indicators, such as coefficients of variation, nonresponse rates, slippage rates and imputation rates, help users interpret the survey data.

This report describes the quality indicators produced for the 2008 Survey of Household Spending. These quality indicators, such as coefficients of variation, nonresponse rates, slippage rates and imputation rates, help users interpret the survey data.

This report describes the quality indicators produced for the 2004 Survey of Household Spending. These quality indicators, such as coefficients of variation, nonresponse rates, slippage rates and imputation rates, help users interpret the survey data.

This table is part of the "Social and Economic Characteristics of Individuals, Families and Households" topic, which shows 2001 Census data on social and economic characteristics at the family level, including labour force activity of parents with young children, and data on housing costs, including gross rent, owner's major payments, housing affordability and owner's expected selling price.

This table can be found in the Topic Bundle: Social and Economic Characteristics of Individuals, Families and Households, 2001 Census, Catalogue No. 97F0021XCB2001000.

It is also possible to subscribe to all the day-of-release bundles. For more information, refer to Catalogue No. 97F0023XCB.

This table is available FREE on the Internet, Catalogue No. 97F0021XIE2001006.

This table is part of the "Social and Economic Characteristics of Individuals, Families and Households" topic, which shows 2001 Census data on social and economic characteristics at the family level, including labour force activity of parents with young children, and data on housing costs, including gross rent, owner's major payments, housing affordability and owner's expected selling price.

This table can be found in the Topic Bundle: Social and Economic Characteristics of Individuals, Families and Households, 2001 Census, Catalogue No. 97F0021XCB2001000.

It is also possible to subscribe to all the day-of-release bundles. For more information, refer to Catalogue No. 97F0023XCB.

This table is available FREE on the Internet, Catalogue No. 97F0021XIE2001007.

This table is part of the "Social and Economic Characteristics of Individuals, Families and Households" topic, which shows 2001 Census data on social and economic characteristics at the family level, including labour force activity of parents with young children, and data on housing costs, including gross rent, owner's major payments, housing affordability and owner's expected selling price.

This table can be found in the Topic Bundle: Social and Economic Characteristics of Individuals, Families and Households, 2001 Census, Catalogue No. 97F0021XCB2001000.

It is also possible to subscribe to all the day-of-release bundles. For more information, refer to Catalogue No. 97F0023XCB.

This table is available FREE on the Internet, Catalogue No. 97F0021XIE2001008.

This table is part of the "Social and Economic Characteristics of Individuals, Families and Households" topic, which shows 2001 Census data on social and economic characteristics at the family level, including labour force activity of parents with young children, and data on housing costs, including gross rent, owner's major payments, housing affordability and owner's expected selling price.

This table can be found in the Topic Bundle: Social and Economic Characteristics of Individuals, Families and Households, 2001 Census, Catalogue No. 97F0021XCB2001000.

It is also possible to subscribe to all the day-of-release bundles. For more information, refer to Catalogue No. 97F0023XCB.

This table is available FREE on the Internet, Catalogue No. 97F0021XIE2001010.

The third edition of Canadian culture in perspective: a statistical overview, provides a comprehensive statistical portrait of the health and vitality of cultural activities and industries in Canada. This compendium incorporates data from all surveys in Statistics Canada's Culture Statistics Program, as well as data from other internal and external sources, enabling readers to track various themes and trends over time.

This edition contains sections on: the economic impact of the culture sector, culture activities by tourists and the international trade position of the culture sector; on social dimensions of culture, including characteristics of the cultural labour force, philanthropic behaviour, and the consumers of cultural goods and services; and on various sectors such as heritage, the performing arts and festivals, visual arts and libraries. It also explores ownership and content issues in the culture industries (publishing, film, broadcasting and music).

This survey provides expenditures by households, as well as their budgets for the year, including all expenditures, income, and changes in assets and debts. Topics include: composition of households, characteristics of dwelling, shelter expenses, furnishings and equipment, running the home, food and alcohol, clothing, medical and health care, travel and transportation, recreation and education, tobacco and miscellaneous expenses.

The Canadian Out-of-Employment Panel Survey was conducted by Statistics Canada for Human Resources Development Canada, Strategic Evaluation and Monitoring. This survey interviewed people who had a job interruption during one of the two reference periods: (1) Jan. 29-Mar. 11, 1995; or (2) Apr. 23-June 3, 1995.

The survey gathered information on subsequent employment during a 13-month period, background demographics on the individual and the household, as well as information on job search activities and outcomes, income, assets and debts, expenditures, and training.

In 1996, the COEP survey was re-designed as the Changes in Employment Survey, referred to as COEP 1996. The re-designed survey had changes in the sample design and content to allow a more complete picture of the population of individuals experiencing a loss or change of employment.

The survey collects information on employment history during an 18-month period, background demographics on the individual and the household, as well as information on job search activities and outcomes, income, assets and debts, expenditures, and training.The main changes to the sample design compared to COEP 1995 are as follows: all individuals who are issued an ROE in the reference period are included in the 1996 design whereas under the 1995 design, only individuals whose ROE was issued for particular reasons were included; and the reference periods for the 1996 design are consecutive quarters, giving complete coverage across time whereas for the 1995 design, two discrete time periods were selected.

The main change to the content compared to COEP 1995 is as follows: information is collected about all employers the individual worked for during the reference period whereas under the 1995 design, information was only collected for the ROE employer, the next employer and the current employer.

These supplementary tables from the 1996 Family expenditure in Canada publication (catalogue no. 62-555-XPB) provide detailed information on expenditures by household for provinces and regions. Expenditure items include: food purchased from stores and restaurants (for detailed food expenditures see: Family food expenditures in Canada, 1996 catalogue no. 62-554-XPB); shelter costs; household operations including communications; household furnishings and equipment; clothing; transportation; health care; personal care; recreation; reading materials; education; tobacco products and alcoholic beverages and miscellaneous expenses. To complete the picture of an annual household budget, expenditures on items such as personal taxes, security (life and employment insurance and employer operated retirement funds), and gifts and contributions are included. Information about household income is presented by income quintile and income group.

This infographic highlights some of the results of the 2019 Survey of Household Spending. It shows how Canadian households allocated their spending to various categories of goods and services. It also presents average spending on principal accommodation in selected Canadian cities. Finally, it shows how Internet access, and cell phone and landline use have changed over time.

Since the 2010 Survey of Household Spending redesign, statistics on the annual proportion of households reporting expenditures and the annual average expenditure per reporting household have not been available for many good and service categories. To help fill this data gap for users, a statistical model was developed in order to produce approximations of these statistics. This product consists of data tables and a user guide.

An analysis of trends in Canadian consumer demand and sales using transaction data for grocery products amid the COVID-19 pandemic. This analysis includes Canadian grocery sales up to April 11.

An analysis of trends in Canadian consumer demand and sales using transaction data for grocery products amid the COVID-19 pandemic.

This article in the Economic Insights series provides users with an integrated summary of recent changes in output, employment, household demand, international trade and prices. Organized as a statistical summary of major indicators, the report is designed to inform about recent developments in the Canadian economy, highlighting major changes in the economic data during the first half of 2019 and into the summer months. Unless otherwise noted, the tabulations presented in this report are based on seasonally adjusted data available as of October 18, 2019.

This article in the Economic Insights series examines economic well-being of millennials by comparing their household balance sheets to those of previous generations of young Canadians.

This analytical report presents highlights from the 2018 Study on International Money Transfers, including total amount sent to relatives or friends living abroad, costs of remitting and money transfer methods.

This infographic presents some highlights from the 2018 Study on International Money Transfers, including total amount sent to relatives or friends living abroad, costs of remitting and money transfer methods.

This note describes methodological changes made to the Market Basket Measure (MBM) in Calendar year 2019. These revisions mainly affect MBM estimates for 2008 and 2009, but they also affect the overall interpretation of the trends in the MBM over the 2000s.

The principal motivation in producing estimates of seasonally adjusted household sector borrowing arose as a result of the observed seasonality present in the unadjusted credit market debt estimates. For example, Canadians tend to borrow more in the form of consumer credit in the fourth quarter, with the arrival of significant retail activity tied to the holidays, and then subsequently retrench in the first quarter. Moreover, mortgage borrowing has a tendency to slow down in the first quarter, but then pick up in the second and third quarters as winter recedes in many areas of Canada and resale activity picks up and families look to secure housing before the start of the upcoming school year. This phenomena of sub-annual cyclical patterns is not constrained to the household sector and can be seen in other areas such as government borrowing. Consequently, seasonal adjustment in this context enhances the interpretability of estimates that possess a strong cyclical component, eliminating the variation due to predictable and recurrent events, and provides data users, policy makers, and researchers with more accurate quarter-to-quarter movements that reveal the underlying trends in the data. While only household borrowing is the current sector of interest, seasonal adjustment will be eventually expanded to encompass other pertinent sectors in the Financial and Wealth Accounts.

The purpose of this paper is to provide some general background and describe the methodology of the pilot year Unified Enterprise Survey (UES). It also illustrates the role of the Unified Enterprise Survey Program (UESP) within The Project to Improve Provincial Economic Statistics (PIPES) program. This information package is targeted toward external clients, for example the Provincial Focal Points, enabling them to assess future data releases planned by industry sector. The scope of this information package will be expanded as subsequent data releases over the next six months or so provide more industry specific details for the seven new pilot industries included in the 1997 UES. This document is approximately twenty-two pages in length and is to be offered at no charge to callers requesting information on the UES.

This paper presents a proposal for conducting a Canadian asset and debt survey. The first step in preparing this proposal was the release, in February 1997, of a document entitled Towards a new Canadian asset and debt survey whose intent was to elicit feedback on the initial thinking regarding the content of the survey.

This paper reviews the conceptual framework for a new asset and debt survey, data requirements, survey design, collection methodology and testing. It provides also an overview of the anticipated data processing system, describes the analysis and dissemination plan (analytical products and microdata files), and identifies the survey costs and major milestones. Finally, it presents the management/coordination approach used.

The guide lists and briefly describes the main sources of data, and for each source gives: data coverage, main variables available, strengths and limitation of the data, historical continuity, frequency and means of dissemination, indication of the type of analysis that can be performed.