Over half of Canadians living in the country’s three largest metro areas would consider moving to the 15 most affordable housing markets if a job was secure, a report by Royal LePage has found.

In its 2026 Most Affordable Canadian Cities Report, the Toronto-based real estate company found 51 per cent of 900 adults in the Greater Toronto, Greater Montréal and Greater Vancouver areas would think of buying a primary residence in the 15 cities if they were able to find a local job or work remotely.

Lethbridge, to the southeast of Calgary, was named the No. 1 city for affordability, where 18.9 per cent of a household’s monthly income would be needed to service a mortgage payment — a data point Royal LePage calls the affordability factor.

Coming in second is Saint John, N.B., followed by Thunder Bay, Ont. which was the most affordable city in the 2024 edition of the report.

Alberta remains well-represented like the previous survey, Anne-Elise Cugliari Allegritti, vice president of research and communications at Royal LePage, said in an interview with RENX Homes. Two of the top-five cities on the list are in Alberta, with Red Deer in fourth, and Edmonton is not far behind in seventh place.

Costs, quality of life main reasons

The Western province "stands out as a sweet spot where you can earn a really good living but housing is still much more affordable,” she added.

Alberta and New Brunswick had the most cities on the list with three each, followed by Ontario, Quebec and Saskatchewan with two, and one each in Manitoba, Newfoundland and Labrador and Prince Edward Island.

Fredericton and Moncton in New Brunswick, Windsor-Essex in Ontario, Trois-Rivières and Sherbrooke in Quebec, Regina and Saskatoon in Saskatchewan, St. John’s in Newfoundland and Labrador, and Charlottetown, N.B. rounded out the list.

Lower cost of living was the main reason to buy a home in one of the 15 cities from 55 per cent of respondents. Other main interests were a more relaxed pace of life for 42 per cent, and being closer to nature in a less populated area for 41 per cent.

Looking for a higher quality of life

Besides affordability, the 15 markets tend to share a slower pace of life from the major urban hubs, a healthy job market and high quality of life, Cugliari Allegritti said.

The aggregate home price in Lethbridge in Q1, for example, was $338,700, with the Rocky Mountains being nearby for hiking and camping.

Younger adults – millennials and generation Z – were the likeliest to express a desire to set up roots in the 15 affordable cities. Over three-fourths (77 per cent) of generation Z and 56 per cent of millennials would consider such a move, compared to 51 per cent of generation X and 34 per cent of baby boomers.

It did not come as a surprise to Cugliari Allegritti, given younger adults are less likely to be established in a community and to have bought a home.

Edmonton a 'Goldilocks city'

The survey found respondents from the Greater Toronto Area (GTA) were the likeliest among the metro areas to move at 55 per cent, compared to 48 per cent from the Greater Montreal Area (GMA) and 46 per cent from the Greater Vancouver Area (GVA).

Respondents from the GTA and GVA, who would consider moving, named Edmonton as their top choice for a next home at 16 per cent and 18 per cent, respectively.

“It really speaks to the vibrancy of that market,” Cugliari Allegritti said about Edmonton, which she also called a “Goldilocks city.” Edmonton feels like a major city while being more affordable than Calgary, with a stable job market and nearby nature, she explained.

In the GMA, respondents preferred to stay in Quebec. Sherbrooke was the most popular destination at 29 per cent, then Trois-Rivières at 25 per cent. The language barrier and cultural differences between Quebec and Anglophone Canada may play a significant role in the lack of interest in Edmonton, Cugliari Allegritti said.

Affordability improving, except in Quebec

In researching the most affordable markets, Royal LePage also discovered housing prices overall are dropping. Of the 62 cities examined, 61 saw improvements in the affordability factor from 2024 to 2026, particularly the higher-priced markets such as West Vancouver, Richmond, Markham, North Vancouver and Milton.

“The gap between the most expensive housing markets and the least expensive ones is really shrinking,” Cugliari Allegritti said.

In Q2 2022, when home prices peaked, the aggregate price of a home in the GVA was 3.8-times greater than Quebec City and 2.1-times greater than Calgary. As of Q1, that has decreased to 2.5-times higher than Quebec City and 1.7-times more than Calgary.

Quebec City was the only market to have worsening affordability. 

Economic and political uncertainty is driving the decline in prices, Cugliari Allegritti said, as it pushes buyers to the sidelines and forces sellers to drop values accordingly. But there remains pent-up demand for homes, and once buyers are confident, she anticipates it will not take long before there is another shortage of supply.

“Even in the markets where we see an excess of inventory, it’s superficial in many ways because we know that there is demand to absorb it,” Cugliari Allegritti said. “They’re just not in a hurry to make that move at the moment.”