It’s no secret that Canada is facing a major housing shortage. But could the sheer amount of space used for parking vehicles be part of the problem? A recent Re/Max report looking at participation in the housing market said the “vast majority” of lower-priced properties in the Greater Toronto Area are parking spaces, and that … Read more
Descrease article font size Increase article font size The federal government will top up the Canada Housing Benefit, which provides rent support to some Canadians, by $99 million, Deputy Prime Minister Chrystia Freeland says. Freeland announced the top up at a news conference in Ottawa on Tuesday. “Housing is a central challenge in Canada right … Read more
The federal government is giving post-secondary institutions access to cheaper loans to try to spur the construction of student housing and relieve pressure on the rental market in college and university towns. “Canada needs more student housing and we’re going to help build it,” said Housing Minister Sean Fraser at a news conference in Ottawa … Read more
Faced with scrutiny over issues of housing and affordability, the federal government resorted to a measure it once said would be a last resort. On Monday, Ottawa announced a cap on the number of international students coming into the country. The government’s line was clear. Many communities in the country were taking in temporary residents … Read more
On a cool Thursday afternoon in Ottawa, veteran police officer Sgt. Avery Flanagan approaches a man hunched over in a downtown parking lot. He has crushed opioids in one hand and a needle in the other. Flanagan tells the man, who appears to be in his 20s, he can’t use drugs on private property. “Have … Read more
Canada’s Housing Minister is warning that municipalities won’t succeed with applications for federal housing accelerator funding unless they are flexible on zoning rules. Speaking Wednesday at an Empire Club of Canada luncheon in Toronto, Sean Fraser said a willingness to adopt zoning reforms has been key for the communities that signed deals with Ottawa. Fraser … Read more
Housing Minister Sean Fraser says he supports the idea of tying the of number of immigrants to Canada with the number of homes built; something Conservative Leader Pierre Poilievre is also proposing. But he suggests Poilievre’s pledge to link immigration and homebuilding in response to the country’s housing shortage doesn’t focus enough on where Fraser … Read more
Liberal MP Steven MacKinnon was sworn in as government House leader Monday at Rideau Hall, outlining his priorities for what he called a “consequential session of Parliament.” MacKinnon represents Gatineau, Que., and was the government’s former chief whip. He’s taking over temporarily from Karina Gould, who went on maternity leave last week. The Liberal MP from … Read more
Prime Minister Justin Trudeau says he knows young people are frustrated with him, and chief among those frustrations is the high cost of housing, which has left many young people feeling home ownership is out of reach. However, Trudeau denies critics who suggest the federal government only began taking the housing file seriously in the … Read more
With 2023 ending, a new poll suggests Canadian parents are growing more fearful about what lies ahead, as life becomes less affordable. Their main sources of anxiety revolve around the housing crisis and trying to put food on the table, the results suggest. An Ipsos poll commissioned by the charity Save the Children interviewed 1,000 … Read more
