With the next British Columbia provincial election less than a year away, the opposition BC United party has unveiled its new housing plan.
Taking aim at what he called the “NDP housing crisis,” leader Kevin Falcon announced four key policies to target housing affordability.
“If you want more affordable housing, you have to make it less expensive,” Falcon said.
“You are not going to get there if you try to have the government build the housing or government be the developer, or government come up with these complex programs that nobody can figure out.”
Under the plan, a BC United government would set up a rent-to-own program for first-time homebuyers.
Falcon said the government would require 15 per cent of units in new builds to be put aside for renters who want to buy. They would have to live in the home for three years paying market rent. However, that rent money would be put aside to be used as a downpayment to buy the unit.
“The biggest barrier to young people getting into housing is the down payment. Many of them have the incomes to qualify for a mortgage, but they do not have the down payment,” Falcon said.
“What young couple today could ever afford to save $90,000 or $100,000? This is how they do it. Instead of paying rent as they’re currently doing to a landlord right now, they can buy their new place, live in it, and 100 per cent of their rent will go towards their down payment.”
Falcon said that if elected, BC United would also scrap the property transfer tax for first-time buyers for purchases up to $1 million, saying it is “crazy” that people looking to get into the housing market are on the hook for up to $18,000 in tax.
The BC United plan also calls for identifying land owned by various levels of government to be put aside for 99-year leases to the private and non-profit sector. Those developers would pay $1 annually for the land if they build below-market rentals.
Finally, the plan would eliminate the provincial sales tax on residential construction, which Falcon said would significantly reduce the cost of new builds.
The BC United announcement comes just days after the BC NDP government unveiled its BC Builds housing plan, which it claims will lower construction costs and speed up timelines and provide more rental housing.
The government is pledging $2 billion in low-cost financing and $950 million in funding for the initiative, which would be means-tested for tenants.
It would mandate that one in five new units hold rents at 20 per cent below market rates, and target all units at middle-income renters, with rents at about 30 per cent of their income.
British Columbians will go to the polls on October 19, 2024.
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