Rather than receiving universal support, the federal and British Columbia governments’ proposal to purchase unsold condominium units has sparked debate among housing experts, economists and local officials, many of whom are still waiting for key details before judging whether the program will primarily benefit homebuyers or developers.
Prime Minister Mark Carney and B.C. Premier David Eby announced last week that governments intend to acquire 2,200 unsold condominiums and convert them into affordable housing as part of a broader $5 billion housing strategy that will be implemented over the next decade.
Carney said the plan would rely on what he described as “innovative financial tools” to increase housing supply. He explained that governments would purchase completed condominium units while spreading the financing over time. However, several aspects of the program remain undecided, including whether the homes will ultimately become rental units or return to the market through future sales. Additional details are expected this fall.
For Andy Yan, director of the City Program at Simon Fraser University, the announcement may have another objective beyond creating affordable housing. In his view, the proposal could reassure developers and financial institutions that governments are prepared to intervene as the condominium market faces weaker demand and elevated borrowing costs.
Yan said the announcement leaves several important questions unanswered, including how much governments intend to pay for the units, which developments would qualify and why officials have decided to step in now.
He also pointed out that British Columbia experienced a comparable level of unsold condominiums during the mid-1990s without governments purchasing vacant inventory. According to Yan, the difference today is that housing prices have become increasingly disconnected from household incomes.
Figures from the Canada Mortgage and Housing Corporation (CMHC) show there were 5,849 unabsorbed apartments across British Columbia in May 2026. Of those, 4,376 were located in Metro Vancouver, representing approximately 75% of all unsold units in the province. Yan noted that December 1995 recorded 3,331 unabsorbed apartments, despite Metro Vancouver having a much smaller population at the time.
While stressing that his view remains speculative, Yan suggested the proposal may reflect an effort to avoid the type of market disruption experienced during the U.S. subprime mortgage crisis, which began in 2007 after widespread mortgage defaults triggered a recession. He also questioned whether the federal government is attempting to establish a minimum price level for Vancouver’s housing market.
Carney acknowledged that higher interest rates and softer demand have left many developers holding completed condominium units they are reluctant to sell below cost. The proposed program, he suggested, offers an alternative to taking significant losses.
The initiative has also been criticized by B.C. Conservative housing critic Linda Hepner, who argued that taxpayers should not be responsible for supporting developers when market conditions weaken. She said housing prices should naturally adjust until buyers can afford them and warned that government intervention could remove any incentive for developers to lower asking prices.
Yan added that the proposal raises broader questions about governments influencing market dynamics. For years, policymakers and industry representatives maintained that Canada’s housing affordability challenges were largely the result of limited supply. If additional housing is now available, he argued, market forces should normally allow prices to adjust. He also warned that similar government support could encourage other industries to seek public financial assistance.
Municipal leaders are also looking for answers. Jenna Stoner, a councillor with the District of Squamish and representative of the Union of British Columbia Municipalities, said local governments have received very little information about how the program would function. Questions remain over who would own the units, who would manage them and how the program would operate, prompting municipalities to adopt a wait-and-see approach.
Stoner also questioned why the province did not direct the newly announced funding toward the Community Housing Fund, established in 2018 to support affordable rental housing. She noted that British Columbia recently cancelled the latest funding intake retroactively and suspended future funding rounds indefinitely, leaving numerous planned housing projects without the financial support they had expected.
