Most couples prefer cash for down payments over traditional wedding gifts: survey

A new home is shown for sale in a housing development in Ottawa on Tuesday, July 14, 2020. THE CANADIAN PRESS/Sean Kilpatrick

TORONTO — A new survey finds that most Canadians with marriage on the mind rank home ownership ahead of lavish weddings and conventional gifts.

A Royal LePage poll finds that 79 per cent of respondents planning their nuptials — or with someone in their life who is — say they would consider requesting money for a down payment on a home instead of a traditional wedding present.

Some 82 per cent said they would scale back their wedding plans or forgo them entirely in order to put cash toward a down payment.

The survey reveals that respondents in British Columbia are the most likely to ask for financial contributions toward it rather than, say, crystalware or a stand mixer.

Canadians in Manitoba, Saskatchewan and Quebec are the least inclined.

Anne-Elise Cugliari Allegritti, vice-president of research and communications at Royal LePage, says the cost of living is pushing Canadians to make tough trade-offs between rings and real estate.

This report by The Canadian Press was first published May 21, 2026.