Canada closes real estate market to foreign investors

Toronto skyline

In the Canadian metropolises, real estate is hardly affordable for the broad middle class. The current slowdown in the market isn’t going to change that much.

(Photo: Reuters)

Ottawa Hardly affordable rents and house prices, housing shortage, social frustration: The Canadian government is reacting to the overheating of the domestic real estate market with an unusual measure. Effective immediately, the law largely prohibits foreigners and foreign companies from acquiring residential real estate in Canada.

“We will make the market fairer for Canadians,” said Chrystia Freeland, Secretary of the Treasury and Deputy Prime Minister. “We will prevent foreign investors from parking their money in Canada by buying houses.” The government will ensure that “houses are used by Canadian families, not as speculative investments”.

Canada’s Prime Minister Justin Trudeau announced the two-year ban on foreign buyers in April 2022, and the law went into effect at the beginning of this year. This is well received by the population, because the exorbitantly high real estate prices are making it increasingly difficult for middle-class families in urban centers and young families to buy their own home.

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