The Ben Mulroney Show - Is the decline in birthrates because of our selfish society?

Episode Date: June 5, 2025

Guests and Topics: -Is the decline in birthrates because of our selfish society? -What does it cost to raise a kid? That depends on how much parents earn with Guest: Kristy Shen, Globe and Mail Cont...ributor and Author of the bestselling book Quit Like a Millionaire If you enjoyed the podcast, tell a friend! For more of the Ben Mulroney Show, subscribe to the podcast! https://globalnews.ca/national/program/the-ben-mulroney-show Follow Ben on Twitter/X at https://x.com/BenMulroney Enjoy Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

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Starting point is 00:00:19 Rise to rewards with the BMO Eclipse Rise Visa Card. Terms and conditions apply. Summer is Tim's ice latte season. It's also hike season, pool season, picnic season, and yeah, I'm down season. So drink it up with Tim's ice lattes, now whipped for a smooth taste. Order yours on the Tim's app today at participating restaurants in Canada for a limited time. Yes. And thank you for listening to the Ben Moroney show. I don't care if you're listening on a podcast platform or a streaming app or on the good old fashioned radio, or if you found us on YouTube for the first time, I say thank you and I say welcome to the Ben Moroney show. So we have
Starting point is 00:00:56 a fertility issue in Canada. We've talked about it a number of times, Canadians are not having babies. We have recorded, according to stats can, we've for the second year in a row, our lowest fertility year ever, back to back years, 1.26 children born per woman. Yeah. We joined the ranks of the lowest low fertility countries, including South Korea, Spain, Italy, and Japan. Japan just recorded its fewest annual births since it started keeping records. And so I want to open up the conversation with our listeners. Please give us a call here at the Ben Mulroney show.
Starting point is 00:01:31 What are we supposed to do as a society? In my humble opinion, not having kids is the height of privilege. It's the height of privilege. If everybody felt, you know, I'm in this just for me, we would cease to exist as a society. So the fact that we live in a place where someone can say, I don't want to have kids. It's not for me. I don't like kids. I want to live my life for me. Height of privilege. I think we, I don't get stuck on who, who is privileged in this society.
Starting point is 00:01:57 They like to people look at me and they look at how I look, they say, oh, that's privilege right there. Privilege is somebody who has no kids. That's a privilege right there. And so what do we do? And also if you don't have kids, you don't complain about immigration. You don't get to complain about immigration because we've got to do something to grow the economy and to grow our population. And if you're not willing to be part of the solution, guess what part you are. You're part of the problem. And so there's a lot that we can do. There's a, the question is, do we incentivize parenthood or do we punish single people? People who don't want to have kids. I'm in favor of incentivizing parenthood. I don't know who in the world is getting it right, but one of the boldest moves is by Viktor Orban in Hungary.
Starting point is 00:02:48 Lot not to like about Viktor Orban for sure, a lot not to like about that government for sure. But on this issue, what they've done is they've incentivized parenthood by lowering the income tax rate, depending on how many kids you have. I think up to three kids, might be four kids, you can significantly reduce your tax burden. If you are one of these people who was growing the economy by way of having kids, I think that's a novel approach. I like
Starting point is 00:03:16 any, any idea that a incentivizes people to have kids and B lowers people's taxes. I'm down with that. But let's see what you guys have to say. Michael, welcome to the Ben Mulroney show. I don't know if you're going to like what I'm going to say, but I think it's a couple things. All right, let's go. I think it's people's sexuality, to be honest with you. It's a big factor in terms of, you know, their partners. I think it's a different generation. I think people are more into themselves and aren't about planning to have a family. I think they're planning to collect gifts on tik tok and social media, rather than having I think times have just changed.
Starting point is 00:03:51 Well, my time is Michael, Michael, that's those are your opinions, you're entitled to them. I would humbly counter with life's really expensive as well. I mean, having a kid is no small endeavor, it costs a lot of money to have a kid raise a kid, especially if you're in a big city. And for a lot of people, a lot of people are saying, I've been priced out of having a kid because right now I live in an apartment I can afford. I'm paying rent on an apartment I can afford. If I have a kid, I've got to move into something I cannot afford. Nevermind having to save for the future for that kid. Nevermind diapers,
Starting point is 00:04:23 nevermind doctors visits. Never mind medicine. Never mind, never mind, never mind. In a lot of cases, some of these people are just saying it's too expensive. What do you say to that? Well, I've got three kids. Yeah, it is expensive. But again, you know, my, my parents had five kids, their parents had, I think times were just changed.
Starting point is 00:04:44 No times, times are changing. And I get that. And I don't disagree with you that it's expensive. Listen, for the same reason that you had kids for different reasons than I had kids, there are many reasons to not have kids. Everyone has their own reasons. But rather than talk about their motivation,
Starting point is 00:05:01 let's talk about how we can get people interested in having kids. Like I said, I like the incentive. I like the carrot as opposed to the stick. Everyone is free to make their own choices, but there are certain choices that are better for society. If you're making a choice to have kids, that is definitionally better for society.
Starting point is 00:05:16 So why wouldn't we reward those people who are taking on the burden, the cost and the joy, but also the societal responsibility of propagating our population and growing the population. I think there should, if we're at this point where we are in a crisis and we're not having enough kids, we should incentivize people to have kids and reward them for doing so. What do you think? I don't disagree with that, but I think immigration is way up. And I think there's certain races that are having more kids and have more kids than other people.
Starting point is 00:05:52 Yeah, you're right. In some cultures, it's- It's more on that of dealing with a family from Asia, let's say, that comes here and has got a mother and father and grandparents and parents who plan on having four to six kids. Yeah. I mean, I think that subsidizes, you know, why your average Canadian is not having a child these days. I don't think there's a big concern for it. I'm concerned to be honest with you, but I think it's deeper than a financial burden. I just don't think people,
Starting point is 00:06:22 I don't think that people's. Well, I'd let you know what, and I thank you for the call, Michael. It's something I'd like to test. You may be right. You may absolutely be right that financial incentive may not help because culturally there's a whole generation that just doesn't want to have kids. I would like to test that. I think if you told somebody who is currently living in an apartment that they can afford, and they know that if they have a kid, a life becomes a lot more unaffordable. If all of a sudden the government turned to them and said, hey, you have a kid, we're reducing your income tax by 25%.
Starting point is 00:06:51 That's thousands of dollars that they're going to have in their pocket. That would make somebody reconsider because if my theory is correct, that some people aren't having kids because it's too expensive, you've now given them a solution to that. And I promise you, if you want kids, but you've been forced into a position that it's too expensive, you've now given them a solution to that. And I promise you, if you want kids, but you've been forced into a position that it's too expensive. If all of a sudden the government made that a possibility for you, you would have a kid at the first available opportunity. I can promise you that I promise. Let's, uh, let's check with Greg. Greg, you, you,
Starting point is 00:07:19 you don't think we can incentivize people. You can incentivize them if you, if you like, but you better beat it into their head that the kids that they have are going to be living with them for the rest of their lives because they won't be able to afford a house. And so that means they're going to be with them. Oh, well, listen, we're dealing with that. That's a fair point, Greg. But we are let's deal with one crisis at a time.
Starting point is 00:07:42 Let's assume that if we're solving this one, let's give Mark Carney and his government the benefit of the doubt. Let's assume we are gonna be building hundreds of thousands of new homes. Let's assume that does get solved. The problem that we're addressing right now, Greg, is how do we get people who are Canadian citizens to start having more Canadian citizen babies?
Starting point is 00:08:01 But you can't, you gotta be able to afford that child. But that's what I'm saying. But you can't, you got to be able to afford that child. But that's what I'm saying. What if all of a sudden a person who has a kid gets their tax burden, their federal tax burden dropped by 25% and if they have a second, it's dropped by 50%. I'm not saying that's the reason.
Starting point is 00:08:17 This is more of a thought exercise, right? I'm not suggesting this is good policy. I'm just saying as a thought exercise, I think that would unlock people's willingness to accept that new cost of having a kid if all of a sudden their taxes went down. Anyway, thank you very much for your call. And I'm going to take Julie. Julie, welcome to the show. Hi, Ben. Hi. So I'm 42 years old, never had children. And my reason for not having children, one of them is it is too expensive.
Starting point is 00:08:47 I also remember going to pick up my nephew at the daycare when he was one years old, crawling on the floor, you know, should be at home with his mom, not sitting in a dirty daycare waiting for mom to get home from work because she can't afford to be at home with him. Well, yeah, listen, and listen, stick with me here, Julie, because this is interesting. Thank you for calling, and thank you for being so candid. Look, I think, I personally think that unlocking the workforce for anybody who wants to get into it,
Starting point is 00:09:15 be it woman or man, be it single or with kids, I think is an investment. I think it's been a net benefit. And look, some people get it right, some people don't. And you don't get it right all the time. And there may be a moment in a mom's life, Julie, where she's not there for her kid. That doesn't mean she's not gonna be there in the future.
Starting point is 00:09:36 What do you think? I mean, they're missing it on the most important years is when they're very young. They don't, they're only young once. No, it's. It broke my heart to see my little nephew at a daycare at one year old just getting out of diapers. It's really sad. I don't know. I don't think it's, for me, it wasn't, and I appreciate that. No, I appreciate that, Julie. Not to mention, I can't imagine bringing a child into this society, the stress, I get stressed out enough thinking about my nephews and nieces and the future. Listen, you made your choice and I hope you're happy with it. But speaking of somebody who
Starting point is 00:10:09 once never had, didn't have kids and then one day did have kids, I can promise you the guy who had the kids is much happier than the guy who didn't have the kids by a country mile. Thank you all for participating in that chat. Now that the warm weather is here, is it time to get rid of your old car? Oh sure, it's served you well but you know it'd be kind of nice to have something new. Maybe a convertible, maybe maybe something with a sunroof. I know, I know car shopping can be an overwhelming experience. Is this a good price for the
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Starting point is 00:11:26 is the best deal. That's C-A-R-G-U-R-U-S.C-A. CarGurus.ca. It's the Summer Big Red Sale at Canadian Tire. Save up to 50%. What are you doing? These are the biggest deals of the season. I'm shouting it from the rooftop. We have a radio ad. You don't need to be up there. The Summer Big Red Sale is on from June 5 to June 12. Conditions apply. Details online. Welcome back to the Ben Mulrooney Show. And in our previous segment, we were talking to the callers of the show about what to do about Canada's dwindling
Starting point is 00:11:57 birthrate amongst Canadian citizens. How can we get people to have more babies? And one of the things that I was sort of musing on was maybe one of the reasons people aren't having babies is because the cost associated with becoming a parent can be extraordinarily high, especially given how expensive life is today and how our dollars do not go as far as they are. We've been forced into making some pretty bad choices
Starting point is 00:12:23 these days, picking rent over gas or rent over heat. Maybe some people are picking rent over having a baby. Well, to talk about the cost of how much it costs to have a baby, there's someone who wrote about exactly that. So couldn't have picked a better guest to join us. Christy Shen, global male contributor and author of the bestselling book Quit Like a Millionaire. Christy, welcome to the show. Thank you so much for having me. Now, and for context, you retired at 31, is that true? Correct. Yes, I retired at 31.
Starting point is 00:12:53 And then after I retired, I quit my job and my husband and I just, I'm traveling around the world. And then since then we've had a baby and now he's almost two years old now. Well, congratulations on every front, Kristy. You are the exception that proves the rule. The rule being life is really expensive these days. It's really hard to save. Congratulations. Whatever you did, we need more of that out there. Well done. Thank you.
Starting point is 00:13:17 Okay. So let's talk about this article that you wrote where you said, what does it cost to raise a kid? That depends on how much parents earn. And you've got really interesting numbers in here from StatsCan, but I guess, tell me if I'm wrong, it seems to me that, you know, it costs what it costs if you are making a certain amount of money. And as your salary increases or your net worth increases, you start putting more into it.
Starting point is 00:13:40 Like it'll just become more expensive. Is that like induced demand? That's correct. According to stats can. So going from medium salary to the medium salary, high salary, your cost of kids actually raises by almost 40%. 40% really, huh?
Starting point is 00:13:57 My goodness. And I mean, some of these numbers are staggering. The fact that most families are homeowners, not renters, that surprises me as well. What do you make of that number? Yeah, that really surprised me because a lot of in Canada, we're really obsessed with real estate and I get it.
Starting point is 00:14:14 It's really hard to buy a house. Everyone's really complaining about rent costs and real estate costs. So the fact that two thirds of Canadian families actually own instead of rent also blew my mind when I read that statistic. What do you make of the disturbingly low birthrate in Canada? Why do you think people are choosing not to have kids? I think definitely part of the reason is the cost of living. But I think it's also
Starting point is 00:14:40 society teaches us that you have to spend money in order for your kids to be happy. And that proves it with the Statistics Canada information that shows us when you have to spend money in order for your kids to be happy. And that proves it with the Statistics Canada information that shows us when you have a higher salary, they cost more. Why do they cost more? Do they suddenly become more expensive? Or is it because we are influenced by society thinking that if you don't spend the money, you don't love your children and therefore they are expensive because you need to spend
Starting point is 00:15:02 the money. And just for context, according to these stats can numbers, it takes $367,000 plus to raise a child in Canada from birth to age 18. I mean, a lot of people are going to see that number. And like I said, there are going to be people who are living paycheck to paycheck. They want to have a kid. But if they read that number, it's going to give them pause. Oh, it's terrifying.
Starting point is 00:15:24 I was terrified of this number. This is why I actually put off having kids for a really long time. But I'm happy to report after I had my child, it was much, much lower than the stats can number less than half of what they're estimating. And I think a lot of it I do see is because part of it is also because of society telling us we need to spend more. But part of it is also Canadian subsidies for daycare. That has improved significantly over the past couple of years,
Starting point is 00:15:49 and the CCB also helps as well. So I think we're very fortunate to live in a country in which we have that benefit compared to some other countries. I understand the human motivation of wanting to give your kids all the things that you didn't have, right? So if you're living paycheck to paycheck, but then maybe one day you get your dream job and you go from making, you know, $65,000 a year to $360,000 a year, all of a sudden, maybe there are options
Starting point is 00:16:11 available to you in that new reality that weren't there before. Maybe you want your kid to ski or now you can afford for them to learn tennis or pick up an instrument. Those things can I mean, I know people who all of a sudden found found their way to economic freedom and they want, the one thing they always want to do growing up that they never did was ride horses. And so they wanted their kid to be around horses. That ain't cheap.
Starting point is 00:16:34 So all of a sudden you're going from having an existence where your kid is going to beavers or Cub Scouts and to a life, an equine life. And all of a sudden I can see that being a reason, a very human reason for spending more on your kids because you can. Yeah, I absolutely see that. Like everybody wants the best for their kids. I absolutely understand that. But you know what's better than activities for your kids? Time with you.
Starting point is 00:17:01 Oh, yes. You. You are what's best for your kids, time with you. Oh yes. You, they need you. You are what's best for your kids. Well, see, it works well with me because on a lot of really key issues, I am as young as my sons. Like the things that I like are the things they like. And so we get along like a barn on fire. Exactly. So one of the things, it's a trade off, right?
Starting point is 00:17:20 It's like, okay, you're saving money, but it's not just about saving money. What's the trade off? What else would you do with that money? It's not okay, you're saving money, but it's not just about saving money. What's the trade off? What else would you do with that money? It's not just, you're saving money and just putting in a pile. Great, I'm depriving my kids of these opportunities. No, you're saving the money to buy back your time
Starting point is 00:17:32 so you can spend that time with your children. That's why they need you. You are the most important thing. But I've got my kids in a few activities. Not a lot, we don't over-program them, right? I think when they were young, we fell into that trap, which is not a cheap trap, by the way, of play dates and play groups and this skill and that skill.
Starting point is 00:17:50 And we actually, we spent so much time over-programming them that we didn't do some of the basics with them. Like we forgot, shoot, they gotta learn how to ride a bike. They gotta learn how to tie their shoes. And so we had to go back and at a later date than either my wife and I were comfortable admitting that there were some skills that every kid learned at a really early age that ours didn't. So we were like, okay, we got to focus on the basics here. And, and, and so, so now they do a few things, things they like, things we know
Starting point is 00:18:22 that if we're going to spend money on it, they're going to get something out of it because they really like it. Absolutely. Yeah. It's about being conscious with how you're spending, not just spending it just because everyone else is spending it. Well, when I, before I had kids, I go tell my sister who had kids, I was like, you're spending way too much money on toys. Your kids aren't going to remember these toys.
Starting point is 00:18:41 When I have kids, what I'm going to do is I'm going to take them to Toys R Us and I have pictures of them remember these toys. When I have kids, what I'm going to do is I'm going to take them to Toys R Us and I have pictures of them with the toys. And then I'm going to take them home and they're going to have, I'll have, I'll essentially, I'll create these false memories of them playing with the toys. And then for them to have fun, I'm going to take different size forks and I'm going to put different size corks on top of them. And those will be their toys. They'll throw them up in the air. they'll bounce really funny and kids are dumb and they're going to love that. That was my idea before I had kids. And then I had the kids and my instinct was to give them anything and everything I could possibly afford. Yeah, I completely understand that. Yeah. And also what you were describing is basically Instagram.
Starting point is 00:19:17 Everybody's curating the life that they want everyone else to see. Well, that has to have an influence as well, doesn't it? I mean, it's not reality. It doesn't exist. And whatever people are giving you is a curated view of like through a peephole of their life. And we're expected to believe that it's real. We never measure up. And in a lot of cases, in an attempt to measure up,
Starting point is 00:19:40 we're spending far more money than we should. And our kids would be far happier with a much more stripped down version of reality. Absolutely. Yeah. So can I ask a couple of questions? So your child is two? Almost two. Almost two. I discovered what kind of parent I was on the fly. What kind of parent did you discover you were? I'm still figuring it out, honestly. It changes day by day. Yeah? Are you? Do you think you're going to be a helicopter parent, a tiger mom, a snowplow parent? No, I'm going to be the phased old mom that's like, oh my God, what did I do? Did I leave the door open on what's going on here? I'm going to be the phased old mom.
Starting point is 00:20:16 I see. My mom and my dad were old school. My mom came over from Yugoslavia when she was like seven. And so I got old school parenting. Like my mom always said, and I said this on the show yesterday, she said, I didn't have kids so I could fit into their lives. I had kids so they could fit into mine. So there was an element of like, I've got the information to impart and you're going to listen.
Starting point is 00:20:39 And when you're done listening, you're going to your room. I feel like our parents could be BFFs. My parents are exactly like that. Yeah, and look, not to do my, I think my parents raised me pretty well, and I think my siblings were raised pretty well. So I emulate them as much as I can, given the changing circumstances of life.
Starting point is 00:20:58 Like there was no social media back in the day, so that we don't have to deal with. But I wanted to thank you so much for joining us. It's a great article. It's in the Globe and Mail. What does it cost to raise a kid? That depends on how much parents make. Christy Shen, really appreciate your time and all the best.
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Starting point is 00:22:09 Service fees, exclusions, and terms apply. Instacart. Groceries that over-deliver. Welcome back to the Ben Mulroney Show. And it seems like the end of this show, we've been sort of dealing in with a similar theme, sort of the changing mores and values of Canadians over time. All of a sudden it's in fashion to not have kids. Why is that? We explored that a little bit, the cost of having kids.
Starting point is 00:22:32 And now I read that six in 10 Canadians now consider travel an important life milestone more than those who prioritize home ownership. So the Canadian dream always was to own a house. And now more Canadians feel that the dream is to travel. I remember hearing something like that a little while ago, a few years ago, when social media meant a little more to me, that I kept seeing all these younger Canadians
Starting point is 00:22:56 or younger people posting about all the wonderful travel that they were doing over the course of a year. And I remember having younger colleagues back when I worked in TV and it turned, it seemed like they were traveling at the drop of a hat. And I'm not going to lie, a little part of me was jealous that they had the ability to just pick up and go. Uh, and, but I did say to myself at the time, as the old guy in the room thought to myself, you know what, if you didn't travel so much, maybe you could put a down payment on a house. I've changed that opinion. I've changed that opinion.
Starting point is 00:23:25 I've changed that opinion because my thought is now that they were the first cohort to get the wool pulled over their eyes, to get the rug pulled from under them in terms of what this country promised them. I was promised the ability to get into a house. I was able to get into a house. I also had the bank of mom and dad, as a lot of Canadians do.
Starting point is 00:23:46 But a lot of these guys, it feels to me they were the tip of the sword. They are the ones who were the first to realize that house that I wanted, that's a pipe dream. I'm never going to get into there. So I might as well do something to make myself feel good, something to derive satisfaction from. And if I'm not going to pick up a drug habit or drink too much, I'm going to travel. That's going to make me feel good. So I can't fault them.
Starting point is 00:24:12 And it's to me, it's it's an interesting it's an interesting thing. I'll put the call out. I'll invite you to call into the Ben Mulroney show. Have you have you given up on the dream of home ownership? Did you pivot to another dream? Are you still headstrong believing that one day, if you work hard and you do all the things that society demands of you, you will be able to get into the house of your dreams?
Starting point is 00:24:32 Or are you saying to yourself, look, it's so far gone. It's so unrealistic that I might as well fashion a new dream. And that dream probably involves going to all points and coming home with memories. If I can't come home to a house, I'm gonna come home with memories. Let's ask Don what he thinks. Welcome to the show, Don.
Starting point is 00:24:51 Matt, thanks for taking my call. It's an unusual honor that midday I can listen to the radio, but I only enjoy your show when I can. Well, thank you very much. So what do you think? Do you think that people have shifted to wanting to travel more because it's just, it just an unrealistic dream and goal to try to get a house? So Ben, if I can, I'll tell you, I'm going to diverge slightly from your question.
Starting point is 00:25:17 Go ahead. I'm actually a funeral director by trade. Okay. And as a result, I've met some incredible families and people and heard crazy stories about people's, you know, histories. But I had a powerful experience one night at a visitation where a man I was acquainted with, a very wealthy farmer, probably had 10,000 acres, multi-millionaire several times over. And he came into visitation for an employee of his and there was kids, there was grandkids, there was pictures all around the funeral home and he came wandering in, did kind of
Starting point is 00:25:55 a loop around the room, came wandering back out and he said, and he kind of confessed to me, he says, you know, I'm a wealthy man and I said okay I understand that he says but he is rich and he says I've got three X Y's he says I've got kids that don't talk to me that man yeah yeah all the money in the world doesn't mean anything yeah we got you got you got you can't take it with you and and his memory will will live on but but But fewer and fewer Canadians have that wealth that you're talking about, Troy. Don, hey, I want to thank you so much for the call. I want to thank you for the story. I really appreciate it. Let's invite Troy into the conversation. Troy, do you think that travel is the new Canadian dream? It might be. It probably should be. You know, obviously with the pandemic when travel was
Starting point is 00:26:47 halted, you never know when that could happen again. Right. Yeah, I actually did the opposite. All my friends going to university did have the bank, mom and dad. And my parents said, we'll pay for your first year. After that, you're on your own. Oh, wow. You know, I was thankful for that. But all my friends are away after first year. And at the time, I didn't have the 8,000, 10,000 it was for that trip. And here I am in my mid 50s and still have never done that European trip. And
Starting point is 00:27:21 I'm actually hoping to do it in the next few years. But yeah, you just, that's just the. Well, that, yeah, that, that's sort of the track that that's sort of the track that we were all on. I mean, in your case, there was no travel. Some people have a little bit of travel and they hope to get to it in, you know, in their retirement years or later on when they're more financially secure, maybe they paid off their mortgage. And yet, and today, it feels like there's a generation that's like, look, there are no mortgage payments in my future. I cannot afford what is required of me. So I'm going to go get those travel memories now while I'm young, while I can experience them with the vigor of youth. And I don't know, like, if that's the new reality, then I can't find fault in it, Troy. No, I can't either. I mean, I certainly wouldn't want to be going through what the 20s and early 30s are going through right now. They're definitely a different breed. But hey, everyone's
Starting point is 00:28:18 got to make their own choice. They've got to make their own choice. They've got to find a way to feel satisfaction. Like in my case, as I'm sure in yours, Troy, the satisfaction derived of knowing that I own where my family lives, that we've put down roots, and there's real value in that, in how I see myself. But there are people for whom home ownership
Starting point is 00:28:38 is an impossibility. So they've gotta find a way to carve out their identity separately on a completely different track. Hey, thank you very much for your call, Troy. I really appreciate it. Let's welcome Regan to the conversation. Hi there, Regan. Hey, Ben. How are you doing today, buddy? I'm good. So you are at an inflection point, almost 40, don't have a house yet. Yeah. So, I mean, I've seen a lot of Canada. I was in a punk rock band growing up, so I
Starting point is 00:29:03 got to see Canada. I didn't really get to go see the world because well, I couldn't afford it. So now that I've got a kid and a wife and I'm kind of an elder millennial, I kind of look at it as the only way I think I might see house ownership in this province is if my parents, my mother passes away and leaves me her inheritance and her estate.
Starting point is 00:29:23 Because my father passed away years ago and my brother's no longer. So I'm, it's just me now. So I feel like that's really the only way unless I come into a windfall of money. And I, the only way I can see doing that is if I cash out my pension. Yeah. That's the only way I can see getting home ownership. But then that really screws me for retirement. Well, of course, of course.
Starting point is 00:29:44 So what are you thinking? Like if somebody, if somebody forced you to make a decision today about do you pursue home ownership or not? What do you, what are you deciding today? I honestly still want, I still dream for a home. I long for a home. I want to, I want a place to, you know, I hate to say it. I want a place to die. That's the place I want to die in. I want to buy a home and be like, this is where I die. You know what? I, it's interesting you say that because I, I j to die in. I want to buy a home and be like, this is where I die. You know what? It's interesting you say that because I joked when we got into our house, which we call our forever home, I've told my wife, I've picked the plot,
Starting point is 00:30:12 the part of the backyard that I want to be buried in because that's how I identify. Because it's part of our identity. We were sold this growing up. This is how you built your life. And it feels like, you know, I got in on it through a number of decisions I made, but also the luck of the birth lottery. But it feels like, you know, you were, you bought into that same story and it's a lot harder for you. Well, yeah, the thing is, like I grew up in the Maritimes. So, and even through COVID, a lot of
Starting point is 00:30:43 Ontario property speculators moved there and shacked the prices up. Yeah. So, and even through COVID, a lot of Ontario property speculators moved there and check the prices up. Yeah. So even in my hometown, just to get a starter home, you're still looking at a half a million dollars. Yeah. Well, Reagan, I want to thank you for sharing your story. I really appreciate it. And we've got time for one more quick call. Let's welcome Larry to the conversation. Larry, is it a dream or a pipe dream. Oh Larry, we're gonna have to cut that off because I can't hear you. I want to thank everybody for calling. It reminds me of a Toronto stand-up comic I saw a few days ago who's talking about trying to buy a house and the
Starting point is 00:31:21 realtor said you can't afford a house but you know if you get like an early like a gift from your parents from like a windfall after they die you get that early then you can afford the house and he's like are you recommending the more for me to get into the Toronto market I kill my parents that was sort of the gist of it anyway thank you so much for being here. Rick put you in there for a reason, Speedy. Mom, justice! Get back here! This is for your own good! Rick and Morty, new season, Sundays on Adult Swim. Stream on StackTV. Get your mouth rounded.

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