Federal-provincial condo 'bailout' provokes furious criticism
A plan for "affordable" condo conversion by the federal and BC provincial governments has sparked strong backlash.
Prime Minister Mark Carney and BC Premier David Eby made a joint announcement on June 18 on the launch of the new Canada-British Columbia Partnership on Condo Conversion. This partnership between governments seeks to “leverage innovative financing tools to convert more than 2,200 vacant condo units in priority growth areas into affordable homes.”
During a press conference announcing the initiative, Carney said, “With higher interest rates, weaker investment demand, developers are stuck. They don’t want to sell at a loss. They can’t afford to hold those empty units indefinitely.”
He continued, “And the problem is that those empty homes don’t just sit idle. They also disincentivize new construction. Unsettled lenders and investors create a housing market that, in effect, feels frozen. The result: too many British Columbians still can’t find the homes that they can afford.”
Premier Eby backed up Carney’s remarks, stating that “this is a commitment of the federal government, $5 billion over 10 years, [as well as] a commitment from the provincial government on matching funding.”
The federal and provincial governments have also separately agreed to launch the new Canada-British Columbia Partnership on Condo Conversion. This is planned to convert more than 2,200 vacant condo units from private developers into “affordable housing,” which is vaguely defined by both of the government’s press releases.
Build Canada Homes is upholding this initiative, a federal agency under the Minister of Housing and Infrastructure, and the former mayor of Vancouver, Gregor Robertson. They are doing so in collaboration with BC Housing, which is overseen by the provincial Minister of Housing and Municipal Affairs, Christine Boyle.
Eby’s comment about the $5 billion is for the overall commitment of the federal government to BC’s local infrastructure, which is through their Build Communites Strong Fund. Committed by the federal government for housing is $1.6 billion over 10 years. The provincial government will match this, potentially resulting in a total of up to $3.2 billion. By both governments’ estimation, the development charges for multi-unit housing would be lowered by up to 50 percent in priority communities, saving up to $40,000 per unit.
This is separate from the Condo Conversion partnership, which does not have public information on the amount used to buy the empty units from developers by either government.
The Government of Canada has also introduced legislation that would provide a one-time transfer of $284 million to British Columbia to reduce barriers to new construction. Other infrastructure projects that are being approached by the partnership include a possible total of $1.2 billion to health infrastructure, up to $50 million over five years to support community infrastructure projects in coastal communities, and $2.5 billion over 10 years to build new transit projects.
Criticism
While there have been some in the housing and development sector who have praised this collaborative effort from the governments, others have been highly critical of the move. The common thread amongst many critics is that this Condo Conversion is “bailing out” private developers after years of failure to accommodate the market demand for affordable housing.
“Carney and Eby are handing developers $3.2 billion to bail them out for building luxury shoeboxes nobody wants,” said former BC Conservative leader and MLA, John Rustad, in a post.
“This is subsidizing incompetence, pure and simple,” he continued. “‘Too big to fail’ corporate welfare while families get crushed out of the market. The NDP-Liberals won’t let the market fix their mess.”
Emily Lowan, leader of the BC Greens, also made her own post criticizing the move. “The BC NDP axed their $3 billion affordable housing program & left thousands of low-income units half-built,” she said. “Then they announce a $3 billion handout to the corporations who profit off the housing crisis. We need social housing that working families can afford, not this corporate bait-and-switch.”
Jill Atkey, CEO of the BC Non-Profit Housing Association, stated that “purchasing these units for affordable housing may create some immediate opportunities for a lucky few, but it also raises legitimate questions about whether governments are stepping in to absorb market risk rather than addressing the underlying affordability challenge.”
She summarized this by asking the question: “Are we privatizing profit while socializing risk, and is that what British Columbians expect of public investment?”
Some are more pleased with this move than others. The British Columbia Construction Association released a statement saying that “These investments will help support the infrastructure needed to enable new housing and strengthen communities across the province. Continued investment is critical to supporting a growing population and ensuring that communities have the services and facilities they need.”
As of this writing, no further benchmarks for what is defined as “affordable” or the overall cost for purchasing the vacant condos have been released by either government.
I wonder how many are aware that these developers used laundered money (which Carney and Eby both know full well) to build these condos. Now they are being rewarded for criminal behaviour and as usual, the tax payer pick up the tab. I hope people realize that this is all in order to drive Canada into bankruptcy and total digital control. Our children and grandchildren will not have to repay the debt because UBI will be for all. The rich get richer, and now they will have total control over our every move; our every conversation; our every thought; what we eat; drink and where we go. So, not to worry...there is a solid plan in place and it is coming much sooner than I expected it would. Democracy is long gone and it the total dictatorial tyrannical globalists have finally gotten close to the finish line.