Vancouver seeks public input on empty homes

The City of Vancouver wants residents'opinions on how it can discourage empty homes.

The surveycomes aftera recentreport city staff presented to council in March, which showed that despite longstanding complaints empty homes may be driving up real estate prices, the percentage of unoccupied homes has remained steady since 2002, and is in line with other big Canadian cities.

Still, the city is asking the public aboutsuggestionsforseveral policy options, including:

• Taxing short term investors
• Prohibiting strata restrictions on rentals
• Increasing property taxes for unoccupied home

The survey will close on in two weeks, on May 16, 2016.

• Strata rental laws partly to blame for high housing prices, says analyst
• Taxing vacant homes would increase housing stock says economist
• Vancouverites sound off about real estate prices at town hall