Housing Policy with Butler + Meredith + Moffatt

Jul 26, 2025

Guest

Tyler Meredith

Guest

Mike Moffatt

Guest

Ron Butler

In this discussion, housing experts Ron Butler, Mike Moffatt, and Tyler Meredith dissect the pressing issues within Canada's housing market. Ron Butler expresses grave concerns over market accessibility for average Canadians, while Mike Moffatt emphasizes the economic and political intricacies affecting housing affordability. They tackle the challenges of overbuilding condos, the impact of immigration, and innovative solutions for low-income families. The trio also critiques government policies, advocating for more effective reforms to address the housing crisis.

Ask episode

AI Snips

Chapters

Transcript

Episode notes

INSIGHT

Housing: Crisis of Price or Supply?

The housing problem may be more about price than availability due to the condo glut.
Thousands of unsold condos and a surge in rental supply shift the crisis from scarcity to affordability.

INSIGHT

Low Prices Kill Homebuilding Incentives

Single-family homes face supply shortages because low prices don't cover building costs.
High land and tax costs keep construction expensive despite falling home prices.

INSIGHT

Housing Crisis Hits All Classes Differently

Core housing need affects 1.7 million people, mostly poorer individuals.
Political focus is on making homeownership attainable for middle-class voters' children.

Get the Snipd Podcast app to discover more snips from this episode

Get the app

The Herle Burly was created by Air Quotes Media with support from our presenting sponsor TELUS, as well as CN Rail.

Greetings, you curiouser and curiouser Herle Burly-ites! Last week on the pod, we had Scott Aitchison on – Conservative Housing Critic. This week we’re sticking with that theme – housing – so central to the last federal election and something I want to keep exploring with you.

So on the pod today I want to look it at from a couple of perspectives. Experience on the ground and policy making. What’s the current state of play in the market? What’s been the impact of measures to date? Has the situation improved? How does the condo glut affect things? And broadly, is the government plan a good one?

We’ve assembled a housing panel to help answer those questions: Ron Butler + Mike Moffatt + Tyler Meredith!

Ron Butler describes himself as a “big, old, overly opinionated mortgage broker, worried about the future of housing for average Canadians.” He’s the founder of Butler Mortgage Inc, with over 30 years in the business. And hosts of his own weekly pod, “The Angry Mortgage Podcast”, where he swears a f**k of a lot and shares his insights about the industry.

Mike Moffatt is co-host of the “Missing Middle Podcast.” His twitter bio says he’s a Husband, Father, Brother, Son, Economist and Housing Guy. Among other things, he’s an Assistant Professor in the Business, Economics, and Public Policy Group at Ivey Business School, Western University. He served as Director of Policy and Research at Canada 2020. And he’s done extensive research on Canada's housing supply and the affordability crisis.

Tyler Meredith is the former Head of Fiscal and Economic Policy for Prime Minister Trudeau and Ministers of Finance, Chrystia Freeland and Bill Morneau. Today, he’s a Founding Partner at Meredith/Boessenkool Policy Advisors. And he was a co-host of the limited run podcast “Race to Replace”, right here at Air Quotes Media!

Thank you for joining us on #TheHerleBurly podcast. Please take a moment to give us a rating and review on iTunes, Spotify, Stitcher, Google Podcasts or your favourite podcast app.

Watch episodes of The Herle Burly via Air Quotes Media on YouTube.

The sponsored ads contained in the podcast are the expressed views of the sponsor and not those of the publisher.