According to Federal Housing Advocate Marie-Josée Houle, the housing market's focus on profits is “harming people” and requires government regulation.. Marie Josee HouleFederal Housing Advocate Marie Josee Houle. .Houle stated that only through regulations can prices be reduced, according to Blacklock’s Reporter..“Canada will not be able to build our way out of this housing crisis,” Houle testified at the Commons Human Resources committee..“We are losing affordable housing units faster than we can build them.”.“Would you agree part of the solution is we do need more building of houses in order to bring prices down?” asked Conservative MP Tracy Gray (Kelowna-Lake Country, BC). .“This is not how housing works. What we’re talking about, the housing crisis and the human right to housing, is those that need it the most,” replied Houle..“Any new housing that is built, whether it’s rental or single detached homes with mortgages, will cost more than something that is already built.”.“New construction, unless it comes with subsidies, will not create the affordability that’s needed,” said Houle..“The market needs to be regulated.”.“Markets are not working well,” said Houle..“We have let housing be market-driven.” She did not elaborate..Houle was appointed the Housing Advocate under the National Housing Act, earning an annual salary of $176,000..Her office previously released The Financialization of Multi-Family Rental Housing in Canada report, which suggested the expropriation of properties owned by landlords who “violate human rights.”.“Every single person in Canada has the right to live in a safe, secure, affordable home that meets their needs,” said Houle..She blamed corporate landlords, real estate investment trusts, private equity funds and pension fund asset managers for using properties for profit..“Corporate investment in housing is a serious human rights issue that must be addressed as we seek to address Canada’s housing crisis,” said Houle.. House .“The financialization is harming people in Canada and is a serious human rights issue. Curbing the financialization of housing is a key way governments can help address Canada’s housing crisis.”.“It’s my job to be a watchdog for housing and homelessness in Canada,” said Houle..“My position is independent and non-partisan. This is new territory for all of us.”.Parliament in 2019 passed a National Housing Strategy Act that enshrined “a right to adequate housing” in federal law..The Parliamentary Budget Office, in a 2019 report Federal Program Spending on Housing Affordability said the measure “does not create any enforceable individual rights that would give rise to statutory spending nor does it bind future parliaments to commit voted spending to housing programs.”
