The president of Canadian real estate firm Avison Young is encouraging the country's two major parties to work together to enact key policies that will benefit commercial real estate.
Mark Fieder, a principal and president of Canada for Toronto-based Avison Young, said the tariffs imposed by the United States president, Donald Trump, and Canada's federal election Monday created uncertainty.
"Occupiers and investors have been trying to understand the impacts of tariffs and a new government in Canada," Fieder said in a statement. "Now, the new government is in place and will be in a solid position to address the challenges of tariffs and our relationship with the American administration and other trading partners around the world."
Former Brookfield Asset Management chair Mark Carney led the Liberal Party to its fourth straight election victory, which kept him in place as Canada's 24th prime minister. Still, his victory left him short of a majority government and dependent on other parties to pass legislation.
The final tally had the Liberals at 168 seats and the Conservative Party of Canada finishing a close second at 144, followed by the separatist Bloc Québécois at 23 seats, the New Democratic Party at seven and the Greens with one.
Rather than the Liberals relying on wooing one of the smaller parties to join their cause, Fieder said the two major parties can work together on legislation, and he said they have a similar vision on real estate policies.
"Both parties promised to eliminate the Goods and Services Tax (GST) for purchasing a first home of less than one million dollars. Both parties also committed to lowering taxes for the middle class, which should help consumer spending," the executive said. "In terms of energy infrastructure, both leaders said they would create a one-stop shop to expedite the approval and construction of major projects."
Liberals, Conservatives in agreement
The leaders of the Liberals and Conservatives also agreed that "Canada should focus on energy, which will benefit Alberta's economy but also create energy security for Canada," Fieder said. "Further, both the Liberals and the Conservatives are promoting more efficient government management and reduction of red tape and bureaucracy.
"These measures are all good for our economy and for commercial real estate — key campaign promises made by both parties that will be beneficial for commercial real estate, and should technically be facing little or no opposition now."
Moreover, the real estate industry had just begun to feel confident about the market this year, he said.
"And the recovery within commercial real estate and the economy is still in excellent shape," Fieder said. "We have low unemployment and inflation is under control, so far. A lot of positive things were leading up to a recovery for commercial real estate in 2025."
Robert Kavcic, a senior economist with the Bank of Montreal, said the Liberal platform likely means higher spending and more borrowing.
"Increased fiscal stimulus could also stay the Bank of Canada's hand somewhat," Kavcic said in a report. "More rate cuts are still likely from the Bank of Canada, but the budget will be a factor in determining the depth of those cuts. BMO is forecasting another 75 basis points of rate cuts by year-end, while the market is pricing around 50 basis points."