It was odd to see Premier Christy Clark pop up in a YouTube video with what sounded like a major policy announcement on runaway home prices.
Particularly one with such low-ball production standards. She was alone, standing on a patch of grass. Where were the cheerleaders? Where were the nail-pounding background hardhats? Where were the validators?
But a closer review shows it wasn’t really as a big a deal as first thought. Expectations might have been raised by the title: “Taking action on housing affordability in B.C.” Clark’s government recognized housing affordability as an issue only a few months ago, which was considered a milestone all by itself.
“Taking action” on it would be a major development.
But the two-minute video included zero action. It was more of a heads-up on actions to come. The housing issue might be considered so acute now that government announcements come with pre-announcement videos.
Or maybe Vancouver Mayor Gregor Robertson’s tax ultimatum prompted her to rush the video just to buy some time.
Robertson wants B.C. to sign on to a new tax on vacant homes by Aug. 1 or Vancouver will impose one by itself.
Clark said the government has been working on solutions for the past several months and now it’s “time for bold action.”
“In the coming days and weeks we’re going to lay out a plan that will help us address housing affordability. It’s impacting families and it’s impacting the livability of our region.”
She said it’s time for a determined effort that includes all levels of government.
It has actually been the time for a determined effort by all levels of government for several years now. A combination of things has prompted the B.C. Liberals to recognize that.
The median price of a detached home rocketed past the magic million-dollar mark, which heightened the absurdity of what’s going on. The impact of foreign buyers became a preoccupation in metro Vancouver. The negative of super-heated house prices (unaffordability) now outweighs the positive (it’s a sign of a booming economy).
As well, the NDP opposition launched a concentrated attack over the issue over the past several months of the legislative session. It highlighted a lot of frustration among voters with the Liberals’ laissez-faire approach.
Election campaigns are taking shape now, and they need a housing component in a big way.
So Clark’s video outlined some principles the government will keep in mind as the plan to “preserve the dream of owning a home and keeping it in the reach of the middle class” starts to roll out. She stressed all levels of government must work together on supply, to encourage enough housing starts to meet demand.
The government will also keep support for first-time buyers in mind. First-timers already get exempted from all or some of the property-transfer tax. That break might be made more generous, or some other mechanism designed to lighten the load and “make it a little easier for someone who hasn’t yet built up any equity in the housing market to find their way in.”
Newspaper exposés about conniving real-estate agents also forced the government’s hand, so Clark talked about protecting consumers from shady practices. “In a fast-rising housing market, sometimes greed takes over.”
Curbs on real-estate agents were announced months ago, so it’s just a matter of implementing them.
There’s also something to boost the rental market, by increasing the number of available units.
The thrust of what’s coming is to keep the dream of home ownership within the reach of the middle class, Clark said.
But it’s gotten to the point where the only way to realize that dream is to drive prices down. Accomplishing that without inflicting a degree of loss on people who got into the market years ago is an impossibility. The B.C. government has been loath to move in that direction. Clark is more likely to count some mild stabilization of prices as a win.
