Today, Monday, April 28th, is Election Day in Canada.
Housing is a critical part of each party’s platform and if you’re wondering where they stand, read below. Making an informed decision is a key part of the voting process, and if Housing is important to you, it’s vital to know the facts.
Now let’s get out there and vote – make your voice heard in such an important time for Canada and Toronto.
Liberals & Housing in Canada
The Liberals, headed by party incumbent Prime Minister Mark Carney (recently replacing Justin Trudeau), are introducing new recommendations while building on or continuing existing Liberal government policies.
The party’s housing proposals include measures to significantly increase the building of new homes (including pre-fab housing) and access to affordable housing by cutting red tape, providing tax incentives, and offering investment dollars and low-cost financing.
Here are the main points of the 2025 Liberal Housing Plan:
- Establish Build Canada Homes (BCH): Create a federal agency dedicated to building affordable housing, including on public lands.
- Support Innovative Construction: Provide $25B to finance and $1B to invest in prefabricated and modular housing to lower costs, building time, and emissions and to create higher-paying jobs in the housing industry.
- Increase Housing Supply: Double home construction to 500K units annually over ten years.
- Fund Affordable Housing: Provide $10B in low-cost financing and capital for deeply affordable housing, including targeted funds for Indigenous communities, seniors, students, and shelters.
- Reduce Municipal Charges: Cut municipal development charges in half for multi-unit residential buildings, with federal reimbursement to municipalities.
- Revive Rental Development Incentives: Reintroduce tax measures (last used in the 1970s) to encourage new rental housing and incentivize the conversion of private properties to affordable units.
- Streamline Approvals: Building on the Housing Accelerator Fund, further simplify housing regulations, standardize building codes, and accelerate permitting processes.
- Tax Relief for Homebuyers: Eliminate the GST on first-time home purchases under $1 million, saving buyers up to $50K upfront.
The Conservatives & Housing
The Conservatives, led by Opposition Leader Pierre Poilievre, pitch a housing plan that includes removing the sales tax on new homes, reducing the red tape to increase home building, and offering incentives to build affordable homes.
Here are the main points of the 2025 Conservative Housing Plan:
- Remove Sales Tax: Eliminate GST on all new home purchases, saving buyers up to $65K upfront.
- Sell Federal Property: Sell 15% of federal buildings (about 6K) and thousands of acres of federal land to increase housing supply.
- Accelerate Permitting: Offer incentives for municipalities to speed up housing permits, free up land, reduce local housing taxes to facilitate quicker construction, and implement a NIMBY (not in my backyard) municipal fine.
- Invest in Skilled Trades: Support 350K apprenticeships through trade schools and unions and ensure the $4K apprenticeship grant is accessible.
- Encourage Private Investment: Allow tax deferral on capital gains for those reinvesting in Canadian homebuilding projects, unlocking significant private-sector investment.
- Cut Barriers to Construction: Streamline processes and reduce regulatory hurdles to accelerate housing development and improve affordability.
- Encourage Municipal Housing Starts. Tie federal city funding to the number of housing starts, with cities expected to increase building by 15% annually and bonuses offered for surpassing that goal.
NDP on Canadian Housing
The New Democratic Party, led by Jasmeet Singh, has proposed a housing plan that includes offering first-time homebuyers better financing options, reducing corporate landlord power, and increasing renter protections and rental housing.
Here are the main points of the 2025 NDP Housing Plan:
- Expand Rent-Controlled Housing: Invest $1B over 5 years to build 100K new rent-controlled homes by 2035 using federal Crown land.
- Support First-Time Home Buyers: Expand CMHC’s mandate to offer long-term, low-interest, publicly-backed mortgages specifically for first-time homebuyers.
- Strengthen Rental Protections: Provide more funds to help non-profits acquire affordable apartments and prevent corporate landlords from purchasing existing affordable rental units.
- Limit Corporate Landlords: Restrict corporate landlords accused of price gouging from receiving low-interest federal loans, mortgage loan insurance, and tax incentives.
- Accelerate Approvals: Speed up federal land approvals to expedite the construction of affordable homes.
- Rescue At-Risk Projects: Stabilize housing markets and protect construction jobs by rescuing homebuilding projects impacted by tariffs or economic disruptions.
- Tie Funding to Tenant Protections: Connect federal housing funding to provincial and municipal policies that include tenant protections, such as rent control.
- Invest in Skilled Trades: Train an additional 100K workers in skilled trades to meet housing construction demands.
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