Marking 20 years
of bold journalism,
reader supported.
Welcome to Tyee’s reader poll.

Tyee Poll: Are You Booing or Cheering the Drop in Vancouver House Prices?

Jen St. Denis wrote this week about how a calculation by a property assessment expert of a $87 billion fall in home equity wealth across Metro Vancouver is getting mixed reactions.

Some are outraged. “Instead of having $5 million, now they have $3 million and out of that $3 million they have to buy a home, and then retire,” said Paul Sullivan, a senior partner with BCS, a real estate appraisal company.

Others like Canadian Centre for Policy Alternatives economist Marc Lee find it hard to sympathize with the situation, referring to the host of favourable tax breaks that homeowners enjoy that renters can’t and the less-stringent grounds for eviction for tenants in the secondary rental market.

“I think we need much higher levels of sympathy for people who are in the rental market, struggling, especially if they’re in a secondary suite or a rented condo, the prospect of eviction at any time,” Lee said.

We’re wondering what you think. What do you think of the drop in house prices?

* Please note that all poll answers will be publicly viewable, but anonymous.

Fill out this week's poll.

Please note that Tyee Barometer polls are only intended as a quick and engaging non-scientific snapshot of our readers' opinions on various topics that fit with The Tyee's very broad editorial mandate. They are not intended to be seen as a representative sampling of BC opinion.

Share this poll

LATEST STORIES

The Barometer

Do You Think Trudeau Will Survive the Next Election?

Take this week's poll