Atlantic Canada sees biggest jump in 1-person households, census shows

The share of one-person households increasedthe most in the Atlantic provinces compared to the rest of the country duringthe past 15years,the latest census data from Statistics Canada shows.

The stronger increase is likely related to the faster aging population in the Atlantic region, where one-fifth (19.8 per cent) of all people were aged65and older in2016, compared with16.9 per centfor Canada as a whole, according to the agency.

Newfoundland and Labrador saw the biggest jump in its proportion of one-person households between 2001 and 2016, at36.4 per cent, followed by New Brunswick, 24.9 per cent, Prince Edward Island, 20.2 per cent, and Nova Scotia, 19.4 per cent.

By comparison, the national growth in the category during the same period was 9.6 per cent.

• New Brunswick bilingualism rate rises to 34%
• More Canadians living alone and without children, census figures show

Still, one-person households were the most common type of household in the country last year forthe first time in the country's history.

Nearly 14 per cent of Canadians reported living alone, representing28.2 per cent of all households more than the percentage of couples with or without children, single-parent families, and other combinations of people livingtogether, the figures released on Wednesday reveal.

Among the Atlantic provinces, Nova Scotia has the highest percentage of one-person households at 29.5 per cent, higher than the national average.

New Brunswick was a close second at 28 per cent, followed by Prince Edward Island, 27.4 per cent, and Newfoundland and Labrador, 24.6 per cent.

Several social, economic and demographic factors have contributed to the rise in the number of people living alone, including more women being in the workforce and economically independent, Statistics Canada said.

Higher separation and divorce rates have contributedto more people living alone, the agency said.

The number of people who reported being divorced was up in all of the Atlantic provinces in 2016, compared to 2011. The number of people separated was also higher in New Brunswick and Nova Scotia last year, but down in Newfoundland and Labrador and P.E.I.

Married couples represent the majority of couples, but more Atlantic Canadians were living common law in 2016, compared to 2011, the data shows.

Nova Scotia led the pack with 85,275 common law couples last year, up from 77,075. In New Brunswick, there were 77,580 common law couples, compared to 72,000 during the last census. Newfoundland and Labrador had a similar jump to 46,485 from 41,295,while the number of common law couples in P.E.I. roseto 10,755 from 9,170.

The number of couples living with children declined in the Atlantic provinces between 2011 and 2016, also likely due to aging populations. In fact, the Atlantic provinces recorded the lowest shares of couples with children in 2016.

In Nova Scotia, 42.8 per cent of couples reported living with children last year. In New Brunswick, the percentage was 43.4, followed by Newfoundland and Labrador, 44.4 per cent and Prince Edward Island, 46 per cent. The national average was 51.1 per cent.

Many young adults living with parents

Nova Scotia logged the highest proportionof children aged 0 to 14 living with a single parent at 26 per cent.

New Brunswick, Newfoundland and Labrador and P.E.I. were also above the national average of 19.2 per cent, at 24.3 per cent, 23.2 per cent and 22.1 per cent.

Nova Scotia and New Brunswick also had among the highest shares of children living in a loneparent family, stepfamily or without their parents combined 38.7 per cent and 37.7 per cent, compared to 27.1 per cent in Alberta.

In Newfoundland and Labrador, one in three young adults aged 20 to 34 was living with at least one parent in 2016 (33.4 per cent).

But that's in line with the national average of34.7 per cent, likely caused by economic conditions, such asthe high cost of housing, as well as changing cultural norms, said Statistics Canada.

Ontario had the highest share at42.1 per cent. In New Brunswick, the proportion was 29.6 per cent.

The Atlantic provinces and the territories stood out as the only regions in the country where the share of young adults living with their parents was higher in rural areas than in urban areas, the agency said.