Insauga: Mississauga MP’s office target of protesters

A national organization fighting for the rights of low- and moderate-income families will be conducting one of 30 protests at the Mississauga Centre office of MP Omar Alghabra.

 

The Peel chapter of ACORN will be picketing the federal Minister of Transportation’s office, located at 10 Kingsbridge Garden Circle,  at 11:15 a.m. today.

 

Protesters are calling on the federal government to Rein in the REITs.

 

REITs, or real estate investment trusts, are companies that own or finance income-producing real estate across a range of property sectors.

 

These real estate companies have to meet a number of requirements to qualify as REITs. Most REITs trade on major stock exchanges, and they offer a number of benefits to investors.

 

ACORN believes REITs, which have a number of federal incentives including tax exemption, are actually destroying Canada’s affordable housing stock.

 

They are calling on the federal government to implement several changes to the way they deal with REITs, including ending tax exemption, instituting a no-displacement guarantee for tenants and ban them owning certain types of multi-family residential buildings they believe are better suited to be run as affordable housing by non-profits.