There are about 16.3 million homes in the country. Canada Mortgage and Housing Corp. last year calculated that, for prices to moderate, 5.8 million more are needed over the next decade – that’s 3.5 million on top of the 2.3 million that would otherwise be built. Look at those numbers and wonder why the Prime Minister held a press conference for 214 homes. Look at those numbers and consider the national housing strategy’s modest impact, 107,519 homes, so far.
I do agree that the governments are just coasting, and have been for decades. Some parts of certain governments have had their wakeup calls and are starting to make the changes needed, but they still feel few and far between. Either that, or many of them are having trouble waking up the parts of the government that they need their funding or plans approved.
I don’t think much of those solutions would have much of an effect. Especially without addressing other issues first.
Taxing the rich doesn’t matter when most of the rich get paid through investment loans and juggling stocks with assets, rather than having an actual income. Minimum wage increases are a band-aid solution that would need to be addressed every decade, presuming that it doesn’t tank the economy during the adjustments. Basic income is nice, but if important things aren’t affordable now, it would have no real impact on making them affordable.
I’m not saying that they fundamentally don’t work, but that it’s just not enough.
The most important thing is to make the things needed to have a decent life affordable to everybody. And of those things, I think two are just plain necessary. The first is a minimum level housing. Some sort of apartment complex that is free and safe, no questions asked. Basically a shelter that has separated units. Without the minimum of being able to have a safe space to sleep and clean yourself up, there’s no way a person can get a job. But with this sort of safety net, no matter how bad things get, the future won’t look hopeless, and almost everybody should be able to get back on their feet without needing extensive interventions.
The second is a housing supply that suppresses prices. I don’t mind foreigners buying houses, as long as the supply can handle such things happening, and keep basic homes affordable. Apartments shouldn’t cost more than 25% minimum wage at full time, and condos should be easy to pay off in 5-10 years. As long as the supply is high enough, it would be impossible to make a real profit from treating it like an investment, as houses are a non-performing asset. It creates no more value than what you put into it, and should thus depreciate if anything, just like a car.