Minister mulls house prices, hints “foreign tax” still there

The Ontario Finance Minister has dropped a bit of a warning that the government is still thinking about bringing in a foreign buyers’ tax. A similar tax in BC has thrown cold water on the Vancouver market and many think the raging demand in Toronto has increased because of it. The critical words to weigh from Finance Minister Charles Sousa, as quoted by Canadian Press are these:  “A year ago I was thinking, ‘Let market forces prevail,”‘ Sousa said. “But now I’m concerned about…the ability of people to enter the marketplace. (There are) bidding wars everywhere you go, it appears, and I’m sensitive to that. I’m sensitive to the degree of fast appreciation in the short-term and what will that do over the long-term.” Sousa said he is considering a number of options for next steps, and “a foreign tax is just one.”