Home ownership means independence to many Montreal women

    -   41% choose houses, 35% condos
    -   Main source of pleasure in home ownership is independence
    -   Main worry: affordability

    MONTREAL, Feb. 29 /CNW/ - When it comes to home ownership, more
individual women purchasers in Montreal are buying houses than condominiums,
according to TD Canada Trust's Women and Home Ownership Poll.
    41% of Montreal women poll respondents bought a house as their most
recent home purchase. 35% bought a condo; 11% a duplex, triplex or fourplex;
7% a townhouse and 6% other types of housing. For all of Canada, the
corresponding averages were 34% buying houses, 42% condos,
6% duplex/triplex/fourplex, 13% townhouse and 4% other types of housing.
    The findings are part of a national poll by TD Canada Trust that portrays
the individual Canadian woman homeowner as single, financially savvy and, on
average, most likely to purchase a condominium.
    When asked what aspect of home ownership gave them the greatest pleasure,
Montreal women said being independent, free and having control (25%), with
financial security receiving the next most mentions (17%). This differs
somewhat from the responses of women across Canada, where financial security
was what pleased them the most (23%) and independence came in at 18%.
    "For individual Montreal women, owning a house is about freedom," says
Joan Dal Bianco, Vice President, Real Estate Secured Lending. "They're
somewhat less worried about the financial commitment than women in Vancouver
and Toronto, no doubt reflecting the lower housing prices in this city."
    86% of women in Vancouver & Toronto say affordability is their biggest
worry about home ownership. In Montreal, a significantly lower number (68%)
indicate this is a worry.
    The national poll, conducted in the first two weeks of this year by
Ipsos Reid, was among women aged 20 to 45 who have purchased a home as an
individual rather than jointly with a spouse or common law partner. Among this
group, the average age at which they purchased their first home is 29 years.
82% are single, 80% have no children and 49% have a university degree. The
vast majority (86%) still live in the last home they purchased and have made
only one home purchase as an individual (81%).
    Respondents were asked what would be the main reason they would sell
their home. For Montreal women, 41% say they would do so to trade up to a
better home (compared with 50% nationally) and 33% would sell to gain more
space (compared with 41% nationally. Marriage would motivate only 11% of
Montreal women surveyed to sell their homes - far less than women in Toronto
(41%) and well below the average of women across Canada (29%).
    The online survey was conducted among 713 women living in major
metropolitan areas across Canada and reflects the population of Canadian women
in these areas aged 20-45 according to 2006 Census data. The margin of error
for the national sample is +/-3.7%, 19 times out of 20.

    About TD Bank Financial Group

    The Toronto-Dominion Bank and its subsidiaries are collectively known as
TD Bank Financial Group. TD Bank Financial Group serves more than 14 million
customers in four key businesses operating in a number of locations in key
financial centres around the globe: Canadian Personal and Commercial Banking,
including TD Canada Trust; Wealth Management, including TD Waterhouse and an
investment in TD Ameritrade; U.S. Personal and Commercial Banking through
TD Banknorth; and Wholesale Banking, including TD Securities. TD Bank
Financial Group also ranks among the world's leading on-line financial
services firms, with more than 4.5 million on-line customers. TD Bank
Financial Group had CDN$435 billion in assets, as of January 31, 2008. The
Toronto-Dominion Bank trades on the Toronto and New York Stock Exchanges under
the symbol "TD", as well as on the Tokyo Stock Exchange.

For further information: Kelly Hechler, Media Relations, Corporate and
Public Affairs, TD Bank Financial Group, (416) 982-2469