If handled correctly, British Columbia’s new Housing Supply Act can ease municipal roadblocks to adequate housing. In tandem with an increase in nonmarket housing, such legislation has the potential to help stave off the housing crisis.
Land can either be a good investment, or it can be affordable; it can’t be both. A land value tax does nothing to prevent wealthy people to hoard vast amounts of land, driving the cost of land higher. Foreign investments in real estate are particularly damaging to affordability, because it makes ordinary Canadians compete against the wealthiest people around the world, a fight they can never win.
You are right, land should not be a good investment. A land value tax supports this as it decreases the value of the land, it won’t be seen as an investment. Wealthy people and investors hoarding land will only increase their tax burden and thus will not be profitable for them.
Land can either be a good investment, or it can be affordable; it can’t be both. A land value tax does nothing to prevent wealthy people to hoard vast amounts of land, driving the cost of land higher. Foreign investments in real estate are particularly damaging to affordability, because it makes ordinary Canadians compete against the wealthiest people around the world, a fight they can never win.
You are right, land should not be a good investment. A land value tax supports this as it decreases the value of the land, it won’t be seen as an investment. Wealthy people and investors hoarding land will only increase their tax burden and thus will not be profitable for them.