There's a huge wealth gap between Canadian homeowners and renters

New Statistics Canada data show a staggering wealth gap between a particular group of Canadian homeowners and renters.

The agency's latest Survey of Financial Security report notes that age, homeownership status, and pensions were all significant factors in determining changes in net worth between 2019 and 2023.

Families with a main income earner closer to retirement (between 55 and 64), who both owned their home and had an employee-sponsored pension plan fared much better off than other Canadians. This group had a median net worth of $1.4 million in 2023.

Conversely, Canadians who were renters and did not have an employee-sponsored pension plan had a significantly lower median net worth of $11,900. StatCan said families with only one of these assets formed a net worth "intermediate group" — with net worths of $359,000 for pension holders without homes and $914,000 for homeowners without pensions.

Young Canadian homeowners see big gains

With the high cost of living, building wealth in Canada is challenging, especially for younger families. However, there were some big gains for families where the highest income earner was under 35.

This group saw a 179 per cent increase in their real median net worth to $159,100 between 2019 and 2023. Young homeowners saw the most significant median net worth boost, increasing by $142,800 from 2019 to $457,100 in 2023. Those without a principal residence also saw their net worth grow from $26,700 to $44,000 during the same period.

The lowest-income group among young families was those without a principal residence or employer-sponsored pension plan, as they had a median net worth of $27,000, up from $10,500 in 2019.

The report notes that despite many young Canadian families being shut out of the housing market, they're still finding ways to build their wealth.

Data showed that 15 per cent had a net worth of more than $150,000 in 2023, compared to 5 per cent in 2019. Many in this group held real estate assets other than their main residence or were building wealth via their RRSPs or TFSAs.

Impact of rising interest rates

While Canada's interest rates are finally dropping, their significant rise since 2019 increased the risk of families becoming financially vulnerable, specifically for those with variable rates.

Last year, 20 per cent of Canadian families with a mortgage on their principal residence had a variable mortgage with a median interest rate of 5.7 per cent.

Between 2019 and 2023, this group's average monthly payments rose by over 35 per cent to $2,020.

The median mortgage rate for families with fixed rates was much lower. However, StatCan noted that nearly one-third of them will be up for renewal by the end of 2024, which could lead to financial stress.