M-349 - Mortgage payments should be deductible

Wayne Marston introduces motion in House of Commons

Since being elected, I have been looking for practical, legislative solutions to the concerns and problems that I hear from families in our community. The average family that owns a home finds making ends meet at the end of the month difficult at times.

For example, many parents that I speak to would like to be able to put aside money to save for their children's education but find it impossible with all of the costs associated with owing their own home. I've also spoken to many people, who never bought a house until later in life and are now trying to make mortgage payments with one or two household members on a fixed income.

In a very interesting conversation with one constituent, we discussed the idea of making mortgage payments deductible. Although the management of property related taxes is exclusively a provincial responsibility, I started to think about what role the federal government could play in helping average families own homes for the first time. The result is the motion that is attached here that I introduced in the House of Commons in June 2007.

The intent of the motion is to encourage the Federal Government to take a leadership role in bringing the various provincial and territorial jurisdictions together to ensure that there are equal standards for mortgage deductibility established across the country that aim to provide proportionately equal benefits to families of low incomes and families with higher incomes.

Updates on the status of M-349 will be made available here as they occur. The full text of the motion can be accessed by clicking on the link below.