The 2011 National Household Survey of Canada shows Quebecers to be among the poorest in the country. If Statistics Canada is to be believed, Quebecers are least likely to possess their own houses.

In its latest release, Statistics Canada reveals how much the Canadian population earn and how they spend their money. According to the report, 1/4 of the Canadian population, which is around 3.3 million, spend at least 30 per cent of the income on housing. This exceeds the affordability threshold of the Canada Mortgage and Housing Corporation.

Quebecers turn out to be least likely to afford own houses as, according to the 2010 census, the average income of a family in Quebec is $68,000 whereas the national average stands at $76,000. The top earners' average income is $381,300, while most of them (64 per cent) live in Alberta and Ontario. 14.9 per cent Canadians (4.8 million) live in low-income homes, according to the 2010 report.

The survey reveals that 61 per cent Quebecers own their houses where the national average is 69 per cent. Quebec has a history of being among the poorest in the country, but the rate of home ownership increased significantly between 1991 and 2006. The main concern is that Quebecers tend to earn on a slower rate than the national average. The income rate in Quebec grew only 5 per cent between 2006 and 1010, while it is 6 per cent in Canada on the average.

The other provinces that share the lower income group in the country are Labrador, Newfoundland and New Brunswick. The average income of these provinces is $65,000. The average income of Prince Edward Island and Nova Scotia is almost equal to Quebec's.

Seventy per cent of the Canadian population received certain government transfers in 2010. Those included employment insurance, old age security benefits and Canada Pension Plan. Interestingly, 13 per cent of people who received such government transferred reported that those were the only source of their income.

Video courtesy: YouTube/StatisticsCanada