Last Tuesday, Lieutenant Governor Wendy Cocchia delivered her first Speech from the Throne, outlining Premier David Eby’s government’s priorities for the upcoming year. It is no surprise that in the face of the threat of U.S. tariffs, at the top of the list was B.C. standing strong as part of ‘Team Canada’ and building economic resilience:
- Standing strong for Canada: with a tough and thoughtful response to any attack on Canada’s economy and sovereignty, as part of a united Team Canada approach.
- Creating good jobs in a growing economy: by fast-tracking major private-sector resource projects and building on B.C.’s strengths in technology, life sciences and film.
- Diversifying where B.C. sells its products: with new trade missions to strengthen relationships around the world and by breaking down trade barriers within Canada.
- Strengthening access to health care: by attaching more people to a family doctor and building new hospitals throughout the province.
- Helping with costs: by delivering more homes people can afford, locking in childcare and car insurance savings, and passing new consumer-protection laws.
In terms of housing, it has clearly moved down the list of priorities and is now part of a more generalized, “Helping with Costs” bulleted item. Instead of talking about new initiatives that could help remove barriers and move the needle on housing costs, affordability and delivery, the speech referred to the current progress of B.C.’s Homes for the People plan (2023). This plan had promised to speed up delivery of new homes, increase the supply of middle-income housing, and prevent speculation so British Columbians would be able to afford housing in this province.
Some quotes from the Lieutenant Governor regarding its progress:
Good progress has been made in housing, where B.C. is breaking down barriers preventing the construction of middle-class homes…Every minister has been given marching orders to speed up permit approvals to get job creating projects built, in partnership with First Nations, communities and businesses throughout the province.
During the next 10 years, experts expect B.C.’s Homes for People plan to deliver 300,000 new middle-class homes. And it’s starting to make a difference right now. Rents are finally going down, more new rentals than ever are being built, and construction is going strong.
Although the purpose-built rental market is progressing forward, new home starts for ownership are not growing as quickly as they need to be, and remain in waiting for government to wake up and help take down delivery barriers. It’s time to remind government that during COVID, the real estate/construction industry was declared an essential industry, and it continues to be the largest contributor to GDP in this province — creating jobs, essential need (shelter), wealth, and economic resilience. They depend on our industry.
With continued pressure from HAVAN, members, and other industry groups, we are seeing glimpses of movement, with some municipalities directing staff to advocate to the province to shift DCC collection timeline, examining surety bond financing program (Surrey’s expansion of pilot program; Township of Langley’s recent Council decision to direct staff to examine alternative forms of surety bond financing, as noted in HAVAN’s GRU this past Saturday). The province should also be considering tax breaks – similar to those being offered to other industries – to act as a stimulus for ensure the continuity and feasibility of housing delivery.
All three levels of your association – HAVAN, CHBA BC and CHBA National – are working together with all levels of government to advocate for the residential construction industry, from GST exemptions on new homes to DCC changes. To ensure you stay informed, HAVAN will be including updates from our provincial and national levels in MMB, and we invite you to share your comments, so we can communicate it to the appropriate Association level.
HAVAN continues to work with CHBA BC and CHBA to advocate for all levels of government to work together to address the challenges of the housing industry including zoning restrictions, density limits, and NIMBYism.
Looking to stay up-to-date on Metro Vancouver’s residential housing industry? Sign up for Wendy’s weekly Monday Morning Briefing and other HAVAN emails here.
QUICK BITES …
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- HAVAN Acting CEO Wendy McNeil joins other industry leaders in providing comments in the Feb 18 Storeys article, Facing Tariffs, BC Homebuilders Talk Policy Changes That Could Help
- Bank of Canada Governor Tiff Macklem warns there will be no ‘bounce-back’ for the Canadian economy in trade war with U.S. as reported in the Financial Post. Macklem argues the only way to offset trade conflict with the U.S. is to bring forth positive policies to address it such as the removal of interprovincial trade barriers, mutually recognizing labour accreditations across jurisdictions and better east-west transportation links.
- The latest CREA numbers indicate home sales dipped in late January while new listings saw a record jump – presumably amid tariff uncertainty, as reported in the Financial Post. However, with inventory balanced between buyers’ and sellers’ markets, lower interest rates could create opportunities—read more.
- Vancouver’s decision to uphold its two-staircase rule for multi-unit buildings, as reported in the Daily Hive Urbanized, puts it at odds with new provincial regulations aiming to boost housing supply. Will this divergence hinder affordability and density, or is it a necessary safety precaution?
- Meanwhile, as he approaches a full year in his role, Josh White, the City of Vancouver’s general manager of planning, urban design and sustainability and director of planning, is signaling major reforms for more flexible building development including concurrent rezoning and development permit processes, changing the rezoning enquiry process, more flexible tower floor plate sizes, DCC deferral and expanding use of Surety bonds. Kenneth Chan of the Daily Hive Urbanized has the details.
