Canadians spend an average of 43 per cent of their incomes on housing (mortgage or rent plus utilities), which is the third highest across the globe, according to one of the biggest global surveys ever conducted.
The only other two countries to see higher housings costs as a proportion of income were the Netherlands and Sweden.
The BlackRock Global Investor Pulse survey, conducted by financial group BlackRock, investigated consumer investment sentiment among 27,500 respondents across 20 countries and looked at investment barriers such as being unable to save due to high housing costs and debt.
BlackRock also found that, after accounting for food, clothing and day-to-day expenditure, Canadians have on average only 23 per cent of income left over to save and invest – one of the lowest rates in the world.
Of the 1,000 Canadians surveyed, 52 per cent of Canadian investors are feeling positive about their financial prospects – a three per cent decline from confidence levels in 2013, and below the global average of 56 per cent.
The survey report said that the top investment priorities for Canadians are “saving money” (53 per cent), followed by “saving for retirement” (42 per cent) and "paying off debt" (41 per cent).
For more of the survey results, click here.
