The simpleton’s guide to Ontario’s ‘Fair Housing Plan’
I CAN’T IMAGINE WHAT COMPELLED PREMIER WYNNE TO BESTOW UPON ME THIS GIFT. — COLUMNIST CHRIS SELLEY THE MAJORITY OF ECONOMISTS AGREE RENT CONTROL DRIVES DOWN SUPPLY.
Good news, everyone! I, National Post columnist Chris Selley, am pleased to announce that I now enjoy rent control in my fancy wee Toronto condominium with all its mod cons and high- end finishes. Better yet, all the other relatively well- to- do urban types who live in units built after 1991 — that’s almost exclusively condos — now enjoy the same privilege. This is Point 2 of the Liberal government’s 16- point “Fair Housing Plan,” released Thursday: absent special circumstances, all rentals in the province will henceforth be subject to the same 2.5 per cent annual cap on rent hikes.
This is quite a relief for my cohort. You may have heard of our plight from the Toronto Star or the CBC: we are youngish people who freely contracted to lease dwellings in a high- end, high- priced, non- rent- controlled slice of the market — but then, as demand far outstripped supply in the booming city in which we are so lucky to live, landlords had the temerity to raise the rents. Sometimes by a lot. Sometimes by more than we could afford. Some of us had to move, and no one should ever have to move.
I myself had feared receiving an unaffordable notice of increase over the summer. I had grimly priced out much cheaper, much more spacious pre-1991 alternatives, and shuddered at the thought of handwashing dishes and using — ugh — communal laundry facilities. But now, thanks to Premier Kathleen Wynne, I rest easy. I launder mere steps from my couch, and Whirlpool’ s indomitable Quiet Partner II takes care of the washing up. I can feel my fellow Ontarians’ good wishes washing over me.
Whassat? Oh sure, there are naysayers. My i nbox groans under the weight of unsolicited complaints. The majority of economists agree rent control drives down supply, and everyone agrees housing supply — rent- controlled supply, non- rent- controlled supply, whatever — is the GTA’s primary need. Developers say rent control is a disincentive to building; some are threatening to down tools on their many projects.
That … t hat actually sounds like a bit of a problem, doesn’t it? And in the past, I myself have observed that unless units are rentcontrolled between tenancies — which they are not, and will not be under the Fair Housing Plan — a hot market like Toronto’s encourages landlords to turf their tenants on whatever pretence t hey can f i nd, then jack up the rent. Many tenants will complain, of course, and some will win the day at the tribunal. Most will not complain.
Well, never mind. I would certainly complain. And I have rent control! I can’t i magine what compelled Premier Wynne to bestow upon me t his unearned gift, which seems entirely at odds with her stated goal “to help more people find affordable homes ( and) increase supply,” but she has my gratitude. I must try to think of a way to repay her.
As for the other measure making headlines, a 15 per cent “Non- Resident Speculation Tax” in the Greater Golden Horseshoe Area — that’s Point 1 of the 16 — I must say I am confused. It doesn’t seem to be a tax on “speculation” at all, but rather a tax on houses that’s based on the buyer’s residency status, regardless of his intentions.
I certainly understand how property speculation might drive home prices into unrealistic territory, but why does it matter where the speculator is from? There is little indication foreigners are a big part of the Toronto market. If speculators are the culprit, wouldn’t it make more sense to tax land transfers based on, say, length of ownership — regardless of the owners’ or buyers’ nationalities?
It’s a bit unfair, when you think about it. The government says “Ontario’s economy benefits enormously from newcomers who decide to make the province home,” and yet it’s slapping a tax on people who can’t even vote their displeasure. I certainly wouldn’t have wanted anything to dissuade the Chinese owners of my condo from entering the Toronto market, and I can’t imagine why the government would have wanted to either.
Ah, well. I have rent control. All is well. They’ll haul me out of this place in a coffin in 60 years. Unless the owners sell it to someone who wants to live in it, that is, in which case I’ ll be flung out into a rental market that could be even tighter than it is now … thanks, in some part, to rent control.
Hmm. Let me have a look at those other 14 points ...