The District of North Vancouver is on its way to developing a “locals first” policy that, if approved by council, would mean the district will ask the developers of new condos to exclusively sell to people who already live here for the first 60 days.
We absolutely share council’s frustration with the cost of housing but we feel “locals first” would ultimately be symbolic at best or problematic at worst.
There are a constellation of factors that could be blamed for driving up the cost of housing, and a locals-first policy likely won’t address any of them: speculators and flippers, foreign capital, short-term rentals, low interest rates, the bank of mom and dad, 30 years with almost no investment in affordable housing by the province and feds, or the fact the vast majority of our landbase is reserved for single-family detached homes, which are now totally unobtainable except for the very rich.
Regardless of who is buying these new condos, a locals-first policy won’t impact the price, which the developers set based on the maximum amount they think the market will pay and not a penny less.
This would also make it harder for the growing number of local employees who must commute here across the congested bridges from buying locally, thereby exacerbating the rush hour traffic problem, which absolutely no one wants.
Finally, a locals-first policy would be completely unenforceable. But hey, it never hurts to ask.
We appreciate the intent behind the motion before council and with some work, it could be a useful tool. But if we want to get serious about addressing the unaffordability crisis, it’s going to take a lot more than queue jumping.
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