House prices too high, 74 per cent have no plans to buy

Most Canadians agree that house prices are too high and most say they have no plans to buy real estate this year according to a new study released Friday.

The Angus Reid Institute found that 32 per cent of Canadians overall believe prices are “unreasonably high” with another 23 per cent deeming them to be “high but understandable given the area.” Another third (32 per cent) believe prices are “reasonable overall” while 5 per cent think they are “maybe a bit low.”

When broken down into cities, Vancouver has the highest proportion of those branding prices as unreasonable (70 per cent) followed by the GTA (46 per cent) but elsewhere there is also concern. Those who believe prices are unreasonable account for 28 per cent in Edmonton, 23 per cent in Calgary, 26 per cent in Winnipeg, 28 per cent in Montreal and 27 per cent in Halifax. When the percentages of those who say prices are high but understandable because of the area are added in it comes to about half of respondents for most areas; more than three quarters in Vancouver and the GTA.

So what should be done about the prices? Two thirds of respondents say that the government should get more involved in the real estate sector. In BC this rises to almost three quarters.
The survey also found that almost three-quarters of respondents have no plans to buy real estate in 2016. 

Source: REP News