Just The Facts: Building Less at Speeds Not Seen in Generations
Ottawa, ON – Seven months ago, Mark Carney promised to build 500,000 new homes a year at speeds not seen since the Second World War. Today, his own agency confirmed that the seasonal-adjusted annual rate of housing starts collapsed 17 per cent in October to less than half of his target.
Across Canada, there were only 232,765 housing starts on a seasonally-adjusted annual basis. To put that in perspective, Canada was building more homes when disco was all the rage in the 1970s. Compared to just last year, housing starts have cratered 35 per cent in Ontario, fallen 22 per cent in British Columbia and dropped 42 per cent and 36 per cent in Toronto and Vancouver, respectively.
Year-over-year housing starts last month plummeted 83 per cent in Thunder Bay, dove 70 per cent in Peterborough, and sank 63 per cent in both London and Windsor. In Kamloops, starts collapsed 89 per cent, while Gatineau and Saguenay saw starts plunge 82 per cent and 81 per cent, respectively.
As Carney’s housing plan builds fewer homes, Canadians are paying the price. Rent has increased by 5.2 per cent over the last year and increased 1 per cent from September to October alone.
Our young people deserve more than a roof that keeps the snow out. Every Canadian deserves a home where families can be safe, share memories and raise the next generation. While the Liberals fail to get housing built, Conservatives are bringing real solutions to restore a country that puts home ownership within reach.
That means building supply by cutting building taxes, tying federal infrastructure dollars to homebuilding, ending the federal sales tax on all new homes under $1.3 million, and axing the capital gains tax on reinvestment in Canadian companies.
It’s time for a government that gives our young Canadians a place they can finally call home.