The notion that home ownership guarantees financial security in old age is being challenged by a recent survey.

The study, conducted by the University of Calgary’s School of Public Policy and the Angus Reid Group, found more than one-third of older homeowners surveyed worried about being able to afford home upkeep.

Meanwhile, more than one in five renters and mortgagors surveyed said they had struggled to pay their rent or mortgage.

“What we’re finding is really shocking — in many cases, older Albertans who own their own homes not feeling financially secure at all,” said University of Calgary researcher Alex Bierman.

Generally, when people own their own homes outright, that’s considered an advantage, Bierman said.

“Essentially, owning your own home, it’s considered a marker of economic stability. Rarely do people actually examine whether people who own their own homes are really financially secure,” he said.

The findings were compiled from a representative survey of 715 respondents between the ages of 65 and 85 which included questions measuring housing insecurity experiences.

Those respondents included people who own homes outright, those still paying off mortgages, and renters.

Of the outright homeowners surveyed, 16.6 per cent indicated they had considered selling their home for financial reasons. Meanwhile, one in five renters and mortgagors surveyed said they had struggled to pay their rent or mortgage.

“What this really shows is that older adults in Alberta, when they own their own homes, often do not feel secure in their home,” he said. “Their home is not the source of economic stability that you would expect.”

The survey was weighted to be representative of older adults in Alberta by age, education and gender.

Bierman suggested the findings were emblematic of the rising cost of living.

“It’s basically a domino effect,” he said.

“What we’ve seen over the last several years is just skyrocketing inflation, people having to pay a lot more for their daily lives … that, in turn, creates a squeeze on their planned finances. Additionally, that also leads to increases in expenses for home repairs.”

He said a home’s high worth doesn’t necessarily translate to money in the owner’s pocket.

“The thing about the home is, it’s not a stable asset,” Bierman said. “A home needs to be kept up in good condition, and people are really running into unanticipated costs now when they have to engage in that home upkeep.”

Bierman’s previous research on Canadian older adults includes a study suggesting that “financial strain among older adults … led to what we call economic marginalization.”

“When older adults experienced financial strain, they felt like they mattered less to people in their lives, but also to Canadian society as a whole,” he said.

Bierman suggested policymakers consider better-indexed supports for older adults in Canada.

Older adults share perspective

Longtime homeowners interviewed by CBC News at a southwest Calgary senior citizen centre shared their own perspectives.

Patrick Eckenswiller, who’s been in Calgary since 1960, said insecurity around the financial aspects of home ownership “for sure has happened, but it doesn’t affect us as badly” because of pension plans and substantial savings.

“So we are not suffering that much, in terms of being short of cash and not being able to make ends meet,” he said.

Jim Wyllie said rising costs have changed his lifestyle over the years.

“When I was working, I was able to eat out with my friends from my workplace at least once a week. It wasn’t a problem,” he said. “But now if I eat out, it’ll be a special at McDonald’s, so I’m not able to have small luxuries I had in the past.”