Small individual investors own about 10% of housing stock in Ontario and B.C., study finds
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- Canadian Housing Statistics Program report found small-scale individual investors (up to five properties) held 8.9% of Ontario's housing stock and 9.6% of B.C.'s by assessed value in 2022, with measurements based on assessed value rather than unit count.
- Medium-sized individual investors (more than five properties) owned 1.3% of Ontario's residential inventory and 1.9% of B.C.'s, while businesses held 3.2% and 4.5% respectively.
- Institutional investors — pension funds, family offices and REITs — held 4.9% of Ontario's housing stock and 4.3% of B.C.'s, but a larger 9.5% share in Nova Scotia, where total investor ownership reached nearly 30%.
- Small-scale individual investors dominated Ontario's rental market with 52.6% of rental stock versus 23.6% for institutional investors; London was the exception, with institutions holding 46.5% of rentals.
- B.C.'s rental stock followed a similar pattern, with small investors holding 49.4% and large investors 20.3%, while Vancouver and Victoria saw institutions account for more than a fifth.
- The CHSP study cautioned its rental figures likely do not capture post-2022 institutional activity, including condo-to-rental conversions and developers seeking to offload unsold condo inventory in the Toronto region at a discount.
- The study excluded Alberta, Quebec, Saskatchewan, Newfoundland and Labrador and the territories, and was launched after the 2016 Toronto-Vancouver real estate boom to fill a data gap that had left policymakers guessing during the 2021 investor buying frenzy.
Why it matters: The data undercuts the narrative that faceless institutions dominate Canadian housing — small landlords own roughly 10% of Ontario and B.C. stock and over half the rental inventory. Yet the study itself warns these figures predate accelerating institutional entry into purpose-built rentals and condo-to-rental conversions, meaning the institutional share is likely already higher than captured here.
