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  #1  
Old Posted Aug 13, 2015, 5:15 PM
Sheba Sheba is online now
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Harper pledges action on foreign real estate investment

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On the campaign trail in North Vancouver Wednesday, Conservative leader Stephen Harper promised to take action on foreign investment in Canadian real estate.

Harper tested the waters of the controversial subject by promising to spend $500,000 in 2016 to collect data on foreign buying of homes, if re-elected. Other countries such as Australia collect data on foreign ownership and heavily tax or restrict non-resident investment in residential property. Critics have questioned why Canada doesn't at least collect relevant data.

While Harper didn't specify what market interventions a Canadian government could make, his campaign team pointed to tough measures taken in other countries. Harper said that real estate pundits have been arguing foreign speculators are pushing home ownership beyond the reach of "average families in some parts of the country."

"If, in fact, foreign speculators are driving the cost of housing to unaffordable levels, that is something the government can, and should, find a way to address," Harper said. "We will then take action in co-ordination with provinces to ensure foreign investment in Canada's housing sector supports the availability and affordability of homes for Canadians."

...

While the impact of offshore investment on Vancouver real estate is hotly debated, many realtors downplay the influence of foreign investment across Metro Vancouver. However, in an early summer poll a majority of residents said they believe foreign investment, not local economic factors, are causing skyrocketing home prices.

This summer Vancouver Mayor Gregor Robertson urged Premier Christy Clark to intervene in Vancouver's market with measures including a speculation tax, but Clark firmly rejected his proposals.
http://www.theprovince.com/business/...713/story.html
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  #2  
Old Posted Aug 13, 2015, 5:28 PM
Vin Vin is offline
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Originally Posted by Sheba View Post
This goon is desperate to garner more support from the big cities I see! If this Conservative government is not doing so while in power, what makes people think that Harper will do so if elected into Ottawa again? It's not like the Libs are in power now and the Tories can't do anything about this. Obviously it is a bait to hoodwink citizens who get emotional about this issue.
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  #3  
Old Posted Aug 13, 2015, 5:36 PM
trofirhen trofirhen is offline
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Originally Posted by Vin View Post
This goon is desperate to garner more support from the big cities I see! If this Conservative government is not doing so while in power, what makes people think that Harper will do so if elected into Ottawa again? It's not like the Libs are in power now and the Tories can't do anything about this. Obviously it is a bait to hoodwink citizens who get emotional about this issue.
I think you may be right. Furthermore, there are probably little 'loopholes' in the plan that aren't obvious now, but ones that investors will be able to get around.
Like you, I don't trust any of it.
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  #4  
Old Posted Aug 13, 2015, 6:01 PM
Caliplanner1 Caliplanner1 is offline
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What's lost in the discussion are the C.I.C incentives given to the wealthy immigrants (from China and elsewhere) to buy into Canadian real estate in their quest for Canadian permanent residency/citizenship! Hence, the question shouldn't just be are these home buyers "Canadians"/locals but how long have the new home buyers been in Canada and/or are they possibly laundering inflationary foreign monies entering the Vancouver housing market.
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  #5  
Old Posted Aug 13, 2015, 6:29 PM
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He'll put a stop to it right before he loses the election so his successor won't have anything to conceal the disastrous real economy with, and then people will look back fondly at him/his party. Politics as usual.
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  #6  
Old Posted Aug 13, 2015, 6:56 PM
twoNeurons twoNeurons is offline
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Classic politics. Blame the foreigner instead of local forces under your control. Hmmm... cheap money from the Bank of Canada wouldn't have anything to do with higher debt and thus higher prices, would they?
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  #7  
Old Posted Aug 13, 2015, 7:05 PM
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This move reeks of desperation. Cities have been crying for this data for years and only now, a few weeks before the election the Cons are taking notice?

And we all know we can't trust the Cons with controversial things like "data" and "facts". If it doesn't fit their agenda they will just ignore it or worse.
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  #8  
Old Posted Aug 13, 2015, 7:19 PM
Caliplanner1 Caliplanner1 is offline
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Originally Posted by twoNeurons View Post
Classic politics. Blame the foreigner instead of local forces under your control. Hmmm... cheap money from the Bank of Canada wouldn't have anything to do with higher debt and thus higher prices, would they?
twoNeurons, cheap bank loans benefit the rich much more so than they do the "poor". Truth be told, Vancouver's economy is not based on a vibrant set of national/international head office operations but rather on lots of lower-pay/part-time/branch office jobs (at least from my general observations) with which to fuel the region's fast rising median house prices which is approaching the million plus dollar mark.
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  #9  
Old Posted Aug 13, 2015, 9:17 PM
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Originally Posted by Vin View Post
If this Conservative government is not doing so while in power, what makes people think that Harper will do so if elected into Ottawa again? Obviously it is a bait to hoodwink citizens who get emotional about this issue.
Bingo! They have had all the tools for 10 years to make this happen. Don't be fooled by election campaign BS.
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  #10  
Old Posted Aug 13, 2015, 11:19 PM
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Complete and utter bullshit.

He had nealy 10 years to do so, it's too late. He can go f$@k himself.
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  #11  
Old Posted Aug 14, 2015, 2:02 AM
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queetz@home queetz@home is offline
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Desperate or not, too late or not, bullshit or not, he has definitely got my vote! Its about time someone high in government, regardless of party, has promised to act on an issue that is already well known but constantly buried by those who benefit the most (Bob Rennie and other greedy real estate peddlers), hiding behind the race card when the issue is brought up legitimately.

In some countries, there is a 60/40 rule wherein only 40% of a condo development can be owned by foreigners and 60% must be owned by locals. Because of the high demand by both foreign and domestic, prices have increased, but not so much to the extent if foreigners are allowed free reign. This kept the pace of increases to rising incomes but at the same time, created a sustained boom that is more immuned to housing bubbles.

I think a similar system should be in place in Canada, which would benefit local buyers immensely but still provide property value increases at a more than reasonable rate.
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  #12  
Old Posted Aug 14, 2015, 3:49 AM
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Originally Posted by queetz@home View Post
Desperate or not, too late or not, bullshit or not, he has definitely got my vote!
You really trust him to keep that promise?
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  #13  
Old Posted Aug 14, 2015, 2:52 PM
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Poor timing aside, frankly I would prefer they do this kind of study so that we can, for once, be able to frame the debate using some helpful analysis. Up until now, people have been kvetching because we don't track anything and we're left with conjecture, and now when an announcement to study is made, people kvetch because of the announcement timing. It is to sigh.
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  #14  
Old Posted Aug 14, 2015, 10:37 PM
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If governments here are really serious about protecting the locals from wildly inflated property prices, they would have done so long time ago. Anything else reeks like an election bribe.

Check out Berlin's real estate prices here:
http://www.berlinmaegleren.com/
Highly affordable for one of Europe's primary cities, located in one of Europe's most advanced nation, if not the most. The country doesn't need foreign rich folks to come prop up their economy, simply because they are innovative and produce more than enough to sustain its own citizens and government.

At the moment, our government should be focusing on how to improve the Canadian economy without relying on short-sighted/myopic measures to get my vote.
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  #15  
Old Posted Aug 15, 2015, 12:42 AM
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Originally Posted by Vin View Post
Check out Berlin's real estate prices here:
http://www.berlinmaegleren.com/
Highly affordable for one of Europe's primary cities, located in one of Europe's most advanced nation, if not the most. The country doesn't need foreign rich folks to come prop up their economy, simply because they are innovative and produce more than enough to sustain its own citizens and government.
You can imagine my shock when moving from Berlin to Vancouver.

Berlin is still affordable, but living prices have been going up very fast. We could afford a nice historic downtown penthouse when we moved there in 2007, but since then there has been so much gentrification and people moving in. Berlin has become quite mainstream. It's still a great city and I loved 4.5 years in there, but it is changing even faster than Vancouver. Expect it to gain on Paris and London in the future.
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