OMDREB-Commissioned Survey Reveals Residents’ Perspectives on Real Estate, Community, and Quality of Life in Halton Region
June 27, 2024
Milton, ON, June 27, 2024 — The Oakville, Milton and District Real Estate Board (OMDREB) is pleased to announce the results of a comprehensive survey to gauge residents’ sentiments on the current and future landscape of real estate in the Halton Region. The survey, conducted by Nanos Research and commissioned by OMDREB, gathered insights from a diverse cross-section of Halton communities, focusing on housing affordability, the general direction of each community, the overall quality of life, the state of housing in the Region, and more.
Notable Key Findings
Housing Affordability:
A significant portion of respondents expressed concerns about housing affordability. 70% believe that the cost of housing in the region has worsened to one extent or another over the last five years.
Community Direction:
Half of residents feel positive about the general direction of the community. 51% of respondents believe that the region is moving in a favourable direction. However, some expressed concerns about potential overpopulation and overdevelopment.
State of Housing:
About two thirds of residents of the region report living in a single detached family home (63% overall). An additional one in ten say they currently live in a townhouse (13%), with the remaining in a high, mid, or low-rise apartment. When asked which type of housing they would want to live in, three quarters say they want to live in a single detached family home (74% overall).
Housing Solutions:
Residents of the region are more likely to support (42%) or somewhat support (13%) allowing homeowners in their community to build a secondary or garden suite on their property. One third of residents say single-family homeowners should be able to convert their home into a duplex (34%), but support for other property types was less favourable.
In the survey, the most frequent piece of advice residents had for their inhabited area was to ensure the City/Town grows at a manageable rate.
“We are thrilled to share the results of this important Nanos Research survey, which provides valuable insights into the thoughts and feelings of our community members,” says OMDREB President Anthony Danko. “Understanding residents’ perspectives on housing affordability, community direction, and overall quality of life is crucial as we work towards creating a more sustainable housing spectrum for the Halton Region.”
“While one bright spot is that residents in the Region give it top marks for its high quality of life and as a safe place to live and raise a family, public transit and housing affordability receive poor marks and most think housing affordability in their community has gotten worse compared to five years ago. Despite this, residents are more likely to say their community is moving in the right rather than the wrong direction” says Nik Nanos, Chief Data Scientist at Nanos Research
The full survey report is available here and at nanos.co. We encourage community members, policymakers, and stakeholders to review the findings and contribute to discussions on how to address the challenges and opportunities identified in the survey.
For more information, please contact John Rich, Manager, Communications and Public Affairs at communciations@omdreb.ca
ABOUT THE SURVEY
Nanos conducted an RDD dual frame (land- and cell-lines) random telephone survey of 363 residents from Oakville, 303 residents from Milton, 293 residents from Halton Hills and 313 residents from Burlington, 18 years of age or older, between June 12th and 23rd, 2024.
Participants were randomly recruited by telephone using live agents and administered a survey.
The margin of error for a random survey of 1,272 residents of the towns of Oakville, Milton, Halton Hills and the city of Burlington is ±2.8 percentage points, 19 times out of 20.
