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This decoupling is heaping pressure on the province to take action. Hundreds of people rallied on Sunday in downtown Vancouver demanding the government move swiftly to bring down home prices. But some experts say it is not easy.

“It’s about balancing supply and demand without killing the golden goose,” said Andy Yan, director of The City Program at Simon Fraser University, noting British Columbia’s finances are dependant on the booming real estate sector, and efforts to cool Vancouver’s hot market could hurt less frothy cities.

British Columbia has passed five straight balanced budgets and it is the only Canadian province with a triple-A credit rating from all three international credit rating agencies.

“They’re going to need to approach this with a tool kit rather than a magic bullet,” said Yan.

Experts anticipate a mix of supply and demand levers in the NDP’s new housing policy, including a speculation tax and a widening of Vancouver’s foreign buyer tax, introduced by the previous Liberal government in 2016, to include more cities.

It's about balancing supply and demand without killing the golden goose Andy Yan, director of The City Program at Simon Fraser University

The median value of Vancouver homes jumped to 11 times the median household income in 2016, up from a ratio of 9.4 times in 2011, data compiled by Yan show. By comparison, the ratio for Toronto rose to 8.3 in 2016 and was 4.9 for Canada, which is skewed higher by the two cities, while 3 or less is considered affordable.

While Vancouver’s empty home tax and restrictions on home-sharing services like Airbnb have helped slow detached home sales, demand for less-expensive condos has become frenzied, prompting some experts to question whether any new policy will be effective.