EXCERPT:
Jock Finlayson of the Business Council of B.C., which estimates that over 35 per cent of economic growth in the province in the last few years is attributed to home building and renovation activities, was asked about the future of foreign investment in residential real estate.
“This budget signifies that policy-makers have decided we don’t need foreign investment in residential real estate. It couldn’t be clearer and I think it will be effective in discouraging that. And we certainly have domestic demand for housing. And I think it’s a signal, and one that I support, that policy has to be focused on the needs of the working, productive population here, not global capital markets, so that’s fine,” he said. “But we don’t want to discourage foreign investment generally in our economy nor do we want to discourage people from moving to Canada under our various immigration programs because that’s important in what makes our society and economy successful.”
