44th Parl. 1st Sess.
April 26, 2022 10:00AM
- Apr/26/22 11:32:43 a.m.
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Madam Speaker, I have a question. Maybe the hon. member could help me understand. I am coming from the mortgage business in my previous life. If we look at page 45 in the budget book, the Liberals put out an example of how the tax-free savings account would work for first-time homebuyers.
I have done the math. I have done everything possible for today and for 2027. As of today, that plan would allow individuals to purchase a home up to $355,000. In my riding of King—Vaughan, where the average price has increased 142%, that does not work. However, if we look at 2027, with the tax-free savings account where individuals could add $40,000, it would give them a $500,000 purchase price. We cannot find a house for $500,000 today. How are we going to find it in 2027?
Could you please explain that to me? I would like to learn.
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- Apr/26/22 11:33:46 a.m.
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Madam Speaker, this is a great question that I pondered at the dinner table with my children as we were exploring how we can make sure they can afford a house.
This is part of a bigger puzzle, and that includes our first-time homebuyer partnership with the Government of Canada, which means, if the hon. member recalls, that an individual will get 5% to 10% of a down payment depending on the type of home they are buying. There is also the tax-free savings account and the use of RRSPs.
A number of programs have been put together to ensure that first-time homebuyers, especially youth, have the money to make a down payment, because as we know, after the down payment very few Canadians default on their mortgage. A combination of these things would put an individual in a position to buy their first home.
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- Apr/26/22 2:46:50 p.m.
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Mr. Speaker, the solution to housing affordability is housing supply. We are collaborating with municipalities through the housing accelerator fund to build 100,000 new homes in the next two years and double the number of new homes built in the next 10 years. We are also extending supports through the first-time homebuyer incentive and the tax-free savings account to first-time homebuyers. We are also tackling speculation by banning foreign ownership of Canadian residential real estate in the next two years, and we are building more affordable housing.
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- Apr/26/22 3:50:52 p.m.
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Madam Speaker, I know the Liberals talked several times about this new RRSP. They talk about this program to help people who are first-time homebuyers, yet the majority of Canadians, over 50% of them, are less than $200 away every month.
How does this plan actually help, when Canadians have no money to invest up to $40,000, to make sure it is a secure situation? How is this really benefiting first-time homebuyers?
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- Apr/26/22 3:51:25 p.m.
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Madam Speaker, by that logic we could ask how the RRSP benefits anyone or how the TFSA benefits anyone. I just said in my speech, if the member was listening, that households have higher savings than before, so if those savings can be channelled into a creative instrument such as the first-time homebuyers' savings account, I think that would help. It will not be the solution to everything, but it is part of a bigger puzzle.
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- Apr/26/22 7:23:23 p.m.
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Madam Speaker, the line I use very often is that a week is an eternity in politics, and for the past five years it has become increasingly difficult and more stressful for anybody buying a home or looking to rent anywhere.
In Cornwall and my riding of SDG, the average price of a home is now $430,000. In the province of Ontario, last month the statistics showed the price was over $1 million on average to purchase a home. It was $800,000 across the country. Those are the average prices. I hear stories repeatedly of how rents are skyrocketing, the supply is low and young people living in their parents' basements are giving up on the idea of ever being able to save up enough money to buy their own home. These stories are heartbreaking, and what has happened over the course of the past few years is extremely frustrating.
I have to admit I do not think the Minister of Housing likes me too much. He references me in response in question period quite often because the last time we had this debate on housing a few months ago, I spoke about the Liberals' failed approach when it comes to housing. It is clearly broken when the housing minister sees prices that have doubled in the past five years and claims that the government's plan is working and is a benefit to Canadians.
I criticized the shared equity program, but not just for myself. I shared examples from stakeholders and proof from Canadians that they do not support that program. The minister then twisted my words. He could not even get my riding name right, but suggested that I was somehow against homelessness funding or doing anything in that regard. I will be blunt. That is pathetic and desperate.
The line I used was “desperate people do desperate things.” The minister is getting increasingly frustrated because Canadians are seeing the frustration they are facing in every single part of this country. It was also revealed in some documents recently that the minister authorized bonuses for the Canada Mortgage and Housing Organization, which has the simple and pure mandate of making housing affordable for Canadians. With all the stats that I just showed and the frustration in the air in every part of this country, the minister deemed in his judgment that it was appropriate to give $40 million in bonuses to an organization and team that is responsible for affordable housing. He did not like that very much, and continues to cite it.
I can say that in the city of Cornwall, the challenge of both hidden homelessness, which is what we call it, and also visible homelessness has shaken our community in the past couple of years. We actually have homeless encampments now near the port of entry under the international bridge going to Cornwall Island and into the United States.
The approach from the government needs to change. The shared equity program is broken. Members do not need to take my word for it. Mortgage Professionals Canada, which represents mortgage brokers, lenders and insurance and service providers, said last month that the federal government has failed to address Canada's housing affordability problem. When it came to the first-time homebuyers' incentive program, it said that it is “simply failing”. That is the part that needs to end. The spokesperson said that “almost all clients dislike the idea of becoming a co-homeowner with the government, if they can avoid it.”
That says it all. The fact that we are at a point now where the government believes it needs to put out money to help people contribute toward the equity in their homes speaks volumes about how our system and housing system are broken.
My question to the parliamentary secretary is this. Will the government finally change course?
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- Apr/26/22 7:27:34 p.m.
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Madam Speaker, this government recognizes the housing affordability challenges that Canadians are facing today. Too many in this country are struggling to meet even their most urgent housing needs, and as my colleague points out, too many are struggling to achieve their dream of buying a home. However, unlike what my colleague said in the House earlier this year when he said that we should be done with the issue, we believe that the federal government needs to do its part. In fact, I think he owes Canadians an explanation for why he opposes investment in affordable housing and opposes supporting those who dream of owning a home.
Our government has prioritized housing since the beginning of its mandate. My colleague mentioned earlier that the system is broken, but since 2015, we have invested nearly $30 billion to support, create and repair 440,000 homes across the country from coast to coast coast. We launched the national housing strategy in 2017, the first of its kind. Is it broken? It helped over two million Canadians across the country. We have made housing affordability a central pillar of our new budget, pledging billions to boost supply and put housing within reach of everyone in this country. That includes expanding and extending programs with proven records of success, such as the rapid housing initiative to quickly build more affordable housing and the first-time homebuyers program.
My colleague's constituents are well aware of the impact the first-time homebuyers incentive has had, as 24 families in Stormont—Dundas—South Glengarry alone are now homeowners thanks to funding from that initiative. Other federal programs have funded nearly 1,000 new units in his own riding, and those successes are repeated across the country.
Our new budget proposes a new tax-free first home savings account. This would allow people to save up to $40,000 for the purchase of their first home. We will also work to develop a homebuyers' bill of rights to protect homebuyers. Our plan includes support for people across the housing continuum, especially the most vulnerable in our country.
The member should tell Canadians now if he believes, like many of his colleagues, that the government should not play a role in making housing more affordable. Does he not believe that housing is a human right? Canadians deserve a clear answer from him and his party.
Meanwhile, our government believes that we can and should be in the business of helping Canadians meet their housing needs. Canadians expect us to get the job done. We hope that he and his colleagues will get their story straight. Do we need to make sure that housing is a human right? Do we need to give support to homebuyers regarding affordability? On this side of the House, that is what we are doing and that is what we are going to do.
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