EFE CANADA
Canada's ban on foreigners buying homes, in effect since January 2023, will be extended until 2027 to address the shortage of houses and apartments in the North American country, the government announced Sunday.
"By extending the ban on purchases by foreigners, we will ensure that homes are used as houses for Canadian families to live in and are not turned into speculative financial assets," Canadian Deputy Prime Minister Chrystia Freeland said in a statement.
The exceptions to this law, which applies only to urban residences and not to tourist residences, continue to apply to refugees or permanent residents, as well as to certain groups of international students and temporary workers.
The government of Liberal Prime Minister Justin Trudeau blames foreign investors for driving up prices for years, particularly through purchases in major urban centers.
However, many experts have stated that this ban on foreign buyers—who represented between 2% and 7% of all homeowners in Canada in 2021, according to official data—will not have the desired effect of making housing more affordable.
Instead, they point out that more housing needs to be built to meet demand.
In mid-January, Canada also announced the introduction of a cap on permits for foreign students, whose numbers have skyrocketed in recent years, exacerbating the housing crisis, according to the government.
