Home, sweet home. is retiree mantra

About 17% of Canadian homeowners say their homes will be their primary source of retirement income, according to a survey released last week.

The survey by RBC Royal Bank also found that 32% of respondents 55 and over hold a mortgage, and suggested that Canadians are increasingly comfortable with housing debt following the rise in house prices over the last few years.

"There's definately a trend amoung aging baby boomers that they are very comfortable in holding debt later in their lives, and so I think a reverse-mortgage, or at least everaging the equity in their homes, is something they're comfortable with," Catherine Adams, RBC's vice=president of home equity financing, said in an interview.

Another recent study by the bank found that 48% of Canadians do not believe it's necessary to retire debt free, she noted.

Surveys are a popular promotional tool for Canada's banks and mutual fund companies. Many use public opinion polls to guage demand for financial products and services, promote specific brand names and learn more about the public's financial management habits.

Royal Bank is Canada's biggest residental mortgage lender, with more than $91 billion in loans outstanding at the end of its 2005 fiscal year.

The survey also found that 60% of Canadian homeowners currently hold a mortgage, up from 56% in 2000.

The average amount owing is $95,840.

Nearly 40% of mortgage holders have borrowed against the equity in their homes.

The increased borrowing comes as the average homeowner estimates that their home has gone up 18% in value over the last two years, according to the survey.

The Canadian Press.