4 in 10 Saskatchewan and Manitoba homeowners in new poll say they are house-poor
New poll says many are concerned about making ends meet
A new poll conducted by accounting firm MNP found a significant number of Saskatchewan and Manitoba residents who responded are concerned about making ends meet without going further into debt. Four in 10 respondents said they had these concerns, putting them at the highest level they have been in the quarterly poll since December 2019.
The poll also found homeowners with an outstanding mortgage feel they are at risk, with four of 10 Saskatchewan and Manitoba homeowners saying they are house-poor. This was the most among provinces.
Many of these concerns can be attributed to the pandemic.
Three in 10 Saskatchewan and Manitoba respondents said they felt the pandemic worsened their debt or created a larger debt burden for themselves or their families.
Pamela Meger, MNP's senior vice president of insolvency and corporate restructuring, said the pandemic was especially harsh on homeowners.
"It becomes a little bit more difficult to purchase a home when that pricing margin is a little bit inflated and due to the cost of living,'' she said. "Incorporating that, it takes a lot more to live per month than it did before."
She also said for those who need to get out of debt, reviewing month to month expenses is a good place to start.
"What's the whole budget look like? Is there anything we can help with developing a different budget?" she said. "There are strategies to help them work through although it may be tight for the next year or two there's solutions for them."
The survey was conducted by Ipsos on behalf of MNP. The research was done from June 14 to June 17 through online surveys, with 2,002 Canadians aged 18 years and older polled. For comparison purposes only, a probability sample of this size would carry a margin of error of plus or minus 2.5 per cent, 19 times out of 20.