B.C. at a crossroads

Election commentary · Video

Why this B.C. election feels crazy

Angry Mortgage calls this video “BC Craziness.” It offers a mortgage-industry commentator’s take on the provincial election. To me, the troubling part is how many big issues voters must assess at once: the budget deficit, housing affordability, health-care access and uncertainty over financing for some Richmond properties. Every party should explain what it would do, what it would cost and how we could measure the results.

Video: Angry Mortgage, BC Craziness on YouTube. The video presents its creator’s opinions; the records and questions below provide context for assessing election claims. [26]

Housing policy · Video

The proposed tax on unsold condos

Video by Jay Coupar: Jay is a Vancouver realtor specializing in False Creek condos. He discusses how a new tax might affect prices, developers and future housing supply. His description of the video follows in his own words. [27] [32]

David Eby wants to tax developers on newly completed condos that remain empty and unsold for more than a year. He says it will push developers to lower prices. I think he’s missing why these condos are sitting in the first place.

Developers are already paying interest, property taxes and other carrying costs. Many are offering incentives and cutting prices to move their inventory. In this video, I give you my take on the proposed tax, the cost of building in Vancouver, and what another expense could mean for future housing supply.

I’ve voted NDP before. Running my own business changed how I see the effect of taxes and regulation on the people expected to build the homes B.C. needs.

What do you think: would this tax bring prices down, or make the next generation of condos harder to build? Let me know in the comments.

I’m Jay Coupar, a Vancouver realtor focused on False Creek condos and the surrounding market. If you’re considering buying or selling, call or text me: 778-986-9090.

Tax clarification: This is a proposal, not a tax currently in force. The BC NDP says its new Unsold Condo Tax would start at 2% after a finished condo has remained empty and unsold for more than one year, rising by one percentage point for each additional year. This is separate from B.C.’s existing speculation and vacancy tax. [30]

Separate vacancy-tax proposal: The 2026 speculation and vacancy tax rates are 1% for affected Canadian owners and 3% for foreign owners and untaxed worldwide earners; an earlier budget already scheduled the latter rate to rise to 4% in 2027. The NDP’s election announcement proposes 2% for affected domestic owners and 5% for foreign owners. [29] [31] [30]

Watch Jay Coupar’s video on YouTube. Jay’s views are his own; the linked sources show the tax proposal and current rates. [27]

Public accounts and forecasts

The fiscal picture

These figures call for scrutiny. Budget 2026 says spending supports health care, schools, transport and other services, while the government plans to reduce the annual deficit gradually. Voters can reasonably ask whether that pace and those results justify the borrowing. [4]

Services and household budgets

What residents are experiencing

Emergency care and waits

Rural emergency department interruptions are real. Northern Health identifies staffing, recruitment and retention as challenges; Interior Health announced a September 20 interruption at Clearwater, then said it secured coverage and reopened the department. The province publishes surgical wait times by procedure and location. [7] [8] [9]

Claims that staff are refusing overtime, that every weekend is affected, or that a record number of patients have died while waiting need specific evidence. The government also reported that about 80% of residents had a family doctor or nurse practitioner as of September 2026, while 323,000 people were registered to be matched with one. Both progress and gaps deserve attention. [10]

Cost of living and taxes

Vancouver remains one of Canada's least affordable markets for home ownership, although RBC reports some improvement in 2026. Housing, interest rates, global inflation and provincial policy all matter; one premier alone did not cause every price increase. [11]

The province raised the lowest personal income tax rate from 5.06% to 5.60% for 2026. Its planned October expansion of PST to selected professional services was paused on September 18, 2026; it should not be described as a tax already in force. [12] [13]

U.S. trade pressure

U.S. tariffs are a genuine risk to B.C. jobs and revenue, and the province has cited trade uncertainty in its budget and its PST pause. That does not settle how much of the deficit is due to tariffs, spending decisions or other factors. Ask every party to publish its assumptions rather than blame only Washington or only Victoria. [4] [13]

Richmond and Indigenous rights

DRIPA, land titles and mortgages

What DRIPA does: The 2019 Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples Act directs B.C. to work with Indigenous peoples to align provincial laws with the UN Declaration. It also allows agreements for joint or consent-based decisions under particular laws. That is shared government decision-making in an agreement, not a new “joint title” entry on every homeowner’s land title. [16]

What happened in Richmond: In August 2025, the B.C. Supreme Court recognized Cowichan Nation Aboriginal title over approximately 732 acres in southeast Richmond, including some privately held parcels. It found specified fee-simple interests held by Canada and the City of Richmond defective and invalid. The Cowichan plaintiffs did not seek an order invalidating individual private owners’ registered titles, and the court did not order those owners’ titles transferred to the Nation. The legal relationship between Aboriginal title and private ownership remains disputed on appeal. [17] [18] [19]

Important distinction: The Cowichan judgment concerns Aboriginal title protected under section 35 of the Constitution Act, 1982; it did not award title under DRIPA. Repealing DRIPA would not by itself erase Aboriginal title, the duty to consult, or the Cowichan court case. DRIPA is directly at issue in a separate December 2025 Court of Appeal decision about B.C.’s mineral-claim system; the Supreme Court of Canada agreed to hear that appeal in May 2026. [16] [20] [21]

Why financing uncertainty matters

A title dispute can worry buyers, appraisers, insurers and lenders, affecting sales, refinancing or new construction. A Richmond developer reported that a lender declined $35 million in financing after the ruling; the province proposed more than $150 million in loan guarantees as a possible backstop. At the same time, Premier Eby said major banks had told the province they were still issuing ordinary mortgages and renewals in the area. These reports do not establish that all homeowners have been refused renewal, or that their registered titles have disappeared. [22] [23]

The City of Richmond has appealed and says the decision could affect property interests. Cowichan leaders say they never sought to invalidate individual owners’ titles or displace residents. Homeowners deserve written, parcel-specific answers about title, renewal and available guarantees while the litigation proceeds. [18] [19] [24]

My opinion

What I want from the next government

I favour a party and local candidate who can show spending discipline while protecting essential care. That means a costed plan, public service targets, a realistic deficit path and honest reporting when a promise fails.

I also favour keeping the Legislature at its current 93 seats when population grows, and redrawing electoral boundaries instead of automatically adding MLAs. This is a proposal, not current law. B.C.'s independent electoral boundaries commission recommends changes; the Legislature reviews them. Any seat cap must be tested against fair voter representation, regional access and the needs of rural and Indigenous communities. [14] [1]

My DRIPA position: I favour legislation to return to the pre-DRIPA statutory framework, including repeal of DRIPA and review of the related 2021 Interpretation Act section 8.1. Candidates should publish the exact proposed wording and its legal consequences before a vote. Any reform must respect existing constitutional Indigenous rights, honour agreements, provide meaningful consultation, and give homeowners and investors clear rules. Provincial legislation alone cannot reverse a constitutional title finding. [16] [25]

Bring these to an all-candidates meeting

Eight questions for every candidate

1. What is your year-by-year plan for the deficit and taxpayer-supported debt? Which programs change, and what will each change save?
2. What measurable steps will rebuild credit quality, and what will you do if independent rating agencies decline to upgrade B.C.?
3. How many emergency department service hours will your plan restore in affected communities, and how will you recruit and retain staff?
4. What waiting-time targets will you publish for family care, diagnostics and surgery? How will you report outcomes and patient safety?
5. Which taxes, fees or exemptions would you change, and what would a typical household and small business actually pay?
6. Would you keep 93 MLAs through the next boundary review? How would you protect equal representation and rural access?
7. Would you amend or repeal DRIPA and the 2021 Interpretation Act change? Show the proposed wording and explain what would remain under section 35 of the Constitution.
8. What written protection and practical financing help would you provide for affected Richmond owners whose lender questions a renewal, refinancing or sale? Who qualifies and who pays?

Compare answers, not slogans: ask for dates, costs, independent checks and a public progress report.

Read the underlying records

Sources and further reading

1. Elections BC: writs issued, election date and 93 ridings (September 23, 2026).
2. Province of B.C.: John Horgan, in memoriam.
3. Province of B.C.: 2022–23 public accounts and $704 million surplus (August 2023).
4. Budget 2026: fiscal plan, deficits and debt forecast.
5. S&P Global Ratings: 2021 downgrade from AAA to AA+.
6. Province of B.C.: ratings from four agencies (updated May 4, 2026). See also S&P's April 2026 report.
7. Northern Health: service interruptions and staffing response.
8. Interior Health: Clearwater emergency department update (September 20, 2026).
9. B.C. Ministry of Health: surgery wait times dashboard.
10. Province of B.C.: primary care connections and registry (September 2026).
11. RBC Economics: housing affordability, first quarter 2026.
12. Province of B.C.: 2026 personal income tax rates.
13. Province of B.C.: pause of planned PST expansion (September 18, 2026).
14. Elections BC: independent electoral boundaries commission.
15. Global News: Eby's early election announcement and stated rationale (September 22, 2026). For a local report on weekend staffing, see CJDC-TV: Tumbler Ridge emergency department closure (September 21, 2026).
16. BC Laws: Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples Act (especially sections 1, 3 and 7).
17. B.C. Supreme Court: Cowichan Tribes v. Canada, 2025 BCSC 1490.
18. City of Richmond: information for affected property owners and notice of appeal.
19. Cowichan Tribes: October 27, 2025 statement on private owners.
20. B.C. Court of Appeal: Gitxaala v. British Columbia, 2025 BCCA 430 (mineral-claim system).
21. Supreme Court of Canada: Gitxaala appeal, file 42200.
22. CityNews / Canadian Press: reported developer financing and proposed guarantees (December 12, 2025).
23. CityNews: premier’s report on mortgage lending and renewals (December 17, 2025).
24. City of Richmond: notice to affected owners (October 19, 2025).
25. BC Laws: Interpretation Act, section 8.1.
26. Angry Mortgage: BC Craziness (election commentary video).
27. Jay Coupar: David Eby's Unsold Condo Tax: Will It Make Housing More Affordable? (commentary video).
28. The Canadian Press via CityNews: NDP election proposals for unsold condos and vacancy taxes (September 25, 2026).
29. Province of B.C.: current speculation and vacancy tax rates.
30. BC NDP: proposed Unsold Condo Tax and changes to speculation and vacancy tax (September 25, 2026).
31. Province of B.C.: Budget 2026 fiscal plan (scheduled 2027 foreign-owner rate).
32. Jay Coupar: False Creek condo real estate and contact information.