Owner-occupied condominiums have been booming since the late 1980s, and women just may be the secret to that success.
Owner-occupied condominiums have been booming since the late 1980s, and women just may be the secret to that success. According to a report from the Canada Mortgage and Housing Corp., cited in the Financial Post, 65 per cent of single- occupant condominiums are owned by women.
The prevalence of women in this market is emphasized once the demographics are further broken down. Among senior citizens from the ages of 55 and upwards and who own condominiums, 76 per cent are elderly. Meanwhile, mothers make up 84 per cent of single parents who live in their own condominiums.
It is the convenience of the condominiums that have drawn women. According to women interviewed by the Financial Post, they value their proximity to the office, the security, the special facilities like the gym, and other comforts that lift some of the burden of making a living in the city.
Benjamin Tal, deputy chief economist with CIBC World Markets, believes that women play an important role in the phenomenal growth of the condominium market. As of 2011, there are 1,154,000 condominium owners, and the market shows no sign of stopping. New construction as of November 2013 is now at 194,014 units.
