October 30, 2024
Four-in-ten Canadians (40%) say it has been difficult for their household to meet its financial needs in the past 12 months, while just a quarter (26%) say that things have been easy for them, financially speaking. Further, a majority are concerned about being able to afford daily necessities – such as healthy food (59%), shelter (54%), and heating (53%), though these concerns are waning compared with earlier in 2024. Just under half are now concerned about their ability to afford prescription medications (45%).
Atlantic Canadians (49%) are most likely to say it has been difficult for their household to meet its financial needs in the past 12 months. Households earning less than $60,000.00 per year (52%) and those who are unemployed (63%) or employed part time (55%) are also more likely than others to report difficulty in meeting their financial needs.
While still widely felt, concern about being able to afford daily necessities is down somewhat compared to last winter. Being able to afford healthy food is now a concern for six-in-ten Canadians (59%, down from three-quarters – 77% – in February). Rent or mortgage payments are a concern for more than half (54%, down from two-thirds – 67%) and heating costs are a worry for a similar proportion (53%, down from seven-in-ten – 69%). Just under half are concerned about their ability to pay for prescription medications (45%, down from six-in-ten – 61% – last winter). Of note, boomers are less concerned with any of these expenses compared with their younger counterparts. Perhaps unsurprisingly, those with higher incomes are less concerned with any of these expenses, and men are less concerned with all but shelter costs compared with women.
Across the country, concern for affording healthy food is most prevalent in Atlantic Canada, while residents in Atlantic Canada and the prairies have higher levels of concern about being able to afford heating costs compared with those living in other parts of the country– a trend consistent with February 2024. Residents of Quebec are less concerned in general with each of the forementioned living costs.
Results are from an online survey conducted in partnership between Narrative Research and the Logit Group. The survey was conducted between October 8 and 11, 2024 with 1,230 Canadians, 18 years of age or older from the Logit Group’s online Canadian Omnibus. Data were weighted based on the 2016 Census, by gender, age, and region to reflect actual population distribution, and data tables are available upon request.
The questions asked were:
In the past 12 months, how difficult or easy was it for your household to meet its financial needs in terms of transportation, housing, food, clothing and other necessary expenses?
And to what extent are you currently concerned about being able to afford each of the following? Healthy food? Rent or mortgage payments? Heating costs? Prescription medications?
For more information, please contact:
Margaret Chapman, COO & Partner, Narrative Research – 902.493.3834, mchapman@narrativeresearch.ca
OR
Sam Pisani, Managing Partner, Logit Group – 416.629.4116, sam.pisani@logitgroup.com
Narrative Research (www.narrativeresearch.ca), is a non-partisan, 100% Canadian-owned, research company, certified as a Women Business Enterprise (WBE). Narrative Research provides clients with state-of-the-art research and strategic consulting services.
The Logit Group (https://logitgroup.com/) is a leading North American data collection and market research execution company headquartered in Toronto, conducting large-scale projects for a variety of well-known research agencies and brands. Logit employs industry-best technologies across an array of methodologies, and is independent, experienced and quality-oriented.
