Sault ranks in bottom five for young adults, study says

A bit of not-so-flattering news for Sault Ste. Marie from Point2 Homes News, a Saskatoon-based website which covers real estate market trends and news.

In a new study, Point2 Homes states the Sault ranks fifth in the five ‘Least Tempting Millennial Cities.’

‘Millennials’ are often described by some researchers as people born between the early 1980s and the early 2000s (while ‘young adults’ or ‘young professionals’ would probably be more accurate terms).

The Point2 Homes study examined 85 Canadian cities to determine how attractive or unattractive those cities are in terms of young adults wanting to buy a home and live, work and play in those cities, based on quality employment, affordable housing and a variety of other factors.

The study wrote the Sault has the sixth most affordable housing market in Canada, but also has the third highest unemployment rate in the cities surveyed, noting the community already has a “low percentage of millennials already living in the city.”

On a ‘did you know?’ note, Point2 Homes mentioned Sault Ste. Marie’s self-proclaimed status as the Alternative Energy Capital of North America.

Ranking first through fourth on the 'Least Tempting Millennial Cities' list are Langley (Township), BC, Kawartha Lakes and Brantford in Ontario, and Chilliwack, BC, for high crime rates and/or low rates of people with post secondary education. 

The top five most attractive cities, according to the Point2 Homes study, are Quebec City, Victoria, Guelph, Halifax and Ottawa, for reasons including affordable housing, low unemployment rates, high education rates, cultural heritage, pleasant climate and fresh, locally grown food.  

The Point2 Homes website states its studies draw on “internal data, public records, governmental sources, online research and other reliable third-party agencies.”