More people struggling with mortgages, rents

A greater number of Canadians are struggling to find homes for which can afford mortgage or rent payments as more areas have become less affordable.

A greater number of Canadians are struggling to find homes for which can afford mortgage or rent payments as more areas have become less affordable. A report from the Desjardins Group show that in the first quarter of this year 12 of the 18 cities measured by its index are less affordable than they are historically. The figures show that the high cost of homes in Toronto is spreading out to nearby cities with St Catharines switching from being 6 per cent more affordable than its average in the third quarter of 2014 to 5.2 per cent less affordable than average in the first three months of this year. On the flip side some of the most unaffordable are becoming more affordable including Calgary.