The Uneven Distribution of Canadian Income, Cash Flow, and Net Worth

With the insane growth streak that Canadian real estate has had, I’m not surprised that many households have decent net worth yet poor cash flow.

Lots of people bought households in Toronto / Vancouver for <$500k which are now valued at ~$2M. People are drawing on home equity line of credit to fund their lifestyles (vacations, renovations, new car, etc.)

So based on the first chart, roughly half of Canadian households had negative cash flow in 2023 (spending > after-tax income).

This is true even if you exclude older age groups which would have more retirees drawing on their savings.

Meanwhile the top quintile saves ~$60k per year.

Pretty rough situation.