British Columbia takes aim at housing speculation

Victoria, British Columbia

BRITISH Columbia moved on Tuesday to crack down on real estate speculators, expanding its foreign buyer tax and introducing a new speculation tax, as part of a wide-ranging strategy to cool housing prices in Canada's most expensive real estate market.

The left-leaning New Democratic (NDP) government, under pressure to address skyrocketing home prices and soaring rents, particularly in the Vancouver area, unveiled a 30-point housing plan as part of its first full budget.

It also projected a surplus of C$219 million (S$228 million) in fiscal 2018/19, as the province posted its sixth consecutive balanced budget, and pledged more money for childcare…