Home Sharing

Nearly two-thirds of Ontario residents are living in homes too big for their needs. Outside the GTA, 85 per cent of seniors are living in homes too large. Subsequently, it is becoming more difficult for millennial to afford homes across Canada – especially in major cities.

Canada’s rents are rising while the amount of vacancies is shrinking. A growing number of the country’s seniors are living in homes too big, while young Canadians are being forced to living in apartments too expensive. One solution offered by the Ontario Government was to share the living space already built, to create mutual benefit – home sharing.

Home sharing is where the homeowner, usually a senior, offers reduced rent for a room in their home in exchange for small chores and companionship. The idea of home sharing is developing attention in small towns and cities across Canada, including a new pilot project in Toronto this summer.

“This is about more than sharing a house,” says Tonya Salomons, a social worker at the National Initiative for the Care of Elderly at the University of Toronto. Home sharing is a multi-benefit opportunity for generations to mingle and learn from one another, improve the health of isolated seniors, while also helping young people find affordable rent.

The most successful home sharing programs involve a process where matched candidates meet, have a trial stay and, if both agree, sign a clear contract outlining expectations and rules while living together.

For more information on Home Sharing, please click here.

First Time Home Buyer Market

Most seniors are living in homes that are too large for their current needs and in communities that no longer support their desires. Tax breaks and other monetary support offered to seniors will allow them to downsize to a home more suitable to their current needs while still offering independent and safe living. Additionally, housing options that support their desire for independent living will free up housing for millennial who are attempting to purchase a home in a community they can grow with their family that are currently occupied by seniors.

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