Assessing the Link Between Homeownership and Health in Canada: Evidence From the 2021 Canadian Housing Survey

This study proposes a theoretical model that integrates important mediating and moderating effects to explain whether and how homeownership is potentially linked to health in today's Canadian society. This integrative model examines (1) whether the link between homeownership and health is moderated by housing cost (especially housing unaffordability) and (2) whether the homeownership-health link can be explained by the three mechanisms represented by three satisfaction perceptions-housing satisfaction, community satisfaction and life satisfaction-that stress homeownership's material, social and symbolic values, respectively. Guided by the theoretical model, the analyses of the 2021 Canadian Housing Survey data generate important insights. First, there is clear evidence that homeownership is significantly related to better health in Canada and that this link is not diminished by unaffordability. Second, homeownership is not directly linked with health, and the revealed link can be attributed to the three mechanisms. These underlying mechanisms, supported by empirical evidence, can explain how homeownership is related to better health and shed light on how housing inequality may translate into health disparity.