Episode 4 - Selling B.C.

Host Stephen Quinn pushes for answers and accountability from past and present decision-makers.

Stephen Quinn hosts a public forum in Richmond, a community deeply divided along lines of race, class and culture. The drama unfolds at an aging church in the centre of the city, which will soon be redeveloped to make way for housing.

Could foreign investment in B.C. real estate be good for the people who live and work here? Beyond the wealth accumulated by fortunate home owners, can the win-fall generated by a booming housing industry benefit us all?

Casinos. Corruption. Money Laundering. Loan Sharking. Fraud and fentanyl. The tentacles of illicit foreign funds reach deep into the heart of Vancouver's housing market.

How politicians, realtors, and developers marketed British Columbia to the world. They wanted us to be a 'world class' destination for investors. Now we are. Was it a mistake to woo international money into the Vancouver market?

Foreign investment in Vancouver real estate isn't new. We explore the history of foreign money in the market.

The conversation should be focused on the flow of foreign capital. But has it become an attack on immigrants? Politicians and developers cynically conflate the issue while Chinese Canadians experience the tension.

A story of greed, race and love that goes to the heart of the fight over foreign capital in housing. The backdrop is Vancouver's real estate boom as we shine a light on the impact the affordability crisis is having on our relationship with our city.