Trudeau Taxes Speculators to Cool World’s Hottest Housing Market

Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau is attempting to rein in one of the world’s most expensive housing markets.

In its budget on Thursday, his government unveiled a raft of policies designed to make housing more affordable. They include moves to curb demand through taxes on speculators, a freeze on home purchases by foreigners and a ban on blind bidding wars. But Trudeau’s also pursuing an ambitious plan to double the pace of new home construction over the next decade.

“We will do everything we can to make the market fairer for Canadians,” Finance Minister Chrystia Freeland said in the prepared ...