New Tax free first home savings account (TFFHSA) starts next year

[Buster]

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No. I'm suggesting the federal government is very limited within it's powers to increase housing supply to tackle affordability as the quoted post was suggesting, which is why their proposed solutions are always so limited.

If you want to talk about federal policy's impact on housing inflation so bad, make a post about it.

I'd be interested in your thoughts on federal policy stimulating demand

[kertejud2]

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I'd be interested in your thoughts on federal policy stimulating demand

If you're concerned about the demand side, you don't understand the problem.

[Buster]

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If you're concerned about the demand side, you don't understand the problem.

There's just one problem?

[kertejud2]

Yes.

[Buster]

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Yes.

So you disagree with the federal government's efforts to reduce demand?

[schurchill39]

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There's just one problem?

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Yes.

Will you two just kiss and get it over with already?

[kertejud2]

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So you disagree with the federal government's efforts to reduce demand?

Who's asked them to reduce demand? If you're concerned about the demand side, you don't understand the problem.

[Buster]

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Who's asked them to reduce demand? If you're concerned about the demand side, you don't understand the problem.

The federal gov't sure seems interested in managing the demand side, do they not?

[ExtraSlow]

It would be super neat if people of all political stripes could at least agree on what problems exist before they start arguing about how to best solve them.

I honestly think all the housing market stuff is a symptom, and not something that can or should be touched directly. I will state my pre-existing bias against any kind of boutique or targeted tax rebate/refund/shelter.

[suntan]

How's the media reacting to this? When Harper put in targeted tax rebates he was pilloried.

[Buster]

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It would be super neat if people of all political stripes could at least agree on what problems exist before they start arguing about how to best solve them.

I honestly think all the housing market stuff is a symptom, and not something that can or should be touched directly. I will state my pre-existing bias against any kind of boutique or targeted tax rebate/refund/shelter.

The problem is that our gov'ts are a bunch of busybodies that won't let markets function. Everything else is a symptom.

[ExtraSlow]

I'd be somewhat happier with any government running on a platform of simple stated goals, then taking actions that have a clear line of sight to those goals, while acknowledging the consequences of those actions. If more affordable housing for people entering the housing market is a really important goal, then so be it.

Right now as far as I can tell, reducing inflation, reducing housing costs, and keeping real estate values high are all equal top priorities, which seems insane to my very simple mind.

[Buster]

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I'd be somewhat happier with any government running on a platform of simple stated goals, then taking actions that have a clear line of sight to those goals, while acknowledging the consequences of those actions. If more affordable housing for people entering the housing market is a really important goal, then so be it.

Right now as far as I can tell, reducing inflation, reducing housing costs, and keeping real estate values high are all equal top priorities, which seems insane to my very simple mind.

It is simple. Until you realize that the gov't goal isn't any of those things. The gov'ts goal is to get re-elected.

[ExtraSlow]

I just like to have stated goals, stated assumptions, and to be transparent about the actions to be taken.

[Buster]

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I just like to have stated goals, stated assumptions, and to be transparent about the actions to be taken.

When it comes to market pricing of, well, anything...the gov't should have no goals. That's part of the problem. It should not be the gov'ts goal to manage housing prices - and it should not be within their power.

[Xtrema]

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^^the TFSA option is not good optics for the people complaining about housing costs #politicalstuff

Bingo. It's all lip service. BoC rate increase has a better impact to cool housing than this and foreign home buyer ban for 2 years.

[JRSC00LUDE]

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Devils advocate take

If people have the liquidity to contribute to this, what benefit does this actually provide versus just using your TFSA contribution room to save and withdrawing to buy a house?

Is the problem really that people don’t have enough tax sheltered account space to buy a house? Or that they are so taxed into oblivion so much that they couldn’t possible save up a down payment in the first place.

Once again, more nonsense complexity and administration to mask the real problem.

If you start only open-hand slapping your spouse instead of using a closed fist they think you're actually trying to look out for them too.

[suntan]

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Bingo. It's all lip service. BoC rate increase has a better impact to cool housing than this and foreign home buyer ban for 2 years.

Buyer ban is about 10 years too late.

[brucebanner]

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When it comes to market pricing of, well, anything...the gov't should have no goals. That's part of the problem. It should not be the gov'ts goal to manage housing prices - and it should not be within their power.

But housing is a basic necessity of life and should be accessible/affordable for everyone, shouldn't it?

[ExtraSlow]

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But housing is a basic necessity of life and should be accessible/affordable for everyone, shouldn't it?

Now we are asking the right questions. What role should the government play in providing universal access to housing?