The Hidden Costs of Being Single

Some might say that being single offers more independence and choice, but going it alone has at least one potential drawback: it can carry a sizable financial cost. Single Canadians are often faced with higher housing expenses and fewer tax breaks than couples, among other financial challenges. As more people are living alone than ever before – 15 per cent of those aged 15 and up¹ – it could be a good idea to take a strategic approach to spending, saving and investing.

That’s the focus of the new book The Singles Tax: No-Nonsense Financial Advice for Solo Earners, published in January by ECW Press. Its author, Renée Sylvestre-Williams, is a journalist in Toronto and the writer of The Budgette, a personal-finance newsletter for solo earners. We talked to Sylvestre-Williams about how being single influences money decisions, and how single Canadians can build wealth on their own terms.

Based on your years of reporting on personal finance and publishing The Budgette, what do you think people tend to get wrong about the financial realities of being single?

Renée: What people get wrong about singles’ finances is thinking that it’s a blanket situation: either the single person is struggling financially, or the single person has a ton of disposable income. And yes, those are two ends of the spectrum, but fundamentally, a single person has the same types of bills that couples do. What makes it different is that there isn’t another person for support, financial or emotional.

What are the biggest everyday expenses that single people have to cover on their own?

Renée: The hard costs, like rent or mortgage and internet. What’s the average rent of a one-bedroom apartment now? In Toronto, it was $2,200 a month as of January 2026². If you have a mortgage, you’re covering that and other home ownership costs by yourself. If you own a condo, you’re covering maintenance fees by yourself. You also cover the cost of internet service. You can bundle it with your phone and get a small discount, but the savings are probably lower than with a family plan.

What are some of the financial benefits couples get that single people tend to miss out on?

Renée: Splitting those hard costs is one distinctive advantage. To save on tax, couples can bundle medical bills and donation receipts and have the higher-earning partner or spouse claim them. But financially, a lot of [the benefits] come after retirement. There’s income splitting, where the higher-earning spouse or partner can split pension income with the other partner and lower their overall tax. Couples can also reduce tax with a spousal RRSP. If you’re a high-earning single person and you reach retirement age, there isn’t much you can do to reduce your tax bracket compared to a couple.

On the flip side, what do you think are some of the financial upsides or freedoms that single people can benefit from?

Renée: Oh, a lot actually. I think a lot of people think that it’s all downside, but one of the benefits is that you have full say over your financial life. You don’t have to compromise with someone. You can make all the decisions and do all your financial planning for your lifestyle without having to factor in other people – other adults, because, you know, single people have children, as well.

What are some financial habits that can help single people spend, save and invest in line with their financial goals?

Renée: One that you might not think of is building your support system. Your support should be a blend of experts and friends. When you live by yourself, you don’t necessarily have another person to take on some of that mental and physical labour for you. You’re pretty much doing everything. If you’re fortunate and have the financial means for it, you can outsource a lot of that labour – grocery shopping, cleaning, tax preparation and all those things – though not everybody does. But having a team of experts that you can rely on is very, very helpful. In [The Singles Tax], I talk about having an employment lawyer, an accountant and an insurance agent you can reach out to.

On a related note, it’s likely a good idea to work at maintaining your friendships. If you’re very lucky you have a family that you have a good relationship with, but not everybody does, for various reasons. If you’ve got a good group of friends, or even just a couple of good friends, it’s in your best interest to maintain those relationships. Maintaining friendships or a community is like a muscle. You have to work it out regularly.

Let’s talk about investing. What are some effective wealth-building strategies to consider?

Renée: There are a few things. First, start investing as early as possible. You don’t need a large sum of money to start. Dollar cost averaging – which means investing a fixed amount regularly, regardless of prices – works well. The more time you have in the market, the better you can manage the ebbs and flows of market cycles.

Also, make sure that you understand what you’re investing in. In the last five or six years, investing in different things has become easier – a lot of the friction has been removed from investing in cryptocurrencies, private equity, private debt – all those things. But if you don’t understand an investment… educate yourself as much as you can. There’s a lot of good financial information out there.

Many people like having a financial advisor as part of their team, even if they do some or all of their investing on their own. What would you look for in an advisor?

Renée: An advisor is there to help you and guide you and provide advice. They should understand what you want, and they are required to act in your best interest. You’ll want to be able to have a conversation as equals. I included a list of questions you should ask a advisor in my book.

You should meet with your advisor regularly. My advisor just reached out to me, and we’re setting up our semi-annual check-in to talk about things like if my income or goals have changed, and those kinds of questions.

Is there something you learned while you were researching your book that surprised you?

Renée: Yes, and it’s actually not about money. I spent a lot of time on the housing chapter. I had an idea of what I wanted to cover, but as I got deeper into the research and started talking to people like planners and housing advocates, I was surprised to learn that, fairly recently, Toronto had bylaws that actively worked against single people. There are several paragraphs in the book about a bylaw in North York that forbade people who were not related to each other from renting apartments. That was overturned in the mid-70s, which isn’t that long ago. These neighbourhoods were designated for families. That surprised me the most.

This interview has been edited for length and clarity.