Looked at this a bit ago and share the sentiment. Vancouver, BC was an excellent case study. House prices average: ~$1.1M. Loan rate average: ~5%. Month payment: $5900. Yearly: $71k. Avg Salary: $60k (before tax). After tax: Maybe $48k or less. Result: No normal worker can afford the loan, and the bank won't give you the loan. You pay everything you can each year, and you owe more. This isn't even with property taxes, utilities, other basic Maslow's heirarchy stuff taken out.