Wealthy clients’ homes worth $1.5 million

Wealthy Canadians’ primary residences are currently worth upwards of $1.5 million, on average, according to a new study by BMO Private Banking.

And, nearly all of those surveyed (95%) own their residences, versus renting. Out of those who own homes, adds the survey, 58% say they’ve paid off their mortgages, while the rest have between $95,000 and $250,000 to pay back (see table below).

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Additional properties

The study finds more than one third (36%) of wealthy Canadians own second properties—of that group, 40% own two or more houses. The average value of these properties is $708,539.

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The top reasons for owning an additional property include:

having a home for vacation purposes (47%);
using the home as an investment (39%);
using the home as income-generating property (36%);
having something to pass on to future generations (28%); and
having a potential retirement home (12%).

Among those who own additional property, 80% own one in Canada, while 27% own in the U.S., 11% own in Europe, and 8% own in Central America, South America or the Caribbean. Aside from that, 7% own in Mexico or Asia, and 5% own in Australia.

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When buying abroad, “having the financing already in place puts more control into the hands of the buyer,” suggests Craig Downey, vice-president and managing director of Platinum Banking at BMO Private Banking. “[Clients] can avoid being subject to [foreign] financing conditions.”

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Regional survey breakdown

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Region	Average value of primary residence	% who have paid off mortgage	% who have mortgage	Average value of mortgage debt	% who own a second property	Average value of second property	% top reason for having a second property for vacation purposes
National	$1,489,400	58	15	$176,000	36	$708,500	47
Quebec	$678,600	47	20	$95,800	39	$477,100	50
Ontario	$1,787,900	56	15	$231,500	27	$1,170,200	40
Alberta	$719,500	70	14	$199,200	44	$642,600	33
B.C.	$3,908,200	67	13	$236,100	44	$634,100	67