Immigrants own, rent homes at higher rates than Canadian-born population: report
A new report from Statistics Canada shows immigrants are both owning and renting more homes than those born in the country.
Census data shows immigrants to Canada both rent and own more homes than the Canadian-born population, according to a newly released report by Statistics Canada.
Analysis of the latest census data, collected in 2021, shows immigrants occupied 310 housing units per 1,000 people that year, contrasted to just 271 units for Canadian-born individuals, reported Juno News.
The Statistics Canada report's authors elaborated on the breakdown:
The analysis of the 2021 Census data shows that immigrants typically exhibit higher housing occupancy in the ownership and rental markets compared with Canadian-born individuals. On average, immigrants occupy 310 owned units and 151 rental units per 1,000 people, totalling 461 housing units, compared with 397 housing units for Canadian-born individuals. NPRs [non-permanent residents], meanwhile, occupy 41 owned units and 316 rental units per 1,000 people, for a total of 357 housing units.
Since then, however, Canada has undergone a massive immigrant-driven population boom — starting with the country growing its population by over a million in 2022. This year, Canada welcomed over 800,000 new arrivals between January and April.
Given the population growth, the number of immigrants who rent or own homes is likely far higher than the Statistics Canada report.
“Rapid population growth has exacerbated previous housing affordability challenges” in Canada, reads a new economic survey from the OECD. “Housing supply should keep pace with immigration targets.”
The organization also highlighted how “Lower per capita GDP growth also reflects lower productivity of recent immigrants, comprising many low-skilled non-permanent residents.”
While the country once welcomed high-skilled immigrants, much of the recent influx has been through international students and temporary foreign workers. A prominent example of the increase was seen in 2023, with 30,000 international students attending Conestoga College in Kitchener, Ont., a city of around 586,000.
Asylum claims from international students have also surged, with 20,245 claims being filed by students in 2024. Students from Conestoga topped that list, with 720 seeking refugee status.
Conservative MP Jasraj Singh Hallan told Rebel News reporter Alexa Lavoie that Canadians “know the Liberals have let immigration spiral out of control.”
“Those aren’t even just our words — those are the words of the actual immigration minister at the time,” he said. Former immigration minister Sean Fraser is “the most incompetent minister in Canadian history,” Singh added.
Prior to his role as immigration minister, Fraser also served as housing minister. Following April's election, Prime Minister Mark Carney appointed Fraser as his Attorney General.


COMMENTS
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Bruce Atchison commented 2025-06-04 19:56:21 -0400If we had a real government that really cared about citizens, we would have far fewer grifters and more skilled immigrants coming legally.
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Bernhard Jatzeck commented 2025-06-04 17:44:13 -0400That’s hardly surprising, considering all the free government money they’re getting for simply being here.