COPE on affordable homes: triple the Empty Homes Tax, buy apartments, stop demovictions
COPE would triple Vancouver's Empty Homes Tax, buy apartment buildings to turn into public housing and co-ops, and stop demovictions with a city-wide anti-displacement policy. Under its platform, developers would also pay the full cost of moving tenants.
FIGHT FOR HOUSING · PAGES 5 TO 6
Stop the Loss of Affordable Housing: what the Fight for Vancouver says
The first housing chapter of COPE's platform is about homes that already exist. COPE, the Coalition of Progressive Electors, says Vancouver lost over 47,000 affordable homes to rent increases and demovictions between 2016 and 2021. A demoviction is an eviction so that a building can be torn down and replaced. The party's answer is to keep older rental buildings standing, keep their rents low and move more of them out of the private market.
To do that, COPE would buy apartment buildings and turn them into public housing and co-ops. It would give tenants, and then the city, the first chance to buy a building that goes up for sale, and it would create a Multi-Unit Residential Acquisition Fund for land trusts, co-ops and non-profits. It would also triple the Empty Homes Tax, the city's tax on homes left empty, and spend the money on affordable housing.
A second group of items covers what happens when a building is redeveloped. The party would expand the Tenant Relocation and Protection Policy (TRPP) across the city, make developers pay the full cost of moving tenants, and give renters a home of the same size in the same neighbourhood. Public workers, paid for by a fee on developers, would support tenants in place of relocation staff hired by developers.
Council can act alone on much of this: it sets the Empty Homes Tax, controls zoning and city land, and sets fees on developers. Closing the vacancy loophole, which lets rents rise without limit between tenants, is different. Rent increase limits are set by the Province, so COPE could only press for that change. Funding for new co-ops and public housing would also depend on the provincial and federal governments, which the platform says it would push.
THE PARTY'S NUMBERS
Figures in this chapter
Affordable homes the party says Vancouver lost to rent increases and demovictions between 2016 and 2021
The party's figure, page 5Average rent for a two bedroom purpose-built apartment in 2016, according to the platform
The party's figure, page 5Average rent for the same apartment in 2024, according to the platform
The party's figure, page 5Increase in that rent from 2016 to 2024, as the platform calculates it
The party's figure, page 5Inflation over the same period, according to the platform
The party's figure, page 5SRA fees the party says Ken Sim and ABC waived for a developer in one vote
The party's figure, page 617 COMMITMENTS
What the party says it would do
Close the loopholes landlords use to raise rents
COPE says it would fight to keep rents low by closing the vacancy loophole, so that rent controls apply between one tenant and the next.
- Who has the power
- Province The Province sets rent increase limits and tenancy law, so the city can only press for this change.
Triple the Empty Homes Tax
The party would triple the Empty Homes Tax to put more rental homes on the market and use the money to build affordable housing. The platform says COPE first proposed the tax in 2014 and meant it to grow over time, and that Ken Sim and ABC froze it and created new loopholes for developers.
- Who has the power
- City Council The Empty Homes Tax is a City of Vancouver bylaw, the Vacancy Tax By-law, so Council sets its rate.
Buy apartments and turn them into public housing and co-ops
COPE would buy apartment buildings and make them permanently affordable public housing and co-ops. It would create a right-of-first-refusal policy that gives tenants, and then the city, first priority to buy apartments that go up for sale, and a Multi-Unit Residential Acquisition Fund to help land trusts, co-ops and non-profits buy rental housing and prevent displacement.
- Who has the power
- City, with others Council can buy buildings and set up a fund through the city budget. The platform names land trusts, co-ops and non-profits as the groups that would use the fund.
Support community-led land trusts
The party would support community-led land trusts that protect land from speculative development and create permanently affordable housing for public benefit.
- Who has the power
- City, with others Land trusts are run by community groups. The platform describes the city's role as support.
Support, protect and expand co-op housing
COPE would renew leases for existing co-ops at no charge, give priority to new co-ops on city-owned land, and push other levels of government to make generational investments in co-op housing.
- Who has the power
- City, with others Council sets lease terms on land the city owns, but the larger investment the platform asks for would come from the provincial and federal governments.
Protect land held by non-profit community groups
The party says land owned by faith-based groups and other charities or non-profits should be required to offer a right of first refusal to another non-market buyer before it is sold to the private sector.
- Who has the power
- City Council Council would have to adopt the rule. The platform does not say which city power would make it binding on private sellers.
Stop public land sell-offs
COPE would stop selling public land. The platform says public land has been given away to the rich and powerful and sold to cover budget shortfalls.
- Who has the power
- City Council Council decides whether the city sells land it owns.
Expand public land and create a city-wide public land trust
The party would keep and expand Vancouver's public land for public benefit and set up a city-wide public land trust under democratic community control. It would build permanently affordable public housing for every income level and in every neighbourhood, with the provincial and federal governments, host nations and non-profits.
- Who has the power
- City, with others Council controls city land, but the platform names the Province, the federal government, host nations and non-profits as partners in building the housing.
Tax non-resident investors
COPE would tax non-resident investors and use the money to fund affordable housing for people who live in Vancouver.
- Who has the power
- City, with others The platform does not name the tax. Council sets the property tax rate, but the city's powers come from the Vancouver Charter, a provincial law that only the Province can change.
Make redevelopment fees cover replacement homes
The party would require that redevelopment fees for deeply affordable housing cover the full cost of replacement units. It would end the waivers of SRA conversion fees for developers, which the platform says pay for replacing affordable housing.
- Who has the power
- City Council Council sets these city fees and decides whether to waive them.
Stop demovictions with a city-wide anti-displacement policy
COPE would adopt a city-wide anti-displacement policy that protects tenants' rights, converts rentals into co-ops and gives priority to development that does not push people out.
- Who has the power
- City Council Council sets city housing policy and decides which redevelopments are approved.
Grow where there are single family homes, parking lots and storefronts
The party would plan the city's growth on single family lots, parking lots and storefronts, in place of tearing down affordable apartments.
- Who has the power
- City Council Council sets zoning, which decides where new buildings can go.
Retrofit existing affordable housing
COPE would retrofit existing affordable housing for earthquake safety and climate preparedness, and work to transfer ownership to tenants, non-profits or the city.
- Who has the power
- City, with others The city can fund work on buildings it owns, but most of this housing belongs to other owners whose agreement would be needed.
Expand the tenant relocation and protection policy city-wide
The party would take what works from the Tenant Relocation and Protection Policy (TRPP) and apply it across the city with new protections, so that forcing tenants out is no longer a workable business model.
- Who has the power
- City Council The TRPP is a city policy, so Council can widen it.
Make developers bear the full costs of relocation
COPE would make developers pay the full cost of moving tenants, and coordinate redevelopments so renters get a home of the same size, meeting the same accessibility needs, in their own neighbourhood.
- Who has the power
- City Council Council sets the conditions attached to rezonings and development permits.
Public workers to support tenants during developments
The party would appoint public workers, paid for by a fee on developers, to support tenants during redevelopment. The platform says the tenant relocation coordinators hired by developers sometimes ignore tenants or deny them compensation and support.
- Who has the power
- City Council Council decides city staffing and sets fees on development.
Use city-owned land for swing-site housing
COPE would use city-owned land for temporary housing for tenants during redevelopment, which could later become co-op or public housing.
- Who has the power
- City Council Council decides how land the city owns is used.
WHO WOULD HAVE TO ACT
Where the power sits for this chapter
QUESTIONS AND ANSWERS
Questions about stop the loss of affordable housing
What does COPE want to do about the Empty Homes Tax?
COPE would triple Vancouver's Empty Homes Tax and spend the money on affordable housing. The platform says COPE first proposed the tax in 2014 and that Ken Sim and ABC froze it and created loopholes for developers (platform, page 5).
Would COPE buy apartment buildings in Vancouver?
Yes. COPE says the city would buy apartment buildings and make them permanently affordable public housing and co-ops. It would give tenants, and then the city, first priority to buy apartments that go up for sale, and create a Multi-Unit Residential Acquisition Fund for land trusts, co-ops and non-profits (platform, page 5).
How would COPE stop demovictions in Vancouver?
COPE would adopt a city-wide anti-displacement policy, expand the Tenant Relocation and Protection Policy across the city, and make developers pay the full cost of moving tenants. Renters would get a home of the same size in their own neighbourhood (platform, page 6).
What is COPE's position on selling city land?
COPE says it would stop public land sell-offs and set up a city-wide public land trust under democratic community control. It would use public land to build permanently affordable public housing in every neighbourhood (platform, page 6).
Can Vancouver City Council close the vacancy loophole on rents?
COPE says it would fight to close the vacancy loophole so rent controls apply between tenants. Rent increase limits and tenancy law are set by the Province, so a COPE council could press for the change but could not make it alone (platform, page 5).
What does COPE say about co-op housing?
COPE would renew leases for existing co-ops at no charge, give priority to new co-ops on city-owned land, and push the other levels of government for generational investment in co-ops. It would also turn rental buildings into co-ops through its anti-displacement policy (platform, page 6).
ON THE BALLOT
The COPE candidates behind this
Sources
Every commitment on this page comes from the party's own material, marked SAYS SO ITSELF. It proves what the party says it would do. Who holds each power is our own addition, from the sources listed after it.
- Fight for Vancouver: COPE 2026 Platform (PDF) SAYS SO ITSELFCOPE · pages 5 to 6 · checked
- Vacancy Tax (Empty Homes Tax) By-law 11674 City of Vancouver · checked