The housing crisis dominated Canadian consciousness before Donald Trump challenged its sovereignty and levied tariffs on Canada. Voters are keen to learn if any political party has a strategy to solve what has grown to be a generational issue as an election approaches.
For a meager C$ 275,000, Willow Yamauchi and her husband were able to purchase their family house in Vancouver 25 years ago. That comes to about C$435,000 ($312,000; £236,400) in today’s money adjusted for inflation. That same house today is valued at several million dollars. “My husband and I were quite privileged to be able to purchase a house when we did,” the 52-year-old author notes. Being Generation X, she could benefit from the real estate market before prices started to rise.
For younger Canadians, the circumstances have altered dramatically, though. Many are now basically priced out of their cities without “the bank of mom and dad” to support them. Vancouver, which is well-known for its economic and cultural value in Canada, has witnessed house prices soar to unthinkable levels. Originally a city where the typical detached house cost roughly C$350,000 in 2000, the same property is now valued at more than C$2 million.
Not unique to any coastal city, Vancouver has evolved as the epicentre of Canada’s housing issue. Based on a recent Chapman University of California study, Vancouver ranks among the top “impossibly unaffordable” cities worldwide. Still, it’s hardly the only Canadian city having outrageous house prices. Similar issues also affect cities like Toronto, and Canada overall has one of the highest house-price-to– income ratios among wealthy countries.
After taxes, the average Canadian household income in 2021 was about C$88,000. The average house price in the same year came out to be C$713,500—more than eight times the average salary. Cities like Vancouver and Toronto, where younger generations find nearly completely unavailable the housing market, clearly show this amazing disparity.
How Is Housing Affecting Young People's Futures?
One of the main worries of many Canadians approaching the federal election is their accommodation. For young people whose financial futures are now determined by rising rents and mortgages, the housing crisis has become a central focus. Before US President Donald Trump’s tariffs were a big topic of debate, political conversations mostly focused on Canada’s growing home prices. Voters worried about housing affordability traditionally supported the Conservative Party most of the time. Its emphasis on pocketbook concerns had gained it a reputation, which many felt suited it to handle the housing crisis.
Still, the housing problem dominated the two federal leaders’ discussions, even with the Trump factor confounding the circumstances. Figures displayed during the French discussion revealed the startling rise in house prices over the past ten years in places including Montreal, Toronto, and Vancouver. “I’m sure this won’t come as a surprise,” the moderator said as he urged the federal leaders to divulge their crisis-addressing strategies.
According to polls, young people particularly worry about the housing issue and how it may affect their futures. For many students on the University of British Columbia (UBC) campus, the problem was front and foremost. While some students spend between C$1,101 and C$1,500 for a single room in shared accommodation close to university, others live at home during their studies to cut expenses.
Emily Chu, a 24-year-old student in her last semester at UBC, related her experience of having to postpone her education by two years since she cannot afford rent as well as tuition. She now shares an apartment with her older brother, who pays most of the rent and works full-time. One of the lucky ones, Emily thinks of herself. Regarding homeownership, she thinks most people her age will find it impossible. “Everybody kind of assumes that we cannot ever own housing,” she notes.
The effects are felt even among young people with well-paying careers. One of them is is28-year-oldr Vancouver-based non-profit Resource Works director Margareta Dovgal. Though she is a lifetime “committed Vancouverite,” she has given migrating to Alberta much thought because of its reduced cost of living. But Calgary, the biggest city in Alberta, is not exempt from the housing problem. Calgary witnessed housing prices rise by 15% in 2024 from the year before as the city reached the fastest population growth rate since 2001.
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From what sources does the crisis originate?
There are several different underlying reasons of Canada’s housing problem. Among the key causes of the growing expenses is is that the nation’s rising population has not matched the availability of homes. For many Canadians, this supply-demand mismatch has driven up rental rates and property prices, therefore making housing progressively unaffordable.
To meet the shortfall, the national housing agency of Canada, the Canada Mortgage and Housing Corporation (CMHC), projects that over 3.8 million homes need to be created during the next six years. New house building, however, has trailed well behind this aim. Experts contend that attempts to satisfy demand have been hampered by a confluence of elements, including the great expense and limited availability of land in metropolitan regions.
Furthermore, aggravating the situation are some city zoning rules that forbid the building of more reasonably priced, high-density homes in specific areas. For instance, Vancouver has historically set aside most of its land for single-family residences. Co-founder of Abundant Housing Vancouver, Daniel Oleksiu, notes that this has reduced the range of reasonably priced accommodation choices. “We have kept almost all of the land reserved,” he continues, “and in whole neighborhoods, all you have are three to five million dollar homes.”
Can political parties help to resolve the housing crisis?
Every major federal party has suggested a strategy to address the housing crisis and boost new home building on the campaign trail.
Under Mark Carney’s direction, the Liberals have set a lofty target of 500,000 new houses annually. Under this scheme, a new government organization known as Build Canada Homes will be established to supervise and finance the building of reasonably priced homes. This strategy resembles the project started to house returning veterans following World War Two. Critics counter that his goal would force Canada to more than treble its present rate of house building.
Under Pierre Poilievre, the Conservatives have promised to link federal financing to housing starts by rewarding communities that create more homes and punishing those who impede development. This “carrot-and-stick” strategy is meant to encourage local governments to give fresh construction top priority. Poilievre also promised to eliminate federal taxes on recently built houses to cut housebuyers’ expenses. Critics counter that, considering most homes bought in Canada are resold rather than brand-new construction, this approach may have little effect.
Most voters agree that solving the housing situation comes first, hence they are eager to see these ideas realized. Although provincial and municipal governments mostly control housing policy, Margareta Dovgal points out that the federal government has the power to “lead persuasively” and carry out policies meant to make building homes around the nation more affordable and easier.
Are political parties addressing the generational divide?
Notwithstanding these ideas, some analysts contend that the political parties have not sufficiently addressed the generational split that the housing crisis has generated. Older Canadians have amassed significant money from increasing house prices, notes Paul Kershaw, a public policy professor at the University of British Columbia and creator of the think tank Generation Squeeze. Younger generations, meanwhile, have little hope of owning and paying prohibitive housing expenses.
“The political bargain has asked younger Canadians to suffer higher rents and mortgages to protect the value of older homeowners’ properties,” Kershaw argues. None of the parties is genuinely calling for that generational conflict. Politicians, he says, are reluctant to question the established quo because they worry about the political fallout from upsetting the wealth elderly Canadians have amassed via property values.
According to Kershaw, the housing crisis is a cultural rather than only financial one. He advises political parties to also pay close attention to lowering expenses for younger Canadians so they may more easily enter the property market. “Fixing the housing crisis is just as integral to the well-being of the nation as asserting sovereignty and prosperity,” he notes. “The dysfunction entering our housing market disturbs the well-being of the nation.”
For many young Canadians, their dream of homeownership is unattainable until a solution is discovered. “You have to win the lottery, or marry a multi-millionaire,” Margareta Dovgal half-jokingly notes. These are of the choices.
