House prices soared by 50% in two years! Canada’s move: Limit purchases to foreigners.
According to Bloomberg, citing people familiar with the matter, Canadian Finance Minister Chrystia Freeland will release Canada’s federal budget report on April 7, local time, which includes a new rule-Canada will ban foreigners from buying housing for two years.
However, Canadian permanent residents, foreign workers and students are exempt from the new measure. Foreign nationals who purchase a home in Canada as their primary residence are also exempt.
Home prices in Canada have surged more than 50 per cent over the past two years, with a record increase in February, when the benchmark home price rose to C$869,000 ($693,000).
“I don’t think house prices will fall because of this,” said Simeon Papailias, founder of real estate investment firm REC Canada. “Even though I think it does reduce some competition in the most competitive housing market in Canadian history, I don’t think a two-year fix will. impact on fundamental supply shortages.”
In addition to barring foreigners from buying homes, Freeland will provide billions of dollars to build affordable housing in an attempt to cool down Canada’s soaring housing market.
Meanwhile, Freeland will implement a new “First Home Savings Account Tax Free” program that will allow Canadians under 40 to save up to $40,000 for their first home, which can be saved when buying a home, according to people familiar with the matter. duty free.
The housing problem has been going on in Canada for several years. As a country of immigration, at least 300,000 immigrants come to Canada every year. However, the housing supply in various places is subject to very slow growth due to various factors, resulting in a continuous rise in housing prices. Some foreign capital then entered Canada’s real estate market to invest and profit, which further pushed up housing prices and caused dissatisfaction among the people.