If you’re a homeowner in the Greater Toronto Area, you know how tough it is to keep your home in great shape. Routine maintenance takes the form of a never-ending to-do list, and unexpected repairs can quickly rack up thousands of dollars in unplanned spending.
However, a new survey conducted by Quartermaster finds that when it comes to home maintenance, half of GTA homeowners are simply crossing their fingers and hoping for the best – and it’s costing them.
The survey, which polled 1,100 homeowners within GTA municipal Forward Sorting Areas (FSAs), finds half of respondents take a reactive approach to caring for their homes: 49.1% identify as such, compared with 31.3% who say they are proactive and 19.6% who are neutral. Another 45.3% say they only find out they need maintenance “when something breaks or looks wrong,” and only 23.8% plan ahead with a schedule or checklist.
What’s more is over half of homeowners (53.5%) have dealt with a home repair emergency in the last 12 months. Seven in 10 of these homeowners (72.4%) spent over $1,000 on unplanned repairs.
The data also found a clear mismatch between what homeowners maintain and what goes wrong. Plumbing issues were the leading cause of home emergencies in the GTA over the past 12 months, affecting 48% of homeowners who experienced one. Yet in that same timeframe, only 8.5% of homeowners tested their sump pump, 19% checked their water heater, and just a quarter (25.7%) checked their exposed pipes for leaks.
More than half of GTA homeowners (53.5%) had a home repair emergency in the last 12 months
The survey finds that unplanned home repair emergencies are actually the norm; over half of homeowners have experienced one of some kind over the past year, and the majority (72.4%) paid over $1,000 to resolve it. In fact, over a quarter (26%) of this group paid $5,000 or more.
Repair emergencies in the past year, by categoryEmergency type | % of homeowners who experienced an emergency, by type |
|---|
Plumbing and leaks | 48.0% |
Heating, ventilation and air conditioning (HVAC) | 31.0% |
Roofing and gutters | 17.2% |
Electrical systems | 14.1% |
Pest control | 12.1% |
Landscaping and yard maintenance | 10.4% |
Foundation and structural issues | 8.5%
|
Note: Homeowners could choose more than one type, so percentages add to more than 100%.
Six in 10 GTA homeowners (61.5%) spent more than $1,000 on unexpected repairs and maintenance in the last 12 months
“Approximately how much money (in CAD) did you spend on unplanned home maintenance and repairs in the last year?”Spend (CAD) | All homeowners (n=1,100) | Had an emergency (n=588) | No emergency (n=512) |
|---|
$1 – $100 | 4.8% | 1.0% | 9.2% |
$101 – $500 | 13.9% | 9.4% | 19.1% |
$501 – $1,000 | 19.8% | 17.2% | 22.9% |
$1,001 – $2,500 | 21.1% | 23.0% | 18.9% |
$2,501 – $5,000 | 20.5% | 23.5% | 17.2% |
$5,001 – $10,000 | 12.5% | 15.5% | 9.2% |
$10,001 – $25,000 | 4.9% | 7.1% | 2.3% |
$25,001 – $50,000 | 0.9% | 1.4% | 0.4% |
$50,001 – $99,999 | 0.7% | 1.0% | 0.4% |
$100,000+ | 0.7% | 1.0% | 0.4% |
Over $1,000 | 61.5% | 72.4% | 48.8% |
Over $5,000 | 19.8% | 26.0% | 12.7% |
Which home repair emergencies cost the most?Emergency type | % of homeowners who experienced this emergency type and spent over $5,000 | % of homeowners who experienced this emergency type and spent $1,000 or less |
|---|
Foundation and structural | 40.0% | 18.0% |
Electrical systems | 39.8% | 14.5% |
Roofing and gutters | 35.6% | 20.8% |
HVAC | 31.9% | 23.6% |
Pest control | 31.0% | 16.9% |
Landscaping and yard | 26.2% | 31.1% |
Plumbing and leaks | 25.5% | 25.2% |
All with an emergency | 26.0% | 27.6%
|
Foundation and electrical problems cost the most: about four in 10 of homeowners who had an emergency repair involving these areas spent over $5,000 (40.0% and 39.8%).
Roofing comes next, with 35.6% spending over $5,000.
Plumbing is the most common emergency but one of the comparably cheaper ones: 25.5% spent over $5,000, close to the overall rate of 26.0%.
The water gap: Most common emergencies vs. most neglected tasks
Despite plumbing problems being the most common type of unplanned repair, making up 48% of emergency types, water-related maintenance made up the smallest portion of task routinely conducted by homeowners, even though they are often the type they can do themselves, and for free.
Six in 10 homeowners (59.5%) did none of these three water-related checks in the past year:
Water-related task | % who did it in the past 12 months (n=1,100) |
|---|
Checked exposed pipes for leaks | 25.7% |
Flushed or checked water heater | 19.0% |
Tested sump pump | 8.5% |
Also read: How to do your own plumbing inspection
Other commonly skipped tasks: Checking alarms, electrical safety, and gutter cleaning
Even homeowners who have already experienced a plumbing emergency rarely do water-related maintenance tasks: only 12.8% tested a sump pump and 23.8% checked their water heater within the past 12 months, though homeowners who had experienced a plumbing emergency were more likely (36.5%) to check the state of their pipes.
But plumbing tasks weren’t the only type of maintenance overlooked by many homeowners. The survey finds that many common home safety checks and tasks aren’t being conducted on an annual basis.
In fact, nearly half (48.7%) of homeowners aren’t routinely checking their smoke and CO detectors. The majority (85.6%) also skip checking their electrical outlets for warmth, which is a quick way to ensure your home isn’t experiencing wiring problems.
Many homeowners (64.5%) are also skipping an annual gutter and downspout cleaning. This is despite gutter cleaning being a key way to prevent water and ice damage to roofs and exteriors over the winter months.
“Over the past 12 months, what routine maintenance tasks have you done, or hired someone to do?”Task | Done or hired out (n=1,100) | Not done |
|---|
Furnace filter replacement | 61.4% | 38.6% |
Smoke and CO detector testing | 51.3% | 48.7% |
HVAC/AC maintenance | 47.0% | 53.0% |
Gutter and downspout cleaning | 35.5% | 64.5% |
Clean range hood and filters | 34.3% | 65.7% |
Check exposed pipes for leaks (water) | 25.7% | 74.3% |
Flush or check water heater (water) | 19.0% | 81.0% |
Check for warm outlets or switches (safety) | 14.4% | 85.6% |
Test sump pump (water) | 8.5% | 91.5% |
Taking a reactive approach to maintenance is the norm
Nearly half (49.1%) of surveyed homeowners identify as “reactive” when it comes to handling their home maintenance, compared to 31.3% who say they feel they are proactive about handling their home’s needs. However, just 5.6% of those who identify as proactive report that they always schedule regular maintenance.
The same pattern shows in how people spot issues around their home. The most common answer to the question “How do you usually find out that your home needs maintenance?” (45.3%) is “when something breaks or looks wrong.” Only 23.8% plan ahead with a schedule or checklist.
“How would you describe your overall approach to home maintenance?”Approach | % (n=1,100) |
|---|
Very proactive (I always schedule regular maintenance) | 5.6% |
Somewhat proactive | 25.6% |
Neutral | 19.6% |
Somewhat reactive | 36.6% |
Very reactive (I only address issues when something breaks) | 12.5% |
Total proactive | 31.3% |
Total reactive | 49.1%
|
“How do you usually find out your home needs maintenance?”Response | % (n=1,100) |
|---|
When something breaks or looks wrong | 45.3% |
I go by memory or habit | 27.3% |
I plan ahead with a schedule or checklist | 23.8% |
I don’t really track it | 3.6% |
The biggest hurdles to dealing with home maintenance
Not surprisingly, the biggest hurdle to staying on top of home maintenance is financial; 64.5% of respondents say that “budgeting for unexpected repair costs” was “very or somewhat difficult”. Second was connecting with reliable contractors or salespeople, at 63.4%. Hands-on work is less of a barrier: about a third find DIY repairs (36.5%) or keeping up with seasonal schedules (38.8%) difficult.
How difficult are these barriers to home maintenance?Task | Very or somewhat difficult | Neutral | Easy or very easy |
|---|
Budgeting for unexpected repair costs | 64.5% | 23.4% | 12.1% |
Finding reliable contractors or tradespeople | 63.4% | 22.4% | 14.2% |
Keeping up with seasonal maintenance schedules | 38.8% | 33.5% | 27.7% |
Performing DIY minor repairs | 36.5% | 33.2% | 30.3% |
Most challenging maintenance types to stay on top of
Outdoor maintenance, such as landscaping and yardwork, topped the list of the most challenging types of home maintenance at 44.5%, followed by plumbing and leaks (42%), and roofing and gutters (39.1%).
Most challenging home maintenance typesMaintenance area | % who find it challenging (n=1,100) |
|---|
Landscaping and yard maintenance | 44.5% |
Plumbing and leaks | 42.0% |
Roofing and gutters | 39.1% |
HVAC | 34.8% |
Foundation and structural issues | 27.7% |
Electrical systems | 25.7% |
Pest control | 23.0% |
None of the above | 7.4%
|
Note: Homeowners could choose more than one area.
Tools for staying on top of home maintenance
Overall, our survey highlights that proactively addressing your home’s needs is challenging for homeowners of all types. The good news? Quartermaster’s custom Maintenance Plans can take the guesswork and stress out of knowing what to tackle, when.
Your Maintenance Plan is customized to your house and the systems in it. Each task explains why it matters, so you can decide what’s urgent and what can wait.
Every completed task and project stays on your home record, along with your service history.
Stay on top of what your home needs each season. Do the easy jobs yourself with a DIY guide, or book a Pro your neighbours already trust, right from the task.
Need a hand with common DIY tasks? Check out our handy guides for staying on top of tasks you can do yourself:
Methodology
These findings are from an online survey of 1,100 homeowners in the Greater Toronto Area (GTA) (City of Toronto, Peel Region, Durham Region, Halton Region and York Region), conducted from October 28 to November 8, 2026, by Quartermaster Inc. through Pollfish. Respondents were aged 18 to 64, owned a detached house, semi-detached house or freehold townhouse in the GTA, and were targeted by Forward Sortation Area.
