Lesson 2: Other Things to Consider
Two-thirds of Canadians own rather than rent their homes.
On the Statistics Canada website, you can also find this graph.
Discussion: Think, Write, Share
Think about the following questions. How might you answer them? Write down a response to each question.
- Which gives Canadians more information about the percentage of Canadians who own their own homes – the report headline or the graph? Why do you think so?
- Why do you think it is important for the country to know how many Canadians own their homes?
- When they say “Two-thirds of Canadians own rather than rent their homes,” do you think they count everyone? Who might they not include?
- You can see from the graph that the percentage of Canadians who own their homes kept changing between 1971 and 2011. What factors do you think could cause a change in the percentage (up or down) of Canadians who own their homes?
- Why do you think the majority of Canadians own their homes rather than rent?
- Do these statistics surprise you or is this more-or-less what you would have expected? Explain your reaction.
- Statistics Canada collects statistics from the whole population of Canada. This gives them the most accurate picture possible. What do you think might change if you only looked at a sample of 1000 people across Canada? Explain why you think so.
Is it all about money?
In Canada, an organization called the Canada Mortgage and Housing Corporation (CMHC) provides information and resources to help people who are moving from place to place make good decisions. In this five minute CMHC video, we visit two families that have recently decided to rent a home.
In your notebook, write the heading: Advantages of Renting. As you watch, look and listen for things that the renters liked about these homes. Record your observations in your notebook.
Looking for Accommodation – A Mind Map – What is important to you?
In the video, we saw that having a good landlord was important to the woman and extra storage space was important to the man.
One of the advantages to living independently is that it gives you the opportunity to select your accommodations to best suit your own lifestyle. This mind map worksheet will help you think about what is most important to you before you get too far into your search.
First, consider the following guiding questions. They will get you started on reflecting about what matters to you.
- How close do you want your neighbours to be?
- Do you want to bring or buy your own furniture, or do you want to move into a furnished space?
- How many bedrooms do you want?
- How many bathrooms do you want?
- If you have a car, do you need off-street parking?
- How comfortable are you living in an upper floor of a high-rise building?
- Are you comfortable living in a basement apartment, or do you like natural light?
- Do you need to have a place that allows pets?
- How much would having to deal with bugs in your apartment bother you?
Discussion Forum
Looking for Accommodation – A Mind Map
Complete the following activity by writing the most important features of your accommodations to the center of the mind map. The less important features should be written outside.
Take a screen capture of your completed mind map.
- Laundry facilities
- Yard
- Deck or porch
- Fireplace
- Wheelchair access
- Swimming pool
- Exercise room
- Control over temperature
- Quiet
- Near public transit
- In a detached house
- Parking
- More than two bedrooms
- In a high rise building
- Lots of windows
Why Renting Makes Sense
Why Renting Makes Sense
From Caroline Cakebread (Dec. 8, 2011) originally found at getSmarterAboutMoney.ca
Thinking of saying goodbye to your landlord and buying your own place? While you might dream of owning your own home one day, you need to make sure you’re ready to handle the extra costs and responsibilities.
Take my husband and I, for example. In July, our ancient fridge decided it was going to take afternoons off – it literally stopped working in the middle of the afternoon and would start up again at night. It finally died altogether. Our new fridge is great, but it was one expense we hadn’t planned for. As a homeowner, surprises like this are part of the game – there’s always something to spend money on and it’s usually pretty unexciting (a new roof, window cleaning, etc.).
When you rent, you don’t have to worry about things like that. You aren’t on the hook for repairs and home life can be pretty hassle free – no snow shovelling, garbage hauling or toilet fixing. Another big advantage to renting is that your costs are fixed. You know exactly how much you owe every month for rent and you don’t have to shell out money in case the roof starts leaking or your oven breaks.
Renters are also portable – you can pick up and move without worrying about selling your property or renting it out. And of course, you need to have a hefty down payment to buy a place: without at least 5% of the purchase price, you’ll have trouble getting a mortgage. Plus, you need to have money on hand for the legal fees that come with buying a place, as well as any moving costs, repairs or renovations that need to be done before you move in.
If you’re not sure buying is for you, check out this buy versus rent calculator and see for yourself. Also check the calculator here.
Assignment: Rent or Own?
Looking at your list of important features of your accommodations, and considering the article above, which might be a better choice for you when you are ready to live independently – owning or renting?
Create a table, similar to the one below, that lists the advantages and disadvantages of both owning and renting accommodations. Complete the table.
