In Canada there are many government policies and incentives geared to promoting home ownership, and real estate associations are pushing for more. But groups that represent landlords say the playing field is tilted too heavily in favour of homeowners, and needs to be levelled.

The Ontario Real Estate Association (OREA) says 70 per cent of renters would like to buy a home at some point in the future. The OREA poll also says that 81 per cent of Ontario residents "believe it is more difficult to own a home now than it was for their parents, and 89 per cent of Ontarians in general are concerned that home ownership will become even more difficult in the future."

OREA is calling on the provincial government to provide an improved land transfer tax rebate for first-time buyers, a permanent rebate program to support home renovations, and the reintroduction of the Ontario Home Energy Retrofit Rebate program to help with energy efficient renovations. Across the country, real estate associations are hoping for similar government assistance.

Housing affordability is also a concern for Canadian landlords, but they think homeowners get enough help already. "Homeowners receive a truly staggering array of subsidies and tax breaks compared to tenants," says Vince Brescia, president and CEO of the Federation of Rental-housing Providers of Ontario (FRPO). "It is appalling that this regressive discrimination occurs despite homeowners having double the incomes of tenants on average. The net effect is that renters are forced to subsidize homeowners."

A recent report prepared for FRPO and the Canadian Federation of Apartment Associations (CFAA) says the federal government gives the average homeowner household an average of $1,823 in subsidies, compared to $308 per household for renters. Among the policies and programs that favour home ownership in Canada, say the landlord organizations:

• Tax-free status for capital gains on principal residences

• Lower property tax rates for owner occupied homes in many provinces

• The federal Home Buyers Plan, which allows first-time buyers to borrow from an RRSP for a down payment on a home

• Rebates on land transfer taxes for first-time buyers

- Home ownership savings plans in Ontario and Nova Scotia The associations also say that owners benefit from "imputed income" – after they buy a house, owners live in it without paying any rent, but that value to the owner is not considered part of the owner’s income for tax purposes. That, say the landlord organizations, provides another large advantage for owners versus renters.

Home ownership receives further assistance from the government’s policy of requiring mortgage insurance for high-ratio loans.

The CFAA says the government should "review the broad issue of moving Canada’s tax policy away from excessive encouragement of home ownership." It says a more neutral policy would provide benefits to the Canadian economy, such as providing higher labour mobility (renters are more likely to move than owners), more incentive for investors to put money into "income and growth producing assets, rather than owner-occupied housing", and would give the government an opportunity to lower other taxes "since owner-occupied homes are currently largely exempt from income taxes whereas rental properties produce tax revenue."

Canada is a nation of homeowners, however, and it doesn’t seem like that’s going to change quickly. According to The Consumerology Report from advertising agency Bensimon Byrnes, "Most Canadians continue to feel the cost-of-living pinch and have not seen improvements in their incomes, job security or growth in their investments, and yet, because of the increase in the value of their home, their perception of their own net worth is improved," says Jack Bensimon, president of the agency.

In addition to the boost that the real estate industry provides for the economy, the OREA poll says 94 per cent of Ontarians think that owning a home provides a healthy and stable environment for raising a family. OREA says that homeowners are much more likely to say they voted in the last municipal election than renters, and 35 per cent of owners say they have volunteered in their community.

The debate about whether it’s more economically sound to buy a home and build equity, or rent and invest money elsewhere, has continued for years. A renter may not have the discipline to put as much money into investments when it isn’t forced savings like paying off a mortgage. There are also no guarantees that home values will continue to rise, or will go up during the specific time period the owner has the home.

In the end, the pride of home ownership seems to be the reason most Canadians aspire to buy. As long as home ownership makes Canadians happy, you can expect the government to continue to subsidize it.

Published: May 10, 2011

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Jim Adair is editor of REM: Canada's Real Estate Magazine, a business publication for real estate agents and brokers. He has been writing about Canadian real estate, home building and renovation issues for more than 30 years. You can contact Jim at .