Canada’s 2025 Election: What Each Party’s Housing Plan Means for You

With the federal election coming up on April 28, 2025, I’ve been diving into the different housing policies each party is proposing. Housing is a huge issue in Canada right now, and whether you're a homeowner, renter, investor, or first-time buyer, these policies will directly impact the market. So, I wanted to break down what each party is bringing to the table when it comes to housing.

Liberal Party Under Prime Minister Mark Carney, the Liberals are sticking with their strategy of government intervention to boost housing supply and affordability. Their flagship proposal is a $4 billion Housing Accelerator Fund aimed at building 100,000 new homes by the end of 2025. They also want to eliminate the GST on new rental housing, expand the First-Time Home Buyer Incentive, and increase the tax-free First Home Savings Account limit to help people save for a down payment.

Their plan largely builds on their existing programs, like the National Housing Strategy launched in 2017, which focused on creating affordable housing and reducing chronic homelessness. While these efforts have made some impact, critics argue that home prices have continued to climb, and supply hasn’t kept up with demand.

Conservative Party Pierre Poilievre and the Conservatives are taking a different approach, emphasizing deregulation and supply-side solutions. Their plan, "Building Homes, Not Bureaucracy," aims to force municipalities to speed up housing approvals by tying federal funding to faster development timelines. They propose selling 15% of federally owned land to developers and cutting red tape to increase construction.

They oppose rent control, arguing that it discourages new rental construction, and instead push for a market-driven solution where more homes are built, bringing prices down naturally. While supporters of this approach believe it will address supply issues in the long run, critics worry that it doesn’t do enough to address affordability in the short term, especially for renters and lower-income households.

New Democratic Party (NDP) Jagmeet Singh’s NDP is taking an aggressive stance on housing, treating it as a fundamental human right. They want to build 500,000 affordable units over the next decade, implement a 20% foreign buyers’ tax, and introduce an anti-flipping tax to discourage speculation. They also support rent control and are advocating for 30-year amortization periods for first-time buyers to make mortgage payments more manageable.

The NDP’s approach is focused on affordability and protecting tenants, but some critics argue that rent controls and taxation could discourage new development, potentially limiting supply over time.

Green Party Elizabeth May and Jonathan Pedneault, the co-leaders of the Green Party, are calling the housing crisis a national emergency. Their platform prioritizes co-op and social housing, rent caps, and vacancy taxes on empty properties. They also want to limit short-term rentals like Airbnb to free up more housing for long-term tenants.

Their emphasis on sustainable and mixed-use communities is unique, as they believe zoning laws should be changed to allow for more density in urban centers. Supporters see this as a necessary shift towards more equitable housing, while opponents worry about potential overregulation and its impact on private property rights.

People’s Party of Canada (PPC) Maxime Bernier’s PPC takes a very different stance from the other parties. They attribute the housing crisis mainly to excessive immigration and inflationary policies. Their plan includes drastically reducing immigration to 100,000-150,000 newcomers per year, arguing that this would ease demand pressures on housing. They also propose abolishing the Canada Mortgage and Housing Corporation (CMHC), which they believe distorts the market with government-backed mortgage insurance.

They oppose rent controls and foreign buyer restrictions, saying that the free market should dictate housing prices. Supporters of this approach believe that limiting government intervention will lead to a more naturally balanced market, but critics argue that it overlooks issues like investor speculation and rising construction costs.

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At the end of the day, each party’s housing plan comes with trade-offs. If you believe that government intervention is necessary to ensure affordability, you might lean toward the Liberals, NDP, or Greens. If you think the private sector should take the lead in solving the housing crisis, then the Conservatives or PPC might align more with your views.

Regardless of where you stand, it’s clear that housing will be a major issue in this election. I know I’ll be watching closely to see how these policies evolve as we get closer to voting day. If you’re a homeowner, renter, investor, or just thinking about buying in the future, I’d encourage you to look into these platforms and consider how they might affect you. Every vote counts, and housing is one of the biggest economic issues facing Canada today.