Ontario political parties take note: with just five months before the next provincial election, home owners and aspiring home owners are looking for a political party committed to making affordable home ownership a priority. New research from Nanos Research commissioned by the Ontario Real Estate Association (OREA) shows that a majority of Ontario home owners and aspiring home owners (60 per cent) say they would be more likely to vote for a provincial political party that promised to make home ownership more affordable for young people.
“It’s no secret that many young Ontarians and first-time buyers are feeling squeezed by the rising cost of home ownership,” says Tim Hudak, OREA CEO. “This year, governments have focused on chasing buyers out of the market with policies like making mortgages tougher to get and new taxes. If the government wants to make meaningful change for Ontario home buyers, they need to instead focus on more effective policies, like tax relief and increased housing supply.”
The real estate industry’s call for better public policies to support home ownership is echoed in the research, with home owners and aspiring home owners supporting energy efficiency and first-time home buyer tax breaks. Nearly 90 per cent of respondents say theysupport (71 per cent) or somewhat support (18 per cent) home owners receiving tax breaks from the government to improve their property’s energy efficiency; and more than 80 per cent support (63 per cent) or somewhat support (18 per cent) providing lower taxes and fees for first-time home buyers.
“Tax breaks to support green retrofits in the housing sector and give relief to first-time home buyers are both good public policies that all political parties can, and should, commit to,” says Hudak. “And, while housing supply and marketplace choice isn’t as politically sexy, it’s without a doubt, the best long-term solution to remove barriers and give growing families and millennials a shot at home ownership.”
Leading up to the spring election, Ontario Realtors are encouraging the provincial government and all political parties to commit to relieving the pressure felt by young home buyers through lower taxes and fees, no further regulation or intervention in the marketplace, and increased housing supply.
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