How Renters Are Paying the Highest Price for Canada’s Housing Crisis

Re John and my comments at 13:54 - Thank you very much to Zoe Knowles, the former communications director to Ontario’s Minister of Municipal Affairs and Housing, Steve Clark, who listens to our podcast for providing some more information re how Ontario rent control does not apply to units 'whose first occupancy was after Nov 15 2018. So if you have a new rental property that was first occupied (as a rental property) after Nov 15 2018, including rental properties that were built as additions to existing properties like a basement unit, then those are exempt from rent control.' More information can be found here: www.ontario.ca/page/residential-rent-increases ~ Urmi

Isn’t it crazy how mortgage rates continue to rise with higher imports and declining exports? meanwhile the FED is yet to lessen cost. Something will eventually break if they keep raising interest rates and quantitative tightening

Under no circumstances should you vote "liberal"

canadas only way to make money is to attract investors here , to raise rents from the local canadians. pretty sick if you ask me.

Sole provider of 4 kids. It is so difficult to find a place. Even with good credit and income to pay, people want 2 incomes incase one loses a job. I found a place, but the struggle was very real. I have known people to have to go to a shelter while trying to find a rental.

Yeah, bring MORE people, Justin. This will work out for sure. I am an immigrant but this is pure madness. This country is going downhill. This not just about housing. Look at the health care system wait times, the infrastructure. Everywhere you go it’s more crowded than Europe. Good job, keep voting left.

Look at debt load, mortgages, credit cards, car loans..look at google trends for bankruptcies, depression/recession..also retail is dying…when the dominos fall it will have a cascading affect.

This entire housing shortage can be traced back to one thing. Money printing by the Central Banks. Homes are appreciating because there is so much fiat currency.

Correction required - US green card holders are not the 10k being given Canadian work permits, it's the H1B holders, green card holders have zero interest in coming to Canada.

You are one of the few people in the 'industry' who recognizes the issues renters face. Although there are cases (in Ontario) of not being unable to evict tenants, most evictions (85% in BC) are no-fault--meaning the tenants were evicted for landlords' own purposes, to sell the property, for demolition, conversion or major repairs. We need public housing NOW.

There is absolutely no chance we can build our way out of this situation if rates go down to ridiculous levels again. All inventory will be gobbled up by speculators plain and simple at any price. Canada has become an absolute shit show. We are a one truck pony incumbents purchase real estate using extreme leverage and rent out to the newcomers which are usually naive and vulnerable. Canadians think of themselves as tolerant, accommodating and generous. We are so far from that. We take advantage of those that can be taken advantage of. It’s absolutely disgusting. Hopefully these rates will settle all this bad behavior.

pretty much right on point. Exactly the same problem here in Australia

It's cocaine money laundering. These owners let their rental units sit empty, month after month (not just 1 or 2 months), refusing even $2500/mo because tenants just aren't worth the hassle. They are storing their money in properties, expecting prices to keep going up by 20% a year indefinitely. I expect housing to lose 95% of its value.

Renting to me is the same as the classroom experience we all have had at some point in our lives, one or two individules act out and the entire class loses out on a fun activity or has to stay five minutes after the bell. Lol after 1 or 2 bad tenants you are very careful of who you let in. Its important for both tenants and landlords to have the broken landlord & tenant board fixed due to long wait times to address issues of any kind for both sides.

Affordable housing has one problem.....it doesn't make enough money to even cover the maintenance, which in turn means any and all CMHC funded affordable housing that requires 20% below average (not even market) rent will eventually turn into a garbage dump................which is also why it doesn't get built by private or even government agencies......because it is a 100% guaranteed loss and basically you are making everyone pay taxes to benefit only the lucky few that get in.

About what could be done ... I can't belive the guy doesn't talk about the zoning laws in Canada... The main problem in Toronto is that you can only build huge condos or single family houses... When it is houses; mixed zones don't exist (no stores, no restaurant, no bars, ... just boring suburb like areas...). Some say we need to build more... but where? and how? Why don't we change the zoning laws, and have mixed area with multiplex around the downtown core for example? The current urbanism in Toronto is non-sense and results in a city where there are pocket of things here and there, but no unity, it is not walkable; and overall boring. 10 years ago I did not buy in Toronto because I thought the value for money was bad; can you imagine now? The problem is not only that it is expensive; but what you get for what you pay makes no sense (unless you go above $3M and it is a different game). Conclusion: I will leave Toronto (and Canada) as soon as I can; and I am pretty sure I am not the only one planning that... Good job to our gov ;)

As always, very useful information. Thanks John and Urmi

34:38 Easily the best take on the root causes of the housing crisis showing why John's the smartest authority on the subject, albeit these issues go beyond just Canada (e.g. NZ, Aus, etc.)

Everyone should be entittled to a chunk of land in canada. I mean as a child i did stand there in school singing. "My home and native land" "God keep our land glorious and free!" "The True North, strong and free!" All a bunch of hogwash! there should be no private market. Peer to Peer trade. But land should be free,. Just as we stand and chant.

$2800 in rent for 550sq feet a month.