Rent control debate: More N.S. landlords consider selling units as advocate calls for permanent cap
Global News
The Investment Property Owners Association of Nova Scotia conducted a survey where 51 per cent of landlords said they were either selling or considering selling their properties.
The Investment Property Owners Association of Nova Scotia says the rising cost of maintaining properties and the province’s two per cent rent cap is driving landlords to sell their rental units.
Kevin Russell, the president of the association, said IPOANS conducted a survey among more than 100 rental housing owners, of whom 51 per cent said they were either selling or considering selling their properties.
“These small landlords are tired. It’s a tough business and (they’re) now being confronted with a two per cent rent cap, with expenses rising in double digits,” he said in an interview.
“They’re looking at all their options and one of them is including selling.”
All landlords who responded to the survey represented 17,000 rental units in Nova Scotia, equalling an average of about 170 properties per landlord. Those who said they were considering selling their properties represent 5,400 multi-unit residential buildings and 3,600 duplexes or single-family homes.
Russell said the association defines “small landlords” as those who own between one and 500 units who run their operation without hired staff.
The two per cent rent cap was originally put in place by the province’s former Liberal government during the COVID-19 pandemic, and in a surprise move in October, the new Progressive Conservative government announced that it will remain until the end of 2023.
The decision came after mounting public pressure amid a provincial housing crisis that’s seen unaffordable housing prices and rising rates of homelessness.