Canadian Real Estate is the New RRSP

"A report released yesterday by Re/Max Canada says Canadians have flocked to the housing market in every major city, preferring the security of housing to the vagaries of the stock market and mutual funds. Since 1995, 3.6 million housing units have been sold in 16 urban centres across Canada, a 25-per-cent increase from the decade of 1985 to 1995, Re/Max reports. The average price appreciation of homes across the country has been 53.7 per cent during the decade -- more than 5 per cent a year. Prices have zoomed up most spectacularly in Montreal, Calgary and Halifax-Dartmouth. In Montreal, where increased economic stability and a cultural shift away from renting has driven up the market, prices rose 85.9 per cent over the decade. In Calgary, the booming oil market led a housing market surge that saw prices inflate by 81.7 per cent. And in Halifax, which also owes its rejuvenation to oil and gas and the jobs they have created, prices soared by 77.3 per cent over the decade."

Thanks to Michael Dudley