Government land-use regulations a principal source of this inequality Canada’s housing affordability crisis is a matter of considerable concern, especially for young people trying to buy a house. The worst problems are in the Vancouver and Toronto markets with their excessive land-use regulation. Extensive international research associates stronger land-use regulation with diminished housing affordability. Vancouver
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Housing Affordability
Policy Restrictions Have Caused The housing Crisis
on May 5th, 2022
The prospects for material improvement are dim unless regulations on the urban fringe, even if beyond the greenbelt, are relaxed For 18 years, I have been monitoring international housing affordability as author or co-author of the Demographia Housing Affordability series. The latest edition rates 92 major markets in eight nations using the “median multiple”: the
We’re Paying The Price for Artificially Low Interest Rates
on April 11th, 2022
Very low interest rates provide a perverse incentive for politicians to borrow heavily and rack up more debt, since interest costs are reduced Canadians are feeling the effects of rising inflation everywhere, from the grocery store to the gas station. In response to the highest level of inflation in three decades, the Bank of Canada
City Hall Holds the Key to Solving Canada’s Urban Housing Crisis
on January 27th, 2019
As centres for jobs, education and innovation, municipalities play an outsized role in Canada’s continued prosperity For mayors, councillors and city staff in Canada’s largest cities, housing affordability is – or should be – top of mind. With the cost of owning a home out of reach for many, and the ability to rent hampered
B.C. Wants More Rental Units; Will Municipalities Follow Through?
on May 18th, 2018
New zoning powers for local governments will only meaningfully affect rental vacancy rates if cities streamline approval processes The British Columbia government recently introduced legislation aimed at housing affordability, which – among other things – would grant municipalities the power to zone for rental-only housing, ostensibly to preserve and expand the supply of rental units
How Fighting Urban Sprawl Inflates Housing Prices
on June 16th, 2017
Imposed greenbelts drive up land prices, which leads to much higher house prices in a metropolitan area Wherever housing prices are severely inflated, you’ll find urban growth boundaries, greenbelts or similar land rationing policies. Toronto is a perfect example. Talk continues of the potential for a housing bust in Toronto. Yet through the end of
David Eby, Champion for Housing Affordability – Part Three
on November 13th, 2016
There are, political policies and attitudes, that have created our present crisis. Additionally, there are many political beneficiaries to your financial misfortune. Next week, I’ll share with you, more of Mr. Eby’s insights; until then, consider our regional situation and how it affects you and perhaps, a timely political change. – Anastasia Anthony Zervos
Red Tape, Not Foreign Buyers, Drives Housing Affordability Woes
on August 6th, 2016
Heavy-handed policies have consequences that are worse than the problem they seek to fix Foreign nationals purchasing homes in Metro Vancouver and the Greater Toronto Area is a topic that continues to make national headlines, especially as housing prices rise. This came to a head recently when B.C. Minister of Finance Mike de Jong announced
Over Half of Canadian Housing Markets Severely Unaffordable
What’s the solution? Curb the use of urban containment policies and make more land available for housing The latest Demographia report on housing affordability in Canada, which I produce for the Frontier Centre for Public Policy, reveals that over half of the 46 Canadian housing markets we assess are severely unaffordable. Vancouver and Toronto,