Vacant offices can help fix the housing crisis!

Former deputy prime minister Sheila Copps says Canada needs to convert empty offices into housing units if it plans to fix the ongoing affordability and supply crisis.

“I think it needs to go further, and not just no GST for new builds – for rentals – but also for conversions and including conversion renovations,” she told BNN Bloomberg in a television interview.

The commercial real estate firm CBRE recently reported an 18.1 national office vacancy rate, the highest level since 1994. When it comes to downtown offices, the vacancy rate climbed to 18.9 per cent.

Office-to-housing conversions are not a new concept, but the idea has picked up steam in the pandemic as housing prices skyrocketed and more occupations embraced work from home.