Homeownership increased slightly in Grande Prairie over the last five years, a far difference from the trend seen across the country. According to the 2021 census, 66 per cent of local households own their home while 34 per cent rent.
That is just a one per cent shift from the 2016 census when 65 per cent were homeowners and 35 per cent rented.
Looking at the last 10 years, the number of Canadian households who rent their homes grew twice as fast as the number of those who own. The census shows homeownership grew by eight per cent from 2011 to 2021 while renting grew by more than 21 per cent.
There is no data available on homeownership for Grande Prairie in 2011.
In 2021, 61 per cent of Grande Prairie households lived in a single-detached house, while 19 per cent lived in apartment buildings. Seven per cent lived in a semi-detached house, and four per cent each in a row house or duplex. Mobile homes housed three per cent of households.
The average household size last year was 2.6, the same as in 2016 and 2011.
The data released Wednesday also shows there are more single people in Grande Prairie. In 2021, 57 per cent of Grande Prairie residents over the age of 15 were married or living common-law, with 42 per cent married and 15 per cent living common-law. That’s a slight decrease from 2016 when 43 per cent were married and 16 per cent living common-law.
