Proposed changes for non-Islanders buying municipal property facing criticism

Sheehan Desjardins · CBC News

· Posted: Apr 24, 2025 12:32 PM EDT | Last Updated: 1 hr ago

A projected alteration to however non-residents would beryllium allowed to bargain spot connected Prince Edward Island is raising concerns astir the consequences it could person connected municipalities. 

P.E.I.'s Department of Housing, Land and Communities is proposing an amendment to the Lands Protection Act, a unsocial portion of authorities that includes limitations connected non-resident and firm onshore ownership successful the province.

The alteration would pb to radical who are not Island residents needing furniture support to buy properties of 1 acre or little that are located wrong municipalities with an authoritative plan. 

According to the province, the amendment is meant to make much transparency and oversight implicit who owns onshore connected the 1.4 million-acre Island.

The Federation of P.E.I. Municipalities worries astir the repercussions, though. 

"I recognize the government's rationale down bringing this legislation. Land extortion is important," said Satya Sen, the federation's enforcement director.

"But determination could beryllium unintended consequences by introducing this legislation."

The projected amendment says that if idiosyncratic who doesn't yet ain spot connected P.E.I. wants to bargain a location connected a crippled measuring under 1 acre — and that location is successful a municipality with an authoritative program — the idiosyncratic volition request furniture approval. But if the desired spot is extracurricular a municipality with a plan, furniture support would not beryllium required to bargain onshore of five acres oregon less. 

Sen is acrophobic that the "bureaucratic reddish tape" volition effect successful radical preferring to bargain properties extracurricular municipal boundaries, and that could pb to sprawl successful areas that don't person the infrastructure to enactment it. 

"Municipalities are champion positioned to negociate maturation and invited people, caller residents, caller Islanders," helium said.

"Is the furniture acceptable to o.k. each the applications, adjacent for a azygous batch successful Charlottetown brought by an incoming doc oregon a caregiver from a antithetic province? I don't deliberation that's the relation of furniture successful this regard."

WATCH | Satya Sen thinks much amalgamation could beryllium the solution for municipal backing crunches connected P.E.I.: 

'Not the extremity of the conversation'

The P.E.I. Real Estate Association has problems with it too. In a missive to the province, the relation raised concerns ranging from the imaginable antagonistic interaction connected migration to however the determination could wounded section homeowners who are trying to merchantability their houses. 

"The antagonistic impacts listed supra greatly outweigh immoderate imaginable positives," the missive said.

"In the discourse of a lodging crisis, policies that further bounds entree to lodging — whether by reducing request oregon capitalist information — lone exacerbate affordability issues."

Land usage crossed P.E.I. has been a taxable of treatment for decades. In February, the state said changes to the Lands Protection Act would beryllium tabled "to heighten oversight of onshore holdings for non-residents."

That announcement came the aforesaid time that Land Minister Steven Myers said helium had ordered a caller probe into Buddhist onshore holdings successful the province.

WATCH | How overmuch onshore bash Buddhist groups connected P.E.I. control? Here's wherefore it's hard to travel up with a number:

Boyd Allen with the Coalition for the Protection of P.E.I. Lands said helium is pleased to spot that updating the enactment is connected the government's radar. Still, helium doesn't recognize wherefore this is the precedence alternatively than the conception of beneficial ownership.

That's a mechanics nether the enactment to effort to find whether ample onshore owners mightiness power onshore nether antithetic names oregon corporations, and frankincense beryllium capable to skirt onshore ownership limits.

"If you're going to look astatine the Land Protection Act and enactment it nether the microscope and marque amendments to it, past you person to look astatine different items which person been, up to this point, not addressed," Allen said.

Allen besides has concerns astir the nationalist engagement process and wonders if this volition beryllium the exemplary for aboriginal amendments. 

"It's a vexation due to the fact that it was announced connected a Friday day and attached to it was a two-week remark window, which ended connected Good Friday," helium said. 

"There wasn't overmuch accidental for those acrophobic astir this to really talk to it. And fixed the structure, determination was nary warrant that what was being said was being noted oregon listened to oregon considered."

Sen agrees that this connection requires much treatment and said helium would besides similar further details. For example, he's not definite what it means for municipal properties measuring betwixt 1 and 5 acres.

"You tin support the onshore portion not being protectionist astir it," helium said.

"If the authorities [wants] to person much consultation connected this authorities earlier it is tabled, that would beryllium great. If not, I recognize the government's presumption connected this. However, this is not the extremity of the conversation."

Province reviewing submissions

The state said Myers won't talk to the connection until it gets tabled successful the legislature.

It besides said provincial staff are reviewing the submissions from the consultations and whitethorn marque changes based connected the feedback earlier tabling the bill. 

P.E.I.'s Lands Protection Act came into effect successful 1982, successful portion arsenic a effect to concerns astir ownership of the province's constricted onshore basal being concentrated nether ample corporations including those controlled by the Irving household successful New Brunswick.

The enactment requires non-residents and corporations to question furniture support if a onshore acquisition would propulsion their full onshore holdings beyond 5 acres, oregon if it includes 165 feet of shorefront.

The enactment besides includes wide limits connected onshore ownership of 1,000 acres per idiosyncratic and 3,000 acres for corporations, with further allowances for things similar non-arable onshore oregon onshore leased retired to idiosyncratic else.