Rally will be at the Vancouver Art Gallery and speakers will include:
- SFU professor Josh Gordon on foreign demand
- Caroline Adderson of Vancouver Vanishes
- Paul Kershaw of Generation Squeeze
- Dr. Darren Joneson on affordability
- Christine Duhaime on money laundering
- Kishone Roy of BC Non-profit Housing Association
Who We Are
Housing Action for Local Taxpayers (HALT) is a non-partisan community action group demanding that all levels of Canadian government address our current foreign money-fuelled housing crisis.
Our Mission
We believe that if you work hard, contribute to your community and pay your fair share of local income taxes, that you deserve to have an affordable home. It’s that simple. We are looking to level the playing field for local citizens. We want to be your voice to ensure that all levels of government take our concerns seriously.
What HALT is Doing:
HALT is actively advocating for governments at all levels to address these issues. We are active in social media and have been featured in media locally and nationally. We also have launched a petition demanding that the BC government take action on foreign capital and party funding by corporations, many of whom are directly involved in real estate and development.
Today we’re demanding a simple six-point plan for bringing housing under control:
- Implement the BC Housing Affordability Fund‘s proposal to implement a property tax surcharge offset by income tax. This will ensure that homes that are owned by those who either leave them empty or have families who earn their incomes abroad are taxed at a higher rate than those owned by people earning their incomes locally.
- Eliminate the QIIP and other Immigrant Investor Programs that result in wealthy immigrants entering Canada via these programs who ultimately choose to settle in Vancouver, driving up our housing prices.
- Empower law enforcement to tackle rampant fraud and money laundering in the Vancouver real estate market.
- Eliminate corporate donations out of elections. Our municipal and provincial governments have acted in the best interests of its moneyed donors for too long. In order for them to serve the citizens properly, we must reform how political parties are funded.
- Build more meaningful, family-friendly useful housing / rental stock.
- Implement regulations/restrictions on AirBnB to encourage AirBnB units returning back to the local rental unit supply.
What You Can Do:
- Like us our Facebook page and follow us on Twitter. You’ll find the latest news from us and actions that you can take (petitions, surveys, events you can attend) on our Facebook page.
- Sign our Change.org petition demanding action on foreign money
- Join us on Saturday, September 17th in front of the Vancouver Art Gallery as we rally for affordable housing.
haltvancouver.org 