This is a complex problem, I don't think banning non-residents from buying or owning homes is the solution...

A while back, I met a wonderful gentleman and his wife.

They were both UK nationals, but they'd been living in Newfoundland on and off for a number of years, and decided they wanted to retire.

They didn't want to go through the citizenship process, but they were denied permanent residency

The explanation they gave was as they were both elderly and the gentleman had a medical issue, the immigration folks were concerned they'd be a burden on the healthcare system.

They went back to the UK, but they still own property here in Newfoundland, and still spend half the year every year...

They're active members of the community while they're here, volunteering, socializing, and spending their money, and generally enjoying the life style the island offers.

I don't really have a problem with then owning property in Canada... and given that it's a small town that desperately needs every bit of help it can get, if they want to come spend their money and be an active part of the community, I'm very much in favour of that... I'd hate to see them not be able to do that.

I realize there's a lot of foreign owned properties driving up housing costs in major centers, and that's certainly a problem too, but it's short sighted to just ban all non-resident.