Seven in 10 voters say the issue will have at least some influence on their vote, finds survey
The 2017 BC Election will be largely affected by housing affordability, with 70 per cent of voters saying that the issue will have at least some influence over which way they vote, according to a survey by The Forum Poll.
In the survey of more than 1,000 voters, 41 per cent said housing policy will have a large influence on their vote, and 29 per cent said it would have some influence. Less than a quarter (24 per cent) said that housing issues would not affect their vote at all, with the remainder still unsure.
Younger voters aged 34 and under tended to cite housing issues as an even stronger vote-swayer, with 50 per cent saying that it would have a large influence. The less wealthy demographic polled also cited being even more strongly influenced by housing issues, at 54 per cent.
Voters who said they supported the NDP made up an even bigger group of those saying housing had a large influence on their vote, at 55 per cent. And voters living on Vancouver Island or in Metro Vancouver also tended to see housing as a larger influence on their votes.
On the other hand, older voters, wealthier voters or high-income earners, those with university and postgraduate degrees, those living in BC’s Northern Interior, and Liberal supporters tended to see housing issues as less of an influence on their BC Election vote.
Just over six in 10 of those polled (62 per cent) said they would support the Green Party’s proposal of doubling of the foreign buyer’s tax on real estate from 15 to 30 per cent and expanding it across the province, with younger voters tending to be even stronger supporters of this idea, at 68 per cent.
More than a third of respondents said they believe the government has a lot of power to affect the cost of housing (34 per cent).
Dr. Lorne Bozinoff, president of Forum Research, said, "Housing costs are still at the top of mind for many voters, and most believe that the government has at least some power to affect housing rates in the province, which means if costs don’t come down, the governing party is likely to get the blame.”
You can read the full survey report here.
