In order to avoid a shortage of housing, Canada has decided to prohibit foreigners, from January 1, from buying housing. The law, applicable for the next two years, only applies to residences in town and not to tourist structures.
It’s official, foreigners are no longer allowed to buy homes in Canada as of Sunday, January 1, 2023, for the next two years. This ban is intended to combat the shortage of houses and apartments in the country. That said, exceptions are made for refugees or permanent residents, and the law only applies to residences in town and not to tourist structures, such as summer chalets.
This measure, which had been proposed by Prime Minister Justin Trudeau during his 2021 election campaign, was adopted in the spring. As a reminder, the Liberal Party had deplored that foreign investors were driving prices up, making it difficult for Canadians to access property.
However, the real estate market has slowed down recently under the effect of the interest rate hike decided by the Central Bank to curb inflation. According to the association of real estate agents, the average price of a house was 630,000 Canadian dollars (465,000 US dollars, 435,000 euros) last month, against 800,000 a year ago. Some experts doubt the measure will be effective, as foreigners make up less than 5% of homeowners in Canada, according to the National Statistics Agency. They believe that it would be better to accelerate the construction of new housing.
Sami Nemli with agencies / Les Inspirations ECO