Conservative party leadership candidate Pierre Poilievre says Canadians are facing unprecedented housing expenses..The Canadian Real Estate Association (CREA) on Tuesday released a report showing Canadian housing prices continue to balloon far beyond the point of affordability for most people..“Canadians are increasingly running out of options for places to live,” said Poilievre, MO for Ottawa-Carleton..“Housing prices across the country are surging as a direct result of gatekeepers blocking the development of new homes,” he said in a Tuesday press release..Poilievre highlighted that when Justin Trudeau came to power in 2015, a typical Canadian home cost $434,000 to buy..A typical house in Canada now costs $868,400 and that price tag amounts to an almost 100% increase in home prices in the seven years since Trudeau took office..Poilievre said Canadians’ incomes are not close to keeping up with the increased housing costs their budgets now have to absorb.. tierra-mallorca-rgJ1J8SDEAY-unsplashPhoto by Tierra Mallorca on Unsplash .“The problem is only getting worse the longer he remains in power — the typical price increased by 29.2% between February 2021 and February 2022 alone,” Poilievre said..He added those huge price hikes are driving inflation and making it very difficult for Canadians to make ends meet..“Canadians need to be able to have a place to live. Too many 30-year-olds are living in mom and dad’s basement and that is a direct result of Justinflation,” said Poilievre..“Mr. Trudeau, it’s time to stop printing money and start building houses.”.The CREA also reported Tuesday that national home sales rose 4.6% on a month-over-month basis in February. Also, the actual (not seasonally adjusted) national average sale price posted a 20.6% year-over-year gain in February alone..“The actual (not seasonally adjusted) national average home price was a record $816,720 in February 2022, up 20.6% from the same month last year. The national average price is heavily influenced by sales in Greater Vancouver and the Greater Toronto Area, two of Canada’s most active and expensive housing markets. Excluding these two markets from the calculation in February 2022 cuts almost $178,000 from the national average price,” the report concluded..Amanda Brown is a reporter with the Western Standard.,.abrown@westernstandardonline.com
