A program to assist with downpayments is the second recommendation in our brief. This could be an amount corresponding to that which has already been saved for a downpayment. For instance, if people have already saved $10,000, $12,000 or $15,000, the government could lend that amount, that is to say offer to match the savings for the downpayment, and the couple or household receiving that assistance would have approximately seven years to reimburse the loan. This would represent a relatively minimal cost for the government. We provided examples of parameters but we have not quantified the overall cost because when new measures are brought in, the households and purchasers become interested and behaviours change. This may also encourage people to buy. At that point, you have to take people's reactions into account and it is very imprudent to try to quantify what the cost of those measures may be.
On February 1st, 2017. See this statement in context.