Housing is arguably the main public issue as the 2024 B.C. provincial election race heats up. What do we want? Affordable housing. When do we want it? Now. The major parties are aware of public disdain for the cost of living in B.C., with housing being the biggest pain point for economically wearied British Columbians, particularly in the Metro Vancouver region. Party leaders seem acutely aware that innovative or, at the very least, credible-sounding housing initiatives, are key to victory in the coming weeks.
The steady stream of podium housing announcements in the days leading up to the election began in earnest this past week, with both the BC NDP and BC Conservatives issuing big and bold new platform promises.
On the BC NDP side, David Eby stepped to the podium offering funding for 40 per cent of the cost of market housing for 25,000 future units, committing an estimated $1.29 billion over five years. That's a notable sum for a government that just posted a nearly $9 billion provincial deficit.
Government would supplement the buyer's mortgage with parallel financing to offset the purchase cost. Eby described the funding model as a “loan.” The buyer would pay interest on the government funding portion and owe the outstanding balance plus 40 per cent of the capital gains upon a future sale.
The initiative is targeted squarely at the all-valuable “middle-income” vote: Those who should have more economic clout but are hindered by the sky-high cost of housing in B.C. This frustration is likely a significant worry for the NDP as they fret at perceived pre-election demographic weakness points. The ever-challenged cost-of-living woes could lead many to seek a political party that is more focused on economic development and spending restraint.
As incumbent opposition challengers, John Rustad and the BC Conservatives have the benefit of a handful of proverbial rocks to throw at the glass house of the BC NDP’s two-term government. In recent public appearances, Rustad has pointed to what he regards as BC NDP failures in everything from crime rates, to health care, to port security.
On the all-important housing front, Rustad's offer to woo the overstretched B.C. citizen came in the form of a major provincial tax rebate on monthly rent or mortgage interest costs up to $3,000. Dubbed the “Rustad Rebate," it would initially be a $1,500-per-month exemption in 2026, increasing by $500 a year until 2029. The party estimates it would cost about $3.5 billion per year once fully implemented if every home in B.C. were a recipient. Rustad later clarified that homes with incomes of $250,000 or more may be exempted from the scheme.
Sonia Furstenau and the BC Green Party issued their housing platform, which focuses heavily on rental supports and emergency housing initiatives. If there’s an immediate criticism to their approach it would be the lack of detail, specifics and planning around market housing initiatives. The BC NDP and BC Conservative platforms contain far more detail around municipal and provincial initiatives, while the BC Greens were largely content to toil in platitudes. Promises such as partnering “with municipalities to meet housing development targets and reward successful communities by sharing a portion of property transfer taxes,” or “implement regulations to curb the impact of short-term rentals on the availability of long-term affordable housing,” just don’t go far enough in terms of providing clear, specific and comprehensive enough planning around the issues.
Where the other parties announced sizable housing initiatives, the market housing component for the Greens seems like it was practically a content afterthought. Furstenau had the opportunity to carve a path of centrist-oriented policy to pick up votes down the middle. Strategically for the Greens, this is a missed opportunity.
Despite the BC NDP and BC Conservative announcements coming from competing parties with opposing ideologies, there’s a major policy commonality at play here: Direct provincial governmental financial intervention to reduce the cost of living in B.C. No longer are these parties simply speaking to the economic challenges facing British Columbians. Both parties are now actively crafting platform promises that commit significant public money to artificially lowering the cost of housing across the province at scale.
With their announcement, the BC NDP appears to be doubling down on middle-income voters, while the BC Conservatives look to cover a wider cross-section of families across the province. But the ways they're going about reaching those voters—at least on the housing affordability front—bear notable similarity in the promise to spend heavily to lessen the affordability burden. Regardless of which party emerges victorious, these are significant and potentially costly promises.
What’s clearly demonstrated in both announcements is that while numerous provincial and federal housing policies have been put into place to tackle regional affordability issues, it’s going to be a long game in terms of levelling out the market. Dramatic supply increases take time, and in the meantime, direct fiscal governmental action is the seeming path forward, regardless of who emerges as the party in power.
The BC Conservatives closed out last week by announcing a detailed housing platform that draws increased distinction from the BC NDP approach and the legislative reform they’ve enacted. The primary difference rests in the treatment and oversight of municipalities when it comes to accommodating, inspiring and funding regional growth.
Trevor Hargreaves is the senior vice-president of government relations, marketing and communications at the British Columbia Real Estate Association.
