Minister, I share Ms. Kwan's concern about corporate landlords who are buying multi-unit residential buildings in my community. They are renovating, evicting folks, and raising rents. The federal government, as you know, is incentivizing this behaviour by providing tax exemptions to groups like real estate investment trusts. This is not about new supply; this is about keeping existing units affordable.

We know that removing this exemption would create $300 million to build more affordable housing. It won't solve the crisis, but it's a litmus test for whether this government is serious about addressing financialization. Nothing was done in the fall economic statement on it.

I was encouraged by your comments earlier. Can you be more specific about the action we can see in terms of addressing financialization?

1 p.m.

Liberal

The Chair Liberal Bobby Morrissey

Give a short answer, Minister.

1 p.m.

Liberal

Sean Fraser Liberal Central Nova, NS

When you say a short answer, how much time is that, Mr. Chair?

1 p.m.

Liberal

The Chair Liberal Bobby Morrissey

It's until somebody calls to adjourn.

1 p.m.

Liberal

Sean Fraser Liberal Central Nova, NS

In one minute, I will not do your question justice, so we will happily offer to follow up, perhaps before we leave Ottawa this week.

There are a number of different aspects that we can look at on financialization, including, for example, short-term rentals, which is a different form of financialization and was, in fact, addressed in the fall economic statement.

The path forward in the short term, for me, is to look at opportunity so we can level the playing field for non-profit actors with those who might be making investments in real estate right now.

I do have some hesitation to look at measures that will upset the ability of people who are in the housing market to remain in the housing market, but there's more to talk about on that piece.

In the meantime, I sense that there's widespread agreement within the sector to create opportunities supported by the federal government to broaden the ability of non-profits to snap up those spaces. The increasing trend that I'm watching among investors is that they're not necessarily taking advantage of that opportunity that you described the same way today as they were even just a few years ago, when interest rates during the pandemic were at basement levels.

I think it creates an opportunity for us to deal with non-profits, which are not motivated by making money but are motivated by protecting that stock in the market. The mechanism through which we look at that is something I'm considering now.

1 p.m.

Liberal

The Chair Liberal Bobby Morrissey

Thank you, committee members.

With that, we'll adjourn. I'll see you on Wednesday.

The meeting is adjourned.