Vancouver finds key to house prices

Clampdown on foreign buyers with 15% tax sees dramatic fall

Housing affordability, or the lack of it, has been a topic dissected ad nauseam in Australia and New Zealand, so it may come as some surprise that other world cities are looking here to curb their own woes.

As hard as it might be to believe for Aussies and Kiwis looking to get a foot on the property ladder, one city in particular has sought inspiration from Australian housing policy and seen an almost 20 per cent drop in house prices.

The picturesque city of Vancouver, on Canada’s western seaboard, claimed third spot in the annual Demographia International Housing Affordability Survey earlier this year.

In second came Sydney, equally picturesque and in demand, while the financier island hotspot of Hong Kong came in first.

But while Sydney and Vancouver