Government condo plan could wipe out half of Metro Vancouver's unsold supply | Daily Hive

Size of B.C. and federal condo acquisition program could wipe out half of Metro Vancouver's unsold new condo inventory

Premier David Eby and Prime Minister Mark Carney announcing the Canada-British Columbia Partnership on Condo Conversion on June 18, 2026. (Government of BC)

The joint plan by the Government of Canada and Government of British Columbia to purchase thousands of vacant strata market condominium homes from for-profit private developers and convert them into affordable housing is shaping up to be one of the most debated and controversial interventionist housing measures in years.

While the governments describe the initiative as one of the quickest ways to deliver affordable homes using housing that is already built, a growing chorus of critics argues it risks becoming a taxpayer-funded bailout for developers, while industry representatives say the outcome will ultimately depend on key details that have yet to be released.

The new Canada-British Columbia Partnership on Condo Conversion was announced last week by Prime Minister Mark Carney and B.C. Premier David Eby, as part of a broader 10-year infrastructure and housing agreement between the two governments.

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Under the new partnership, the federal government’s Build Canada Homes agency and the provincial government’s BC Housing will use “innovative financing tools” to convert more than 2,200 vacant condominium units in priority growth areas into affordable housing.

According to the joint announcement, the governments consider the program “one of the fastest and most efficient ways to increase housing supply,” allowing people to move into affordable homes much sooner than waiting for new construction.

Few details have been released beyond the headline commitment. Governments have not yet identified where the homes will be purchased, how affordability will be defined, what developers will be paid, or what financing structure will be used.

This condominium conversion initiative was announced alongside a broader package that includes up to $3.2 billion over 10 years to reduce development charges imposed by B.C. municipal governments by up to 50 per cent for eligible new housing projects — similar to the joint strategy by the federal and Ontario provincial governments announced for Ontario in May 2026 — and expand housing-enabling infrastructure, as well as a one-time $284-million federal transfer intended to reduce barriers to new housing construction.

“Canadians gave our government a clear mandate to build a stronger country — one where people are empowered with more opportunities, lower costs, safer communities, and homes you can afford,” said Prime Minister Carney.

Premier Eby said the partnership “builds on the strong steps B.C. has taken on housing, by making it easier to build homes and investing in the infrastructure communities rely on.”

Gregor Robertson, the Federal Housing and Infrastructure Minister and a former Vancouver mayor, said the agreement “will help cut the costs of building, unlock new housing supply, and get shovels in the ground sooner.”

B.C. Housing Minister Christine Boyle said the provincial government will “find practical, innovative solutions with our federal partners so our communities can keep growing, with the housing and infrastructure that people need.”

A program that could potentially cover half of Metro Vancouver’s unsold new condo supply

The announcement immediately drew attention because of the size of the proposed acquisition relative to today’s housing market.

When asked to provide his reaction, Mark Goodman, principal of Vancouver-based real estate firm Goodman Commercial, told Daily Hive Urbanized the initiative could have a substantial impact if a large share of the purchases occur within Metro Vancouver.

“Taking 2,200 units out would represent a very large share — roughly half of the unabsorbed condo inventory in one fell swoop,” he said, emphasizing that it “would effectively wipe out more than half the current overhang in Metro Vancouver.”

According to Goodman, Canada Mortgage and Housing Corporation (CMHC) data shows there were 4,376 completed but unabsorbed condominium apartments across Metro Vancouver in May 2026, up 76 per cent from 2,488 one year earlier.

He noted the inventory is concentrated primarily in Burnaby, Richmond, and the Coquitlam/Port Moody area, with concrete high-rise buildings accounting for nearly 80 per cent of unsold completed inventory.

“They could fill the whole program from that segment alone,” he said, suggesting the potential scale of impact if this program were focused on just concrete buildings.

Goodman estimates that purchasing 2,200 units at current average prices of roughly $1.1 million each could require between $2.2 billion and $2.5 billion before additional holding or conversion costs.

The 2,200 units would represent about 77 per cent of everything held by 25 private developers who currently have multiple unsold projects on their books.

He agreed with the assertion made by government officials that such a move could quickly absorb completed vacant housing, provide financial relief to developers, reduce the likelihood of distressed sales, and place completed homes into use much faster than constructing new housing.

At the same time, however, he cautioned that the program raises significant questions about value for taxpayers and potential market distortion.

He added that governments becoming “a major buyer of last resort” could alter market expectations and reduce incentives for developers to adjust pricing in response to changing demand.

“If the program ends up paying close to market (or only modestly below) for units that were originally built for higher-end buyers, the value-for-money question gets loud,” Goodman told Daily Hive Urbanized.

“It also mutes the normal market signals — prices and absorption rates — that would otherwise push developers to adjust what and how much they build next.”

He also said that this latest program for new vacant condominiums shares some similarities with the provincial government’s Rental Protection Fund (RPF), which he says “used taxpayer dollars to inflate the market.” The RPF focused on buying older secured purpose-built rental housing buildings that may have been more at risk to speculation and redevelopment, with the property acquisitions intended to maintain low rents for existing residents.

Goodman said this new condominium program appears pragmatic given current market conditions, but emphasized that its success will ultimately depend on details expected later this year.

“If it delivers real, occupied affordable units at a reasonable net cost to taxpayers and helps stabilize the new-home segment without too much waste, then yes — it’s a useful bridge,” he said.

“If it mostly shifts expensive inventory from developers to the public books with limited additionality, or if it slows down the private market’s natural adjustment, then it’s an expensive band-aid that doesn’t fix the deeper issues.”

Mark Goodman. (Goodman Commercial)

Mike Drummond, CEO of the Urban Development Institute of British Columbia, said the industry had proposed a different approach to provide developers with some relief and unlock new housing supply.

“We had advocated for this funding to be used to expand the GST rebate to all buyers, as was done in Ontario,” Drummond told Daily Hive Urbanized.

“That approach would have helped move unsold inventory and given builders more confidence to keep new homes moving forward.”

Drummond said governments instead appear to have selected a program focused on helping first-time buyers purchase condominiums.

“The government has chosen a different approach, using the funding to help first-time buyers purchase condos in a targeted way,” he continued.

“Details are still limited, and we will be looking closely at how the program is designed to ensure it provides meaningful support for buyers while also helping get more homes built.”

Daily Hive Urbanized also reached out to nine major private developers, but none of them wanted to comment on the program at this time, when few precise details are known.

Conservatives call plan a taxpayer-funded bailout

The proposal has also become a major political flashpoint.

During a press conference on Sunday, Conservative Party of Canada Leader Pierre Poilievre repeatedly described the initiative as a bailout for developers and lenders.

“It’s a joke,” said Poilievre flatly.

“If you want those condos to be more affordable, then the developers should lower the price to a level that people can afford to pay.”

He argued that developers who built projects during the housing boom should bear any financial losses associated with declining market conditions rather than taxpayers.

“Somebody is going to lose money. I don’t believe it should be the single mom who is working at minimum wage… It should be the bankers and developers who made the decision in the first place,” said Poilievre.

Poilievre also criticized the description made by the governing officials of using “innovative financial tools,” arguing that the proposal effectively shifts losses from developers and financial institutions onto taxpayers.

“What innovative financial tools? Sounds like magic,” said the federal Conservative leader. “Normally the innovative financial tool to turn an overpriced empty condo into an affordable home is for the price to drop until someone can afford to buy or rent it. So why not just let that happen?”

“It means the government is going to buy high, sell low, and stick you, the taxpayer, with the price tag… The developer and the banks make off with their profit, and the taxpayer picks up the loss.”

The Conservative Party of British Columbia issued a similar criticism on Monday.

“The housing crisis will not be solved by wasting taxpayer dollars on artificially propping up developers,” said Linda Hepner, the B.C. Conservatives’ housing critic, the MLA for Surrey-Serpentine River, and a former Surrey mayor.

“If prices are set too high for condo units to be sold, market forces will cause the prices to lower until people can afford them. But if developers know that the government will simply bail them out if the condos sit vacant long enough, they will never drop their prices, making the housing crisis even worse.”

Hepner argued governments should instead implement measures that reduce taxes, accelerate approvals, and lower construction costs.

B.C. Conservative Leader Kerry-Lynne Findlay said the BC NDP-led provincial government’s broader business climate has discouraged investment, while Attorney General critic and Richmond-Queensborough MLA Steve Kooner argued legal uncertainty has weakened investor confidence.

Former B.C. Conservative leader John Rustad also criticized the proposal on social media, calling it “subsidizing incompetence” and accusing the federal and provincial governments of preventing the market from correcting itself.

With governments expected to release further program details in the coming months, many observers say the debate may ultimately hinge on questions that remain unanswered — including where the units will be purchased, how much governments will pay, how affordability will be defined, and whether the initiative represents an efficient way to create affordable housing or an expensive intervention into the private housing market.

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