Canada

You don’t buy a house because you presume it will appreciate 100-1000% by the time you sell it.

Do people buy homes expecting that they will *lose * value over time?

Yes, I do think people BUY homes (as opposed to renting one) because it WILL gain value over the life of ownership. Someone living in a house for 50 year should be able to sell it and live off the earnings until they are dead. Why not?

Every Canadian has the right to buy affordable housing.

I agree, but not every Canadian understands the expectation of what "affordable housing" really means.

It's generally recognized that "affordable housing" means housing that does not exceed 30% of a HOUSEHOLD income before tax.

Stats Can says that people with mortgages allocated 1/3 of their goods and services spending to shelter costs ($30,000 / year) with $17,000 going towards mortgages.

By comparison, renters only spend 25% of their spending towards rental payments ($12,200).

Both would still be considered "affordable housing", yet it's clear that someone making a median income would realistically be able to afford rental housing, and not homeownership.

Saying affordable housing is affordable renting is not only reductive but downright prejudicial: people don’t rent because they’re poor. They rent because they want the freedom to move without selling a house. They rent because they are building lives as students or young families or their careers. They rent because they choose to invest their money in something other than house equity.

Yes! I completely agree! Renting is not a downgrade from homeownership, but it is distinctly different. That's why I'd argue that owning a house is an investment, while renting is not (although, renting allows you to invest in other areas).

We need more affordable rental space, so that every Canadian who earns an income can afford a place to live.

I simply think it's unrealistic to believe that every Canadian could ever be able to afford to buy a house with an individual income below the median ($32,000).