Jun 19, 2026
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Homeownership is a staple of financial success for many Canadians. Across many prosperous nations, Canada included, owning your own home is a sign of wealth accumulation and a concrete marker of financial security.
Canada’s near-retirees are one such demographic that has tangible proof of financial success. According to Statistics Canada’s Financial Security Survey, the net worth of individuals aged 55 to 64 between 1999 and 2023 nearly doubled on average — it increased by 91%. And, most of that wealth is locked in a home with plans for retirement, experts Colin Busby and John Stapleton noted in a Globe and Mail opinion piece.
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Indeed, a survey from the Healthcare of Ontario Pension Plan (HOOPP) found that 62% of respondents viewed their home as a “key part of their retirement plan.” And 44% of those surveyed said they were relying on the sale of their home to fund their golden years.
According to Busby and Stapleton, this view of a home as a retirement plan is an issue: here’s why.
Why your home should not be your only nest egg
Unlike funds in a Registered Retirement Savings Plan (RRSP) or a pension plan, selling a home comes with additional title, legal and realtor fees alongside other costs that can erode your equity. Additionally, moving is a major point of disruption — you’ll need to make new friends, find a new doctor and fit into a new community, Busby and Stapleton point out.
They also emphasize a strong point of friction that can diminish a home sale being a major cornerstone in a retirement plan: the housing market.
“Housing only functions as retirement saving if the next generation of buyers can afford to enter the market at all,” they write.
This isn’t a hypothetical concern, either. A study from the Fraser Institute reviewing housing affordability over the years found that the typical home in every major Canadian city was out of reach for families making the local median income. Meanwhile, the latest homeownership data on millennials in Canada from StatCan reveals that this demographic was twice as likely to be living with their parents compared to baby boomers at the same age in 1991.
If younger Canadians can’t afford homes, future demand could weaken, making it harder for today’s soon-to-be-retirees to cash out at the prices they’re expecting and accomplish their retirement goals.
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From another angle, it may be tempting to access home equity with a home equity line of credit (HELOC) or reverse mortgage rather than selling. However, experts have pointed out that this avenue comes with its own share of risks. For example, reverse mortgages often come with higher interest rates and there can be limited offerings to make use of.
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Diversifying your retirement plan
A home can be an important part of a retirement plan, but it shouldn’t be the entirety of it. Housing values rise and fall, selling isn’t free and retirees still need somewhere to live after the transaction closes. Here are some other avenues to seriously consider for wealth as you approach your retirement.
RRSPs offer tax-deferred growth, so contributions reduce taxable income now while withdrawals are taxed later, ideally in retirement when income (and thus tax rate) is typically lower.
Tax-Free Savings Accounts (TFSAs) complement this by allowing investments to grow and be withdrawn completely tax-free, giving retirees flexibility to pull funds without triggering tax consequences.
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For those fortunate enough to have one, employer pensions — particularly defined benefit plans — offer a predictable, guaranteed income stream for life. They reduce reliance on market performance and the burden of managing withdrawals personally.
Government benefits are a staple for all Canadian retirees — namely Canada Pension Plan (CPP) and Old Age Security (OAS). They are designed to be flexible, and delaying either past the standard age of 65 increases monthly payouts substantially. CPP payments grow by roughly 0.7% for each month, or 42% after five years. OAS acts similarly, increasing about 0.6% per month delayed, capped at a 36% boost if taken at 70.
While not everyone can afford to delay benefits, those who can may significantly reduce the risk of outliving their savings.
To get started, open a no-fee RRSP high-interest savings account with EQ Bank. For a limited time, get up to $200 cash when you add new deposits to your EQ Bank RRSP account.
Steps to build a retirement fund that doesn’t hang on a home sale
None of this means homeownership is a poor financial decision. For many Canadians, a home remains their largest asset and an important source of wealth. The risk comes when it is the only retirement strategy.
For some, building a retirement nest egg can be daunting, especially when trying to figure out where you should start. Here are some steps you can take right now:
- Map out a plan. A retirement nest egg is an insurmountable challenge if you don’t set parameters on it. Make a plan, preferably with a fee-only financial advisor, that sets out your retirement trajectory, savings goals and your risk tolerance. Then you’ll know how much to save, where to invest it and what you can do with it once you’re retired.
- Start small. Especially if you are saving for retirement for the first time, take small steps towards your goal. Start by planning a simple budget and allocate a set amount of funds each month towards your nest egg. Fifteen percent is a good target, but anything is better than nothing.
- Make your money work. It might be tempting to simply put your retirement money in a savings account, but that will severely inhibit future growth. Instead, work to invest your nest egg in mutual funds, GICs, ETFs, stocks, bonds and other assets, using registered accounts such as RRSPs and TFSAs as the vehicles to do so. Again, determining what kind of investments are right for you is best done with a financial advisor. That said, there are plenty of free resources online to help get your feet wet.
- Leverage employer RRSP matching. If your employer matches your RRSP contributions into a work retirement account, take advantage of it. For instance, if your employer matches contributions up to 4% of your salary dollar-for-dollar, make sure to review your deposit amounts every time you get a raise. If you haven’t adjusted your monthly RRSP deposits since your compensation bump, you may be missing out on employer contribution amounts.
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Brett Surbey is a corporate paralegal with KMSC Law LLP and freelance writer who has written for Yahoo Finance Canada, Success Magazine, Publishers Weekly, U.S. News & World Report, Forbes Advisor and multiple academic journals. He and his family live in northern Alberta, Canada.
