A new analysis from the Canada Mortgage and Housing Corporation (CMHC) warns that government efforts to boost homeownership—such as tax rebates and income support—may inadvertently be driving up home prices across the GTA and beyond. CMHC Chief Economist Mathieu Laberge explains that while demand-side interventions provide immediate, short-term relief for a select few, they often trigger broader price hikes that hurt the wider market. For instance, in an ‘ambitious’ support scenario, while 52,000 Canadians might attain homeownership, the resulting demand surge could drive market prices up by 2.1%. To avoid these unintended consequences, the CMHC suggests either hyper-targeting support for the most vulnerable or pairing these initiatives with a massive influx of new housing supply—estimated at 28,000 new starts for broad-scale programs. For a deeper dive into these findings, read the full analysis at Storeys.com.
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