B.C. not making any moves to cool the white-hot housing market

VANCOUVER (NEWS 1130) – The province is taking a “wait-and-see” approach with B.C.’s white-hot housing market, for now, as sale prices are again pushing well over asking.

Finance Minister Selina Robinson says there are things that just couldn’t have been predicted, including the COVID-19 pandemic and rock-bottom interest rates, as we see a possible end to the health crisis on the horizon.

“We don’t know if this is going to last for a very long time … as things re-balance itself, as we get back to our normal life. I think that’s why we’re keeping an eye on it,” she said.

She says there is no single solution and the province is looking to mitigate measures already in place. Robinson says that includes the housing needs assessments.

“Part of the challenge is certainly right supply — and making sure we have more supply is absolutely critical — and making sure that we continue to drive the ability for people to find the kind of home that meets their needs,” she said.

She says she can only imagine what would have happened if measures like the speculation tax and renter protections weren’t in place.

“Even though our pre-pandemic efforts to moderate the market were starting to have some results, there’s certainly much more we can do and we need to do our best to get ahead of it. That’s what we’re monitoring right now and we don’t know how long this is going to last,” she said.

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Another challenge is cities holding up building permits. Robinson mentioned Vancouver as particularly problematic on this front.

What’s next, she says, will depend on how long this combination of pent-up pandemic demand and rock-bottom interest rates lasts.