A drastic measure to change the situation in the real estate market. Foreigners are no longer allowed to buy homes in Canada from this Sunday and for the next two years, a ban intended to combat the shortage of houses and apartments in the country.
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 had been proposed by the Prime Minister Justin Trudeau during the 2021 election campaign. His Liberal Party had deplored that foreign investors were driving prices up, making it more difficult for Canadians to access property. She was adopted in the spring.
Doubts about the effectiveness of the measure
However, the real estate market has slowed down recently under the effect of the increase in interest rates decided by the Central Bank to curb theinflation. 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.